A kitchen violation you have to see

Protect this weakness. Pickleball invades the French Open.

June 10, 2024

What happens when an item falls off of you and into the kitchen while hitting a volley? The pickleball world got a refresher on Friday.

During a mixed doubles match at PPA Sacramento, James Ignatowich was called for a never-before-seen fault. The PPL sticker, which certifies the paddle passed inspection, fell off mid-swing.

The sticker floated down to the ground and landed in the kitchen. Shockingly, the ref called a fault. After some debate, the call was upheld by Head Referee Don Stanley.

It was a violation of USAP rule 9.B. and although James won the point on the court, he lost it on the score sheet. You have to wonder if an exception was in order because the item in question technically didn’t even belong to Ignatowich.

In This Issue:

🇫🇷 Bonjour pickleball
🏆 New men’s champions steal the show
🚘 Samaritans in the mud

Are you ready?

Protect Your Left Foot

Your left foot is one of your biggest vulnerabilities on the court. A ball down there is impossible to attack and easy to make a mistake with.

If you watch the pro game you will see dink after dink hit to the left foot of the right-sided player. It is one of the safer and more effective spots to hit a dink.

A well-placed dink at this location will not only be tough to attack, but it will force the player to back off the kitchen line. This is a win (albeit small) for the player hitting the shot.

Protect Yourself
Now that you know your foot can be a target, it’s time to talk defense. The best way to protect your foot is to lean in and be aggressive.

Intercept that dink as a volley and make them think twice about aiming here. The volley doesn’t need to be a speedup. Push the ball toward a sideline, try to get them moving, and flip the point in your favor.

Call for Backup
Another option is to bring your partner into the mix. In most scenarios, the left-side player’s forehand will be able to protect the left foot of the right-side player.

Make a plan with your partner:

  • “If they dink here twice in a row, then step in and poach the third one.”

  • “If you see me get forced off the line, move towards the middle and take the next ball.”

Remember this tactic is being used by your opponent to force you into a mistake. Just stay composed and keep the point alive. For more, check out these five tips to level up kitchen play.

Staff Pick for Father’s Day

At The Dink, we're always on the lookout for ways to up our game, and we don’t believe in gatekeeping the good stuff. That's why we're excited to share a great book called the Pickleball Match Tracker by Trey Sizemore.

Think of this book as a tool that supports every facet of your game. It’s the perfect place to brush up on your pickleball lingo, capture those unforgettable plays, or note what you want to work on next. It’s invaluable for seeing how far you've come.

We’ve given it our stamp of approval because it’s practical, educational, and makes each game more memorable. So, if you’re looking for a thoughtful and engaging gift this Father’s Day, look no further.

Find out how to get your hands on this game-changing guide and make this Father’s Day one for the books — literally.

Pickleball Creates Buzz at Roland Garros

Tennis’ French Open concluded yesterday in Paris. This year’s event embraced pickleball and offered courts where tournament officials and pros put on demonstrations of our great sport.

The French Tennis Federation featured a pickleball exhibition and pro pickleballer Jay Devilliers was on-site throughout the week providing an inside look. He was joined by all-time tennis great Martina Navratilova, who spoke out about the game way back in 2022.

Also participating was former world No. 1 tennis player Amélie Mauresmo, who is now the tournament director. Mauresmo played pickleball for the first time at the event and warmed up to it, saying, “You can have fun quite quickly in this sport. The rules are just a little bit different, so you have to adjust, but it doesn’t take very long to do that.”

President of the French Tennis Federation, Gilles Moretton, revealed that there are about 300 pickleball courts in France, compared to about 34,000 tennis courts.

Although very positive about pickleball’s growth in France, Moretton added “Pickleball will get bigger and bigger, but tennis players will stay tennis players.”

Don’t be too sure about that monsieur.

Fed and Big H Steal the Crown

The PPA Tour’s first stop in Sacramento came with some unique and refreshing partnerships this weekend.

Men’s Doubles Shakeup
The biggest surprise on the weekend was the men’s doubles duo of Federico Staksrud and Hayden Patriquin. The first-time partnership emerged from a loaded side of the bracket to not only reach Championship Sunday, but win handily against the incumbents JW Johnson/Dylan Frazier.

Fed Makes It Two
Staksrud followed up his big doubles win with another Championship in men’s singles. Fed overwhelmed JW Johnson to win the title in two, 11-4, 11-5.

Team Jimmy Johns
The Ben Johns/James Ignatowich duo attracted attention on Saturday but were eliminated in the quarters by another new partnership of Riley Newman/Gabe Tardio.

Anna Leigh Sweep
As with most events, the rest of the titles belonged to Anna Leigh Waters. She astoundingly did not drop a game all weekend long.

  • Opponents averaged only 2.2 points against her in singles

  • And 2.6 points against her and Catherine Parenteau in women’s doubles

That is pure dominance.

There are no days off in June. The tour is back to action this week with a joint MLP/PPA event in Washington D.C.

Your Court-Side Companion

You’ve heard us rave about how the "Pickleball Match Tracker" helps sharpen your game. Now, let’s dive into some of its other cool features.

This book can help you become a pickleball history buff as easily as perfecting the outlawed chainsaw serve. It’s also packed with handy sections for scoring, skill assessments, and even notes on the weather — because we all know how a breezy day can make or break a game.

Still thinking about what to get Dad? Grab the Pickleball Match Tracker and make this Father’s Day unforgettable.

Did Someone Call a Tow Truck?

Earlier this month, heavy storms in Dallas caused more trouble than just delaying matches. At the PPA Texas Open, one amateur player decided to stick around Saturday night to watch a men’s semifinal match.

Upon returning to his parked car, he discovered the solid ground he parked on had turned to mud. His rental car had no chance of escaping the predicament without a little help.

A truck pulled up to help and out stepped Dylan Frazier — who had just won the men’s semifinal — joined by Pablo Tellez and GM of the Texas Ranchers, Ryan Dawidjen.

Pushing the car out was still not enough to overcome the situation. Dawidjen got down in the mud to hook the car up to his truck and together with a push from two of the top players in the world, the Charger was finally freed.

Further proof that the pickleball community is the best community.

PPA Sacramento Open Results

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