SAN CLEMENTE, CA - Saturday was a day full of fire at the CIBC Finals, but the match that had the most people talking was the round robin match during pool play between Ben Johns/Collin Johns and Julian Arnold/AJ Koller.

At the time, Johns/Johns were 2-0 and Arnold/Koller were 1-1 in overall matches. The dislike between C. Johns and Arnold is well-known on tour, and it’s rare to see a match between them that doesn’t eventually get heated.

During the match, Arnold and C. Johns began chipping back and forth to each other, which escalated into loud celebrations after winning points and intense stare-downs. Koller/Arnold took game one in epic fashion 11-5. Two overrules via video challenges were made during the match, one on Johns/Johns and the other on Arnold/Koller.

At one point, the ball rolled to the side of the court near the lead referee and Arnold told C. Johns to go pick it up for him. C. Johns refused, and the chaos continued.

At the conclusion of the match, which Johns/Johns ultimately won 5-11, 11-6, 11-3, C. Johns declined to tap paddles with Arnold, waving “no thanks” and making his way back to his bench. Watch the clip here.

Arnold then flipped C. Johns off and followed him towards the Johns brothers’ bench, but was stopped by a referee who stood in between the two parties and refused to move. Arnold then returned to his bench and tossed a ball at C. Johns.

In the post-match interview, C. Johns responded openly to the situation, calling Arnold “the biggest clown” in pickleball amid cheers from the crowd.

What do you think? Who was right? Let us know on social media and be sure to tag pickleball.com.