Lea Jansen celebrating a point at the Veolia Lakeland Open presented by Six Zero.
Lea Jansen celebrating a point at the Veolia Lakeland Open presented by Six Zero. PPA Tour

3 things to watch for on Thursday at PPA Lakeland

The Veolia Lakeland Open presented by Six Zero continues Thursday with the mixed doubles competition, which will be played through the quarterfinal rounds.

Click here to see the draws, and find this week’s broadcast schedule below:

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

  • After withdrawing from just singles competition on Wednesday, Jaume Martinez Vich has now pulled out of all events in Lakeland due to a back injury. He and Meghan Dizon were set to be the No. 14 seeds in mixed doubles, so now No. 53 seeds Ashley Griffith/John Cincola will get free entry into the Round of 32 and await the winner of Allyce Jones/AJ Koller versus Victoria DiMuzio/Yates Johnson.

 

  • Thursday will also see Anna Bright/Eric Oncins take the court together for the very first time on the PPA Tour. This has the makings of a strong pairing for a multitude of reasons, but mostly because Bright is easily a top 3 female player and the hyperathletic Oncins continues to establish himself as a top left-side male. Oncins, in particular, should enter Thursday with lots of confidence after beating Chris Haworth in singles on Wednesday en route to a Round of 16 finish. Bright/Oncins will be a tough out as the No. 4 seeds.

 

  • And finally, the pairings of Tina Pisnik/Tyson McGuffin and Lea Jansen/Max Freean could face off for the second time in three tournaments. They squared off last month in Las Vegas, where Jansen/Freeman prevailed in three games. We could see a repeat of this matchup in the Round of 32 on Thursday if both teams win their opening contests. Jansen, who advanced to the women’s singles semifinals with a win over Kate Fahey in Wednesday’s final match, will look to carry the momentum from that win into mixed and continue her stellar play in the Sunshine State.

 

Live broadcast coverage from Beerman Family Tennis Center begins at 11am ET on Pickleballtv.