Break out the sunscreen and parasols, because tennis season is imminent! The Shanghai Masters and Beijing's China Open kick off next month, giving local tennis fans their annual chance to see players like Nadal, Federer, Sharapova and the Williams sisters swing grunty backhand volleys in the flesh. The China Open will take place from September 30th to October 9th at the China National Tennis Center, while the Shanghai Masters will run from October 8th to the 16th at the Shanghai Qizhong Tennis Center. Schwing! more ›

The words "tennis powerhouse" are not generally associated with China, but the PRC has made great progress in recent years in terms of establishing itself as a rising star in the tennis world--witness Li Na coming in second at this month's Monterrey Open and Zheng Jie (pictured above) making it to the semifinals at Wimbledon last year. more ›

Snooker is often billed as a gentleman's sport and, as we all know, two crucial characteristics for being a gentleman include being gracious in defeat and showing impeccable manners. Or so we thought. Apparently Shanghaiist's interpretation of gentlemanly behaviour differs somewhat from that of China's Today Morning Express, after they reported that Ronnie O'Sullivan "kept his gentlemanly manners" during a post-match press conference at Beijing's China Open snooker tournament this week. Having watched the video embedded here (following a tip from Shanghaiist reader Rob), where the Essex-born potter repeatedly makes lewd references and compares his microphone to his penis, we're not sure we entirely agree with the Express' assessment. more ›