brandon nakashima

Biography

Overview
Nakashima makes his first appearance with Team World at The O2 in London for Laver Cup 2026, and enjoys a winning head-to-head against three of Team Europe’s lineup, including Flavio Cobolli, Jakub Mensik and Rafael Jodar. At 25, he is among a growing number of top 20-ranked Americans and sits at a career-high No.16 after posting solid results throughout the year, most notably across the North American hard-court swing where he reached the final of his first ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Montreal. 

Off Court
Nicknamed B-Nak, Nakashima is the son of pharmacists Wesley and Christina, and his younger brother, Bryce, is an aspiring pro tennis player. Born in California (his mother was raised in Vietnam and his father’s heritage is Japanese), Brandon played tennis from age 3 and attended the University of Virginia at 17, where he was named the 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year. He most admires Roger Federer, but he has also practiced with Novak Djokovic and likens his game to that of the 24-time Grand Slam champion. A reserved personality, he attributes his success to his athleticism and says his favorite surface is hard court, which will play to his strengths when Team World takes on Team Europe at The O2 in London. He is coached by South African Wayne Ferreira.

Career
Nakashima reached the biggest final of his young career at the ATP Masters 1000 in Montreal this year, where he fell to Ben Shelton. However, his ranking rose to a career-high No. 17 and has since moved to No. 16. He won his first ATP Tour singles title in his hometown of San Diego in 2022 and went 5-0 to win the Next Gen ATP Finals title the same year. He started the 2026 season with a runner-up finish in Brisbane to Daniil Medvedev, and after reaching the semifinals on grass at Queen’s, he excelled across the North American hard-court swing in Washington, Montreal and Cincinnati.

2026 Highlights
Runner-up: Brisbane, Montreal
Semifinals: Acapulco, Queen’s Club, Washington, Cincinnati
R3: Indian Wells, Rome, Roland-Garros
R2: US Open