If there’s one thing the folks on pickleballtok and pickleball twitter love more than anything, it’s when Ben Johns loses. I swear it’s like the internet starts celebrating when the underdog team pulls away and there’s an upset from the number one seed.

Of course, it’s exciting when the best players in the game lose because it’s a rarity. Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters are so good that they seldom lose. And when they do, it’s shocking, it’s exciting, and it becomes everyone’s favorite breaking news. Resulting in dozens of reels, match breakdowns, and highlight point clips to replay that upset over and over and over on your feed.

When a newbie pro upsets an opponent like Ben Johns, it’s a huge moment in their career. But are the pickleball online personalities making too much of a meal out of Johns’ latest losses? I think so.

Currently, I can’t go on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and even Facebook and not be blasted by the headline that Ben Johns has lost his mojo.

“Ben Johns loses AGAIN…” said this match breakdown.

Personally, I think it’s a bunch of bologna. It’s click bait at its finest. Just because Johns loses one match, doesn’t mean he suddenly sucks at pickleball. That’s crazy, right?

We’re talking about the G.O.A.T. of pro pickleball.

I’ve seen this argument so many times. Basically, after every time Johns loses a match. “Ben Johns doesn’t care about pickleball anymore,” or “Everyone else in the field has caught up to him.”

But how many times have we thought that after he loses, only to then watch Johns go on another insane gold medal winning streak?

In the most recent case of “Ben Johns isn’t good at pickleball anymore,” Johns lost his last four men’s doubles matches. Which yes, is a lot for Johns, but it’s circumstantial.

The first loss was with Federico Staksrud in Arizona, the next was with Jack Sock in Chicago, and the other two losses were with Gabe Tardio in Las Vegas and in Hong Kong.

Of course, Johns didn’t perform his best with Sock and Staksrud because these aren’t his normal partners. He doesn’t play with these guys regularly and there’s an undoubtable adjustment period. When Johns first partnered up with Tardio, they didn’t instantly play together perfectly and seamlessly. They had to work out their new partnership and get used to each other’s style.

Johns and Tardio got silver in Hong Kong against Federico Staksrud and Hayden Patriquin, but that team has beaten Johns and Tardio in the past. Between rare unforced errors and excellent gameplay from their opponents, it’s understandable to see why Johns couldn’t get the gold this time.

Additionally, there could be a number of factors that cost them the win. Between jet lag, different court surfaces, general exhaustion from traveling overseas, and having a busy schedule with camps, meet and greets, clinics, etc. Going abroad to compete is certainly more exhausting than just driving a few hours north to Daytona Beach, FL.

And when Johns and Tardio got silver in Las Vegas, Tardio was clearly enjoying the Vegas nightlife, so who’s to say Tardio wasn’t competing at his strongest and healthiest?

So everyone needs to calm down. Remember who we’re talking about here. Ben Johns is the consistency king who can adapt better than anyone in the game. And if you watched any of his other matches, you’d see that same incredibly high gameplay that his opponents are still studying and trying to recreate.

And as a reminder – it’s okay to lose. In fact, it’s inevitable. Everyone has off days and Johns is a pro who seldom has off days.

But don’t bet against Ben Johns. Next tournament, he’ll remind us who’s the G.O.A.T.

So, has Johns lost his mojo or was it just an off day? Let us know on Instagram.