Wednesday was Round of 32 action in all five events.

 

Let’s get right to the highlights of the action:

1. Big upset averted. I spent the day on grandstand court. We had a variety of action, with a mix of singles and doubles. In mixed doubles, Riley Newman was back with Catherine Parenteau, an old partnership that had a lot of success in the past. They were matched against Roscoe Bellamy and Genie Erokhina. Bellamy and Erokhina came out firing, Newman was off his game early, and Riley and CP found themselves down 10-2, in a hurry. Things looked bleak. But CP supplied some magnificent defense, and then Newman found his offense. They won 22 of the next 27 points to win 12-10, 11-5. Parenteau/Newman should be a top team, but will they find consistency?

 

 

2. Sock finds a mixed partner? Jack Sock has struggled in mixed, despite having good partners. This week, he teams up with Kate Fahey. They received a fairly low seed, #24, but upset #10 seed Etta Wright/Travis Rettenmeier 11-7, 11-7. They had had good chemistry and Sock did a better job with the details of pickleball (dinks, drops, counters). They will get a good test in the Round of 16 against Dekel Bar and Tina Pisnik.

 

 

3. Khlif breaks through? I have been touting Noe Khlif for awhile. He is not just a singles player; he has the shots to be good at doubles. Wednesday, he got a breakthrough win in singles, defeating second seed Connor Garnett. In men’s doubles, Khlif played with Yates Johnson. They were up 9-7 and serving in game three against Quang Duong and Wyatt Stone. Duong/Stone got the last four points, knocking Khlif out. In mixed doubles, Khlif and Milan Rane lost a three game match with Dekel Bar and Tina Pisnik. Khlif is getting there. He will get a breakthrough win in doubles soon. I continue to predict he will be a top 20 player within a year.

 

 

4. Tellez = Mr. Versatility. Pablo Tellez can do it all.  He is, once again, in the Round of 16 in singles, men’s doubles (with Hayden Patriquin) and mixed doubles (with Zoey Wang). Tellez plays with a wide variety of people, but the one consistent thing is his good results. Wednesday, Tellez and Wang defeated #11 seed Dylan Frazier/Tyra Black.  Tellez continues to be the least appreciated top 20 player in the game. Kudos to Tellez for another solid tournament.

 

Thursday is Round of 16 action. It will feature great matchups all over the place. Take your pick from Ben Johns/Anna Leigh Waters v Andrei Daescu/Meghan Dizon, Mary Brascia v Kate Fahey, Lucy Kovalova/Lea Jansen v Zoey Wang/Brooke Buckner, Quang Duong v Pablo Tellez, or Dekel Bar/Zane Navratil v Jack Sock/Collin Shick. And there will be many more besides that sample.

Come out to the beautiful Fontainebleau Resort or catch the action on TV.

 

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