Donald Young competing at the Veolia Texas Open.
Donald Young competing at the Veolia Texas Open. PPA Tour

3 things to watch for on Thursday at PPA Atlanta

The Veolia Atlanta Pickleball Championships continue Thursday with Round of 16 action in all five pro events.

This week’s event is a Slam worth 2,000 points and is the final opportunity for players to qualify for next week’s PPA Tour Finals.

Here is the order of play:

 

Now, let's get into what to watch for.

  • One of the day’s most intriguing matchups comes from the women’s singles draw, where No. 6 seed Catherine Parenteau will face No. 12 seed Sahra Dennehy. Dennehy is Australia’s top-ranked singles player at No. 13, so Thursday is a huge opportunity for her to get a marquee win on U.S. soil in what will be the third match on Humana Championship Court. Dennehy and Parenteau will also clash in women’s doubles later in the day, where Dennehy is teaming up with fellow Australian star Danni-Elle Townsend and Parenteau will partner with Rachel Rohrabacher.

 

  • Donald Young is having quite the week in the Georgia capital and is into the Round of 16 in both men’s singles and men’s doubles. The powerful lefty took down No. 4 seed Christian Alshon 11-5, 11-9 on Wednesday and will now take on No. 41 seed Luc Pham, who defeated Adam Harvey in three games in the Round of 32. In doubles, Young teamed up with Tom Protzek to defeat No. 11 seeds Jaume Martinez Vich/Jonathan Truong 8-11, 11-5, 11-6 to make the final 16 in their first tournament together. No. 5 seeds Eric Oncins/Dylan Frazir await on Thursday. Young will be in action in the fourth and seventh matches on Showcase Court 1.

 

  • Staying in men’s doubles, No. 28 seeds Rafa Hewett/Nico Acevedo and No. 32 seeds George Wall/Kenta Miyoshi are into the Round of 16 after pulling off upset victories on Wednesday. Hewett/Acevedo defeated No. 8 seeds Tyson McGuffin/Max Freeman 12-10, 12-10, and Wall/Miyoshi took down No. 6 seeds Noe Khlif/Matt Wright by a 12-10, 11-3 scoreline. Hewett/Acevedo will next face No. 12 seeds Jack Sock/Blaine Hovenier in the seventh match on Carvana Grandstand Court; Wall/Miyoshi will take on No. 9 seeds Riley Newman/Armaan Bhatia in the ninth and penultimate contest on Showcase Court 1.

 

Live broadcast coverage from Life Time Peachtree Corners begins at 10am ET on Pickleballtv.