Mixed doubles is hard for some of us. Court positioning is different, shot selection is different, partner dynamics are different.

Luckily there are thousands of hours of pro matches on the internet, so we can learn from how players at the highest level approach mixed doubles and what strategies they use.

In a match from last weekend, Anna Leigh Waters and Will Howells executed one particular strategy to perfection against Ben Johns and Catherine Parenteau on their way to a dominant 11-4 win. We dive into what they did and why it worked below.

Also in this issue:

• This whole match was a highlight reel 🎞️

• Double trouble: Johnson twins join the Pickleballers Podcast 🎙️

• UFC legends play pickleball match for $20K 💰

• More players are turning to the JOOLA Agassi Pro 📈

Let’s get cookin’. 🧑‍🍳

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK

The level of play in this match was insane

We may have been treated to the best women’s doubles game in the history of Major League Pickleball last weekend between the St. Louis Shock and Los Angeles Mad Drops.

During this exchange at 12-12, both teams were “ahead” in the point at one time, but used great defense and scrambling ability to get back to the kitchen line.

The entire match was filled with points like this one. Ultimately Anna Bright and Kate Fahey came out on top in this point and took the game 16-14 to help the Shock win the match.

🔗 These resets were next level

PICKLEBALLERS PODCAST

The Johnson brothers share highs and lows of life on tour

Hunter and Yates Johnson, twin brothers making their mark in the world of pickleball, join the Pickleballers crew this week for a must-listen episode. They share their journey from professional tennis to pickleball, diving deep into the highs and lows of competition, life on tour and overcoming injuries.

We also talk about Hunter’s incredible rise to becoming the No. 2 singles player in the world and the dedication it took to get there. Packed with real stories, honest conversations and plenty of laughs, this episode offers an inside look at the sport’s most fascinating personalities.

PICKLEBALLERS 24 HOUR GIVEAWAY: Every week The Kitchen & Pickleballers will be doing a 24-hour paddle giveaway to celebrate the latest episode. This week, we are giving away any JOOLA Pro IV paddle of someone’s choice! Enter here.

 🔗 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen on Spotify

INSTRUCTIONAL

How Anna Leigh Waters and Will Howells beat Ben Johns and Catherine Parenteau in mixed.

During last weekend's MLP Dallas event, pickleball fans got to see a matchup that hasn't happened in several years: Ben Johns vs. Anna Leigh Waters.

They are partners on the PPA Tour and didn't play against each other in Major League Pickleball at all last season, but on Saturday it happened when the New Jersey 5s played the Los Angeles Mad Drops.

But the much-anticipated matchup wasn't as close as many people anticipated, with the New Jersey mixed doubles pairing of Waters and Will Howells taking down LA's top mixed team of Johns and Catherine Parenteau 11-4.

There was one specific dinking pattern that stood out during this game.

Here’s how it worked ⬇️

Shot 1: Johns comes over in front of Parenteau to take a dink, and pulls a dink back to the middle of the court.

Shot 2: Howells takes that dink out of the air, sending it back over to Johns’ corner of the kitchen.

Shot 3: Johns is then stretched out and off balance, and forced to hit another dink back to the middle.

Shot 4: Because Johns is now back on his side of the court, this opens up the court for Waters or Howells to take the next ball back toward Parenteau, who they are ultimately trying to isolate in this matchup.

Sometimes Waters and Howells would just sent a dink back to Parenteau's corner to try to start a cross-court dinking exchange, and other times they would speed a ball up at Parenteau and start a firefight. Either way, it gets Johns out of the way and let’s them play to Parenteau.

🔗 Learn more about why this pattern works or watch our video breakdown here

TRENDING

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) stars Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen played a pickleball match on a recent episode of reality TV series "The Ultimate Fighter."

Cormier and Sonnen are coaches on the show, and the pickleball match was held as a 'Coaches Challenge' with plenty of cash on the line.

Cormier and Sonnen played a best-of-three match, which was originally supposed to be for $10,000 and $1,500 for each of the winning coach's fighters, but was later upped to $20,000 and $2,500 for the fighters.

"Wait, wait, wait... What about the rules?" asked Cormier. "We don't know the rules."

🔗 You could definitely tell they’ve never played before

THE PROS

Playoff spots on the line at MLP Salt Lake City

Major League Pickleball is heading to one of the sport's original hot spots this week -- Salt Lake City, Utah -- for the final event of the regular season.

The event is hosted by the Utah Black Diamonds and there are playoff implications on the line for every team in the field. Some are just trying to secure their spot in the postseason, while others are trying to improve their seeding, which is extremely important in Major League Pickleball because the higher seeds get to choose their opponents in the playoffs.

Premier Level teams participating this week
Atlanta Bouncers, Chicago Slice, Miami Pickleball Club, New Jersey 5s, Orlando Squeeze, Texas Ranchers, Utah Black Diamonds

There are four teams who are still battling for the final two playoff spots. They are:

Utah Black Diamonds (8-12, 23 points, 1.15 PPM)
Miami Pickleball Club (7-13, 19 points, 0.95 PPM)
Chicago Slice (5-15, 18 points, 0.90 PPM)
Atlanta Bouncers (4-16, 14 points, 0.70 PPM)

This is the first week we'll see Utah with their new starting lineup since they traded for Etta Tuionetoa. Barring a total collapse from the home team, the Black Diamonds should secure the No. 9 seed with room to spare.

There is a world in which other three teams -- Miami, Chicago and Atlanta -- all finish in a tie for the 10th and final playoff spot, but Atlanta would have to have a pretty good week and the others would have to perform poorly.

The most likely scenario is it comes down to Miami or Chicago for the final spot, and those two teams play each other Thursday afternoon in what could end up being the deciding match.

🔗 MLP Salt Lake City match schedule and what to watch for

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK

The JOOLA Agassi and Graf paddles are having a moment

When the JOOLA Pro IV series paddles were released earlier this year, most people gravitated toward the Ben Johns Perseus Pro IV or the Anna Bright Scorpeus Pro IV — and for good reason, those are great paddles.

But the Agassi Pro and Graf Pro paddles didn’t catch on right away at the pro level. The unique shape was certainly a new look and maybe players just didn’t know what to think.

Now several months later, more and more pros are gravitating toward the Agassi and Graf models, including Kate Fahey, Brooke Buckner, AJ Koller, James Delgado, Brandon French and more. Two of those players — Koller and Delgado — aren’t even JOOLA sponsored players, which is how you know a paddle is good. Federico Staksrud has also used the Agassi Pro in a few matches this year.

All of this is to say: It seems the more the pros have tried the Agassi and Graf paddles, the more they have liked them.

🔗 Learn more about the Agassi Pro and Graf Pro here

QUICK HITS

• Cinema: This is the most accurate fictitious movie ever

• You bet: When someone asks if you play pickleball

• LOL: Remember earlier when we said mixed doubles was hard?

• Hands for days: These reflexes are lightning fast

• Woah: I think you call that a jumping reverse tweener