2022 St. Louis Pickleball Open Pro Men's Singles Gold: Zane Navratil VS JW Johnson

2022 St. Louis Pickleball Open Pro Men's Singles Gold: Zane Navratil VS JW Johnson

[@bandelay2134]

Tennis was at a bar one night and randomly sat next to Ping Pong. They had a lot in common and talked for hours. After the bar closed they went home and made love. Nine months later, Pickleball was born.

[@ashupashu5559]

And Tennis cheated on table tennis with badminton.

[@HevaNaisdey]

is this really a pro level match of the sport? most of the points are from mistakes, they didn't really score that many points

[@phoenixtarantino6537]

for real man i swear these dudes arent even that good

[@vietpimp999]

That's what I thought too..I was expecting a lot of crazy volleys.

[@waspmahmoud9532]

These guys aren’t pros there’s people in my city locally that won’t let these guys get a single point

[@jaysteinke6629]

I LOVE watching and my interest has picked up WILDLY!! My only complaint is that more classes should be available and they should be available more closely within where I live toward the city (I don't have a car at the moment). They're all in Chesterfield and Fenton.

[@georgestrebel-m3s]

I played competitive Racquetball for years. My buddy just told me about this game so I had to watch, to actually see it. I'm 56,smoke, and 50 lbs out of shape but I think I can be in the Top 10 by next week.

[@sophocles1198]

It's been a week now :)

[@georgestrebel-m3s]

@@sophocles1198 Make it a month. I over shot.

[@markedly1013]

Really? Let me know your progress!

[@tyehegre]

Lol isn’t that the truth.

[@georgestrebel-m3s]

@@markedly1013 So this is interesting. I pay $600 for a year membership for R/B , unlimited play on Long Island NY. That' incl full work out gym, snack bar, pool, sauna, the works. Last week I went to AZ on vacation and thought " time to put my Pickleball challenge to use". I'm also planning on moving there thus why I was there. The place wanted $1300 a year membership to play.....with NOTHING else.......OUCH! When you have the word PICKLE is anything you do NOT get top dollar.

[@blacksheeprcmodelers959]

wow this JW dude has quite the personality.

[@exectvegrp]

Tennis players will dominate this sport

[@jchan810]

Tennis is far more demanding than pickleball. Pickleball looks like child's play compared to tennis. The tennis ball travels in a more lively way than a pickleball.

[@ThreeGeee]

Then why haven’t they yet? 🤔 probably because they can’t handle pro pickleball LOL it’s too fast paced for tennis elders

[@executivegrouprealty1082]

@@ThreeGeee they have...who is the #1 female player? Waters...she was a tennis player...all top pros are mostly from the tennis world, also have you noticed that the game has changed and it's mostly banging?...tennis players.

[@allenfenwick6257]

Agreed. If the money gets good enough, the lower tier tennis pros will migrate. I see it as similar to beach volleyball, once the giant indoor players started moving outside, everyone six feet and under had no chance.

[@zachcarmichael699]

@@executivegrouprealty1082 Anna Leigh was mainly a soccer player, not tennis.

[@Duc11HD]

It would be really good if the match table with the player's name and information about the type of racket being played would be displayed. The audience can also evaluate the quality of the racket and it would be good for the manufacturers.

[@jake3712]

That zane guy looks cracked out

[@LettuceLand]

Could be on adderall

[@btwistwill]

53:12 the return of serve was long and the last shot was wide.

[@clownzii3222]

No they weren’t, but either way you can’t tell on a screen as you only get 60fps but probably even lower because it’s a broadcast so you literally wouldn’t be able to see where it lands unless you see the exact moment which is unlikely.

[@Danielapachecopeña]

Can someone explain me, why the player Johnson in the first set almost always started the game from the left side? I'm so confused with that.

[@NoelKerns]

I guess I don't understand the match format; you lose your match 1-2, but then somehow get a longer, 4th game to come back and not just tie it up, but win the whole tournament?

[@Crazy-Roland-vDrums]

Does the scoring go up to 11 for the first 2 games, then the final game goes to 15?

[@BrianMeeks]

The final game was 15 because the first 2 out of 3 was won by the person from the losers side of the bracket. When this happens, both players have now have one loss and the tiebreaker is a game to 15 (instead of another full match). If the winner's bracket winner takes the first two out of three, then a 15 point game isn't needed.

[@chinhtaongo]

Can any one please explain to me why they play 2 out of 3 (11 points) then play one more game of 15 points.Thanks

[@pbkid11]

If you come from the losers bracket , the advantage the other person has ( winners bracket) is that they have to win 2 out of 3 . The person coming from losers bracket has to win 2 out of 3 , plus an additional game to 15 in order to win the match.

[@chinhtaongo]

@@pbkid11 Thank you so much Half Decent.

[@MrFullertonfats]

@@pbkid11ok. Thank you for the explanation. But how in the hell did somebody from the losers bracket make it to championship game?! Lol

[@pbkid11]

@@MrFullertonfats the come around use to be possible . You would lose a game , enter the losers bracket and be able to fight your way back to the gold medal match A lot of tournaments took that out though and now the highest you can go is bronze with losers bracket

[@Tennishangman]

@@MrFullertonfatsthat’s how double elimination works. If you lose, you go to the losers’ bracket. The loser of winners’ finals plays the winner of losers’ finals. The winner of that plays the winner of winner’s finals in grand finals. If the winner’s bracket guy wins, it’s over. If the loser’s bracket guy wins, they play a tiebreak, because they now each have one loss total. This makes more sense in a visual bracket than in text, unfortunately

[@jonathanmccormick-il7xr]

Navratil's eyes look straight crackeddd lol

[@TheMarianoDelgado]

Do they honestly have to use a two handed backhand with that little racquet?!

[@Superdummy803]

A two handed backhand (or forehand) gives the player added power and accuracy but sacrifices reach over a single grip stroke. It's up to the player to decide which is more advantageous in the given moment. Same as tennis.

[@rm8118]

Any advantage in height in this sport? I was a good tennis player in my country but struggled on serve because I am very short

[@Tan12]

You're harder to lob or pass due to your reach, much less of an advantage than it is in tennis though.

[@DannyBPlays]

I'd say it's similar to tennis where height doesn't matter. Matters even less here since the serve isn't an overhand

[@dankhorse69420]

If you're very short, play ping pong. Out of the 3 racket sports tennis, ping pong, and pickleball, height matters the least in ping pong.

[@good2freelance1]

The ball tossing up serve is now Not legal correct ??

[@BrynHowlettcom]

Yea I think so

[@thatfishingnoob]

I can't get with the rush the net and softly hit the ball back and forth... I play pickleball more like tennis and it's a lot more fun lol. Though, I'd still prefer racquetball but don't have the time to play anymore. Racquetball is like angry tennis and I love it xD

[@Way2EasyDIY]

Jw has the fastest hands in pickleball

[@130rne]

Not for long.

[@robertoyamakata6672]

Nothing compare with tennis and specially clay and grass courts in beauty. But pickleball looks great for the yard at home also with the basket.

[@chosenprimeproductions1755]

What is wrong with the score?

[@hassanamin523]

I know!! This sport is slower, easier, and for tennis dropouts!

[@davidsimpson4407]

I thought you’re not allowed to toss the serve up?

[@stun2187]

Female commentator is very good at her job

[@EricNestor-kt7ne]

The all hat no cattle activity. Great way to get back in shape if you've been in the office for 3 decades.

[@georgestrebel-m3s]

LMAO.....AMEN brother. That's exactly my issue right now.

[@willyoung34]

Pretty funny that pickleball is rising in popularity. Maybe tennis players will dominate but eventually if this becomes more popular the best athletes will go where the money is…

[@eafowler777]

No chance this ever gains as much spectator appeal as tennis. This sport will eventually fade like the fad it is.

[@deadeyejones3364]

I thought it was illegal to add spin to the ball before a serve? Navratil adding extra topspin as he tosses it in the air 🤷‍♂️

[@Kingofold2112]

I enjoy playing but at the high levels this sport feels pretty one dimensional. Just the same two shot rallies over and over. Pretty boring to watch as opposed to tennis etc

[@sophocles1198]

I agree. It's like watching speed walking, or a checkers tournament.

[@frankfurter7260]

Fun to play, very boring to watch. If I have to choose, I prefer watching people fish.

[@georgestrebel-m3s]

LMAO........YES....finally someone that understands! I'm not knocking the people that love it but I just do not get it.......NOT YET anyway!! Guess I have to get out there and just shut up already. @@frankfurter7260

[@eafowler777]

Yep, very boring.

[@MorphousInfinity]

What paddle is J.W. using?

[@Ryan_Schlutz]

Pretty sure it is the Gruvn RAW-16H … very good paddle. I use the 16E.

[@MrJgoodwin7]

Arguably the best paddle on the market. It's between the Gruvn RAW-16H and the Joola Hyperion CFS 16.

[@ztrain10289]

What paddle is Ben playing with

[@FerrellX]

joola hyperian ben johns he used to use the franklin ben johns

[@denisurbanczik9057]

At some point video referee should be introduced. Notice in the game @53:08min and even right after @53:11min, both those balls were long and wide imo. That should have been point for Johnson, that too at a quite critical time in the game. Oh well. I played my first game of pickleball today, as someone said, its seemingly as if tennis and table tennis had a baby lol. It's a high intensity activity, good cardio exercise for sure, but quite limited in every every aspect, an excellent technique will get one only that far, you have to have an excellent physique to dominate.

[@tidusuwu3125]

This looks like something you play vs your siblings in your backyard lol

[@DannyBPlays]

that's how baseball and soccer first started

[@tidusuwu3125]

@@DannyBPlays slow mans sport and a non athletic mans sport

[@goodyearspokane]

Why is it that pickleball singles points are much quicker than tennis singles yet pickleball doubles points last a lot longer than tennis doubles. No long rallies in pickleball singles but the doubles can go on forever

[@thedpg5602]

Well In pickle ball doubles, they’re just dinking it across the net until someone messes up and hits a ball to high for an easy put away, in tennis the guys at the net usually finish the point while in singles tennis has long base line rallies while in pickle ball the strat is more going into the net and finish the point, not so much waiting for a team to make a mistake

[@cameronrossman7734]

@@thedpg5602 there's plenty of chances to hit a dinked ball back with power/top spin or directly at the opponent's body or a strong slice depending on the scenario. The constant dink matches display low talent compared to the very talented matches

[@vegasdoug]

There's no open court to hit you. You can forget serve plus one.

[@johnny310xx]

Plying single is much more fun

[@kazm522]

20,000 views, 66 likes for “the #1 in the World”, just stop it already; give it up, it’s better to be humble and invited to the FRONT than to be haughty and sat in the back!! 😇😇😇😇😇😇😇

[@aussieb5402]

You're a freak, man.

[@Ian-u6m]

I play this with my 56 year old mother in spare time afterwork seeing the amount of errors they make I would put money up that I beat both of these cause by a solid 8 points at least

[@aarshadamir]

how come that dude throws the ball up to serve, i thought that wasnt allowed

[@vegasdoug]

Any of the top 100 ATP tennis players. could crush these guys if they. picked up the game for three months. I'm being generous here.

[@flaviolibero1061]

Chile en el Oeste, los Ingleses del Este y EEUU en ushuaia , la entrega de Malvinas, Antártida y atlántico sur asegurada, gracias 56% de termos

[@EarthyLee]

Very low standard of play for world #4 really.

[@chesterxman]

I'd rather watch paint dry, just as exciting

[@interviewswithliam7735]

Just an observation: Johnson serve is average at best. Definitely could improve.

[@Timetodiebruh]

If you watch, all his serves are barely within the back line. Placement over speed. Different technique is all

[@solo2rules]

Why isn't JW utilizing the spin serve anymore? He used to do it quite effectively.

[@LeoSprBllr1]

If you're talking about spinning the ball before you serve it, it's no longer allowed in the official rules.

[@solo2rules]

@@LeoSprBllr1 Incorrect. Perhaps you should watch the match and then explain what Zane is doing.

[@solo2rules]

It is only banned in PPA events, not APP or amateur.

[@zachcarmichael699]

It's also banned this coming January.

[@Michaelmontana08]

People make money doing this?

[@drewdavis3150]

Navratil needs to stop spinning the ball on the toss of his serve.

[@Donovan_J19]

This was back in 2022 but now in 2023 there's a rule that you can't impart spin on the ball

[@winnxithepoo]

boring 1-2 hits its over bet table tennis is a better game

[@pierresoorden5975]

Should be an Olympic sport

[@hustlasstory7611]

To bad all those spin serves are illegal now

[@DarkEnergyStudios]

I've noticed that both players often go back to the baseline fence and tap it. Just superstition?

[@erikirl01]

Probably to get a physical reference for their surroundings

[@ztrain10289]

Making sure they have room for the serve and don’t hit the fence on their backswing

[@THEspindoctor84]

I'm not sure either of these are right...I'm pretty sure it's a type of psychological way to re-focus yourself. I think the idea is that by doing the same small ritual at the end of each point, you are re-focusing yourself and readying yourself for the next point. I've heard the announcers describe it like this in other games. So basically....not that different than superstition ;)

[@erikirl01]

@@THEspindoctor84 oh you’re sure because the announcer said it, okay…

[@HolywaffleMC]

@@erikirl01 He is right. Coming from a tennis background, Ive seen many players do this and other things as a ritual before each point to focus themselves. It is important to play each point as its own, doing this helps clear the mind and "reset" before each point. This is the best I can explain it and I know it is right. A physical reference doesnt make sense since why would they need one. Any person at this level at the sport they play, think of the court as an extension of their body. They just know where they are on the court at all times.

[@eddieadams4770]

As boring as watching racketball. This is an old person's sport. Fun to play but forget watching.

[@christopherfleming7505]

This sport looks fun, but I can't honestly see it catching on much. Padel is a lot better. Here in Spain it is MASSIVE. Everybody plays.

[@didiwibowo775]

Play with plastic ball Hit with frying pan Only has 3 or mostly 4 hits rallies No variation in play. Just serve and hope you guess the return right and not mess up Time is used mostly to pick up balls between serves. Get a ball boy ffs. Oh they wont be able to afford it

[@timkluntz8362]

A guy your size, why didn't you play a normal sport like pickleball? My momma wouldn't sign the permission slip; thought it might be a little too lame.

[@J11mmyy]

this female commentator overexplains things to the point where I had to mute this video and its wildly annoying, dont @ me.

[@nhqbill]

Tennis>pb

[@peteherrera1502]

very fuzzy

[@rizyrozaytheboss8516]

These players are real sorry; IDK they even pros??

[@cuntlicka6088]

wtf are the scores

[@jonathannazareno5339]

This is way too inconsistent

[@adamski101]

Hmm. Tennis is way better.

[@Timetodiebruh]

All the tennis players in the comments talking Pickleball down like it’s not challenging😂 they’re so mad that Pickleball will soon be more popular than tennis. Even ex tennis players are switching over

[@meekaboi]

Pickleball is fun to play, but singles is so boring to watch. It's all return/rush the net. The barrier to entry is also much, much, much lower in pickleball. I wanted to enjoy watching high level play, but it's so monotonous compared to ATP level tennis.

[@HAYDENShriner]

This video has like no views

[@metuberob]

yawn ... barely survived watching 1 minute of actual match play ... soooo riveting .... um .... not .... next ...

[@pierresoorden5975]

27-0 swim and dive 25-0 boys tennis 23-0 girls tennis 21-0 nothing

[@Name-lg2ry]

I have no clue what you’re saying

[@AboraPearl]

​@@Name-lg2rydid no sport prior, started playing tennis, after 2 years operated herself to be a dude, played another 2 years, found out 'he' can't compete now against other real dude. So now 'he' swims and dives as a hobby. 😂

[@ericgonzales5057]

JW was playing like a total idiot for the first set. Why are you standing 3 feet behind the basline and slow rolling a short serve into the middle of the court? you are asking to be destroyed...

[@shinbakchina]

not good tennis is best

[@ankushkaul5092]

Soccer is better 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@Michaelmontana08]

Ping pong on steroids, lol.

[@bahahopovac]

These guys not even that good

[@ryanw5569]

Johnson looks like he's got zero personality and just doesn't wanna play.

[@130rne]

Everyone is coming from traditional. Everyone is screwing up the analysis. How did the dimensions of the court change over time? "I believe it's the right shot." NO. There is NO right shot. People don't see it.. Pickleball is not absolutes. The "correct" shot in other sports does not always apply to Pickleball. Look at the court dimensions. Pickleball has interesting ratios. I've not seen a single person match the style of analysis to the feel of a pickleball court. Everyone is making at least one wrong call. I've not a seen a single pro play this game the way it could be played. Not even you, Ben. See ya soon. ;)

[@vincentyou266]

Can you elaborate? I just picked up the game recently. I am genuinely curious.

[@joramponi249]

this sport feels so fake. next, why not make beach ball a pro sport?

[@kazm522]

Defining the ranks of Pickleball in world terms is like making Kansas’ Apple Pie Bake-off a World-event by claiming my Grandmother took first-place #1 world Apple Pie Expert; this is why people will not take PICKLEBALL SERIOUSLY UNTIL PICKLEBALL BEGINS TREATING PEOPLE AND THE GAME INTELLIGENTLY!! 😇😇😇😇😇😇😇

[@aussieb5402]

You're a freak, man.

[@janinemurdock2043]

Still play tennis, just started playing this a few weeks ago, and I am absolutely baffled by this weird, inane rivalry between this and tennis. Of all the absolutely dumb things to care about. The number of people in the world who would absolutely kill for their biggest concern in life to be "NO MUH PADDLE/RACKET SPORT IS THE BESTEST"

[@deannguyen6839]

This is bs games 🤬 that makes me mad 😡

[@torreypines77]

Okay what?

[@cbrisfiorello6933]

What a joke

[@familiaalmeidaboratto5936]

Boring to watch

[@chadkench2277]

Theyre just not beating someone like me im sorry

[@dwainehiggins4451]

No one knows who you are :( Ouch.

[@chadkench2277]

@@dwainehiggins4451 I’m one of the best support and top lane champs in the game with huge cc and tank potential both offensive and defensive

[@dwainehiggins4451]

@@chadkench2277 wrong. Chad Kench is a no name. :(

[@chadkench2277]

@@dwainehiggins4451 NAOPGG says otherwise pal

[@dwainehiggins4451]

@@chadkench2277 prove it little guy 🫢

[@kazm522]

Because it’s talking down to people; like the King of ENGLAND is NOT THE KING OF THE “WORLD”!! 😜😜😜😜😜😜😜

[@aussieb5402]

You're a freak, man.

[@RickAnderson1]

I play table tennis and tennis. This "sport" is a joke.

[@Skazellino]

Absolutely.

[@tod5098]

it's almost exactly like table tennis...and tennis 🤣🤣🤣