Ben Johns competing at the Proton Tucson Open.
Ben Johns will compete in men's singles, mixed doubles with Anna Leigh Waters, and men's doubles with Gabe Tardio on Wednesday. PPA Tour

LIVE BLOG: The latest news and updates from the Carvana Mesa Cup presented by Proton

The Round of 32 is being played at the Carvana Mesa Cup presented by Proton on Wednesday, with action taking place at the Arizona Athletic Grounds.

Broadcast coverage is available on Pickleballtv starting at 1pm ET.

Stay tuned to this article for live updates throughout the day.


7:15pm MST: Round of 16 matchups set in men's doubles

Here are the eight Round of 16 men's doubles matchups that will be played on Thursday:


6:45pm MST: Round of 16 matchups set in women's doubles

Here are the eight Round of 16 women's doubles matchups that will be played on Thursday:


6:25pm MST: Koller, C. Johns survive stave off upset bid from Ford, Joseph

AJ Koller/Collin Johns survived an epic encounter with No. 32 seeds Zane Ford/Gabe Joseph, battling back from a game down for a 10-12, 11-5, 13-11 victory. 

The No. 7 seeds faced deficits of 1-6 and 5-10 in the deciding game, but they saved five match points to eventually take the triumph in a contest that lasted just under an hour.

Score card showing AJ Koller and Collin Johns' 10-12, 11-5, 13-11 victory over Zane Ford and Gabe Joseph.
Score card showing AJ Koller and Collin Johns' 10-12, 11-5, 13-11 victory over Zane Ford and Gabe Joseph. Pickleball.com

They will face No. 12 seeds Quang Duong/CJ Klinger on Thursday with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.


4:45pm MST: Arnold withdraws from men's doubles

Julian Arnold has withdrawn from the men's doubles draw, which means that No. 19 seeds Wyatt Stone/Brandon French will advance to the Round of 16.

Arnold and Roscoe Bellamy were set to compete together as the No. 15 seeds. 

Stone/French will face top seeds Federico Staksrud/Hayden Patriquin on Thursday.


4:35pm MST: Johns, Tardio partnership starts off with a win despite challenges

In the first match of their highly anticipated partnership, Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio defeated No. 30 seeds Cason Campbell/Greg Dow 11-3, 3-11, 11-5.

 

The No. 2 seeds had the upper hand in dink rallies, but Campbell/Dow found a favorable pattern in Game 2 that involved Dow crashing off of Campbell's third-shot drives. 

Johns/Tardio proved to be too much in the end, however, as they comfortably prevailed in the third game to advance to the men's doubles Round of 16. 

They will face either No. 16 seeds Spencer Smith/Rafa Hewett or No. 20 seeds Craig Johnson/Pesa Teoni on Thursday.


4:05pm MST: Round of 16 matchups set in mixed doubles

Here are the eight Round of 16 mixed doubles matchups that will be played on Thursday:


3:15pm MST: Brascia and Khlif, Radzikowska and Emmrich pull off upsets in three games

The pairings of Maggie Brascia/Noe Khlif and Ewa Radzikowska/Martin Emmrich advanced to the mixed doubles Round of Round of 16 with three-game victories Wednesday afternoon. 

Brascia/Khlif overcame a 4-8 deficit in the third game to beat No. 11 seeds Lea Jansen/Riley Newman 5-11, 11-6, 11-9. 

Score card showing Maggie Brascia and Noe Khlif's 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 victory over Lea Jansen and Riley Newman.
Score card showing Maggie Brascia and Noe Khlif's 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 victory over Lea Jansen and Riley Newman. Pickleball.com

Radzikowska/Emmrich pulled off what might be the biggest upset of the day by seed (they're the No. 43 seeds in Mesa) with an 11-3, 11-13, 11-9 victory over No. 10 seeds Etta Tuionetoa/Pablo Tellez, eventually closing out the match at the sixth time of asking.

Brascia/Khlif will face No. 8 seeds Rachel Rohrabacher/Hayden Patriquin on Thursday, while Radzikowska/Emmrich will take on either No. 7 seeds Jessie Irvine/Gabe Tardio or No. 25 seeds Layne Sleeth/Jack Sock.


2:05pm MST: Round of 16 matchups set in men's singles

Here are the eight Round of 16 men's singles matchups that will be played on Thursday:


1:40pm MST: Bellamy avenges Tucson defeat, downs Ford in three games

Roscoe Bellamy and Zane Ford have squared off in singles three times, and all three encounters have gone three games.

Wednesday’s contest between the two former tennis stars was no different. Bellamy came away with a 10-12, 11-4, 12-10 victory, securing revenge for his loss to Ford in Tucson two weeks ago.

Score card showing Roscoe Bellamy's 10-12, 11-4, 12-10 victory over Zane Ford.
Score card showing Roscoe Bellamy's 10-12, 11-4, 12-10 victory over Zane Ford. Pickleball.com

He says that he and Ford’s similar styles of play a role in their tightly contested battles.

“We both like to hit the ball hard. We both like to go after our serve, so it’s kind of a game of who’s feeling the best that day,” he mentioned. “A lot of times you can start hot, and then your opponent will figure out a strategy or get into a rhythm, so you kind of have to balance that chess game you’re playing.”

The No. 14 seed will face No. 2 seed Ben Johns—who he beat in Las Vegas in October—in the Round of 16.


1:30pm MST: Round of 16 matchups set in women's singles

Here are the eight Round of 16 women's singles matchups that will be played on Thursday:


12:30pm MST: Evans outduels Ignatowich in three-game battle

No. 46 seed Tom Evans defeated No. 49 seed James Ignatowich 7-11, 11-4, 11-8 to advance to the men's singles Round of 16.

Score card showing Tom Evans' 7-11, 11-4, 11-8 victory over James Ignatowich.
Score card showing Tom Evans' 7-11, 11-4, 11-8 victory over James Ignatowich. Pickleball.com

The match was tight throughout, but Evans' serve played a crucial role in putting him in advantageous positions down the stretch. 

This is the newly signed Australian's second straight three-game victory in Mesa after beating No. 17 seed Gabe Tardio 11-4, 8-11, 11-8 in the Round of 64. 

Evans will face either Connor Garnett or Zane Navratil on Thursday for a spot in the quarterfinals.


11:30am MST: Ang. Walker overcomes slow start to upset Padegimaite

Angie Walker is into the women's singles Round of 16 after a 12-10, 11-2 victory over No. 10 seed Lina Padegimaite.

The No. 18 seed fought back from an 0-7 deficit in the first game—saving a game point in the process—and used that momentum to comfortably take Game 2. 

She will face No. 7 seed Catherine Parenteau on Thursday with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.

Matches to Watch


9:20am MST: Stratman withdraws from women's singles

Lauren Stratman has withdrawn from the women's singles draw, which means that No. 48 seed Ariana Rodriguez will advance to the Round of 16. 

Rodriguez—who fought through the qualifying draw earlier this week—will face either Anna Leigh Waters/Genie Erokhina on Thursday.

Stratman is still planning to compete in women's doubles later in the day. She and Lina Padegimaite are set to play against No. 19 seeds Tomoko Taniguchi/Allie Davis.


Order of Play released

See Wednesday's order of play below. There will be ten matches played on each pro court.