Parris Todd and Tyra Black celebrate their title at the CIBC Texas Open presented by Fasenra.
Parris Todd and Tyra Black celebrate their title at the CIBC Texas Open presented by Fasenra. PPA Tour

Black, Todd sweep Smith, Tuionetoa for women’s doubles gold

Tyra Black/Parris Todd secured their first women’s doubles title together with an 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 victory over No. 5 seeds Callie Smith/Etta Tuionetoa.

After a wild Saturday that saw both top seeds lose, the pairings of Black/Todd and Smith/Tuionetoa had a massive opportunity to strike gold in the Lone Star State.

In the end, it was the Black/Todd who made the most of that opportunity.

After getting down 1-5 in the opening game, the No. 3 seeds went on to score the final ten points of Game 1 to get on the board first.

And they never let up from there.

Thanks to Todd’s precise third shots and Black’s masterclass in controlled aggression, they comfortably took Games 2 and 3 by near-identical score lines to complete the sweep.

 

This title is a meaningful one for Black, not only because it’s her first in women’s doubles, but also because it comes on the two-year anniversary of her decision to pursue a pro career.

“It’s been exactly two years since I decided to become a professional pickleball player, so this means so much to me to win this week,” she said.

In the bronze medal match, No. 2 seeds Anna Bright/Rachel Rohrabacher beat No. 6 seeds Lea Jansen/Lucy Kovalova by an 11-4, 11-6 score line.