You might remember this rather interesting result from the 2023 Takeya Showcase: Anna Leigh Waters losing to Hurricane Tyra Black in the women's singles quarterfinals.

Does it ring a bell?

The match didn't just make headlines because Waters suffered a rare defeat - her questionable reaction following the final point caught the attention of the picklesphere as well.

“I’m not proud of that at all,” said Waters, during an interview with the In Search of Excellence podcast.

What excatly led to her outburst?

It was her fourth tournament in a row, and despite her mom and trainer’s advice not to compete, she played because she wanted to break a record for seven consecutive Triple Crowns. If she skipped the tournament, she wouldn’t break the mark.

“I felt like I needed to play that event and I put a lot of pressure on myself,” admitted Waters. “I was reading all these social media comments about Tyra being really good, and I was getting all in my head.” 

The young superstar typically keeps her emotions in check, but this time was different.

“In the match I was going to the sidelines talking to my mom, rambling, screaming, saying, 'I don’t know what’s going on, I don’t want to be here.' I told her that I want to lose, which is something I never do,” said Waters. “I was just completely giving up and Tyra was playing really well.”

Black won the first game and Waters won the second, which sent the contest into a tense third game where Waters ultimately lost her cool.

“We get to the third game and I have a total mental breakdown on the court,” she explained. “This has never really happened to me, but I think it was from all the pressure and I was doubting myself.” 

After Black sealed the victory, Waters cheered and clapped as if she was the winner. Spectators were visibly confused. 

And because Waters rarely loses, her strange behavior was shocking and sparked a lot of criticism online.

“In my head, I was very psychotic at the moment. I was so happy. That’s why I cheered. I wasn’t cheering for her saying, ‘Congrats you beat me.’ I was cheering to myself, ‘Yay I finally lost.’ I tapped her paddle and then I tossed my paddle at my mom. I ran off the court and into the bathroom still freaking out,” she recounted. “I hadn’t lost in months, and people on social media were saying that pickleball is boring to watch because Anna Leigh is winning everything and somebody needs to beat her. I was letting everybody get to me and I was thinking about stats. That day was one of the worst days of my pickleball career.” 

The next morning, Waters contacted Black to apologize for her behavior.

“I felt so bad. I texted Tyra and said, ‘You played amazing. Great job. I’m so sorry, I was feeling so much pressure that I just kind of exploded at the end.’ Tyra played tennis, so she understood. She sent me this really nice text back, ‘I get it. You are under a lot of pressure. Thank you for texting me,’ and we’re friends now, so it’s okay,” said Waters.“Looking back on it, it was not great. But, I learned a lot from it. Now when I lose, I don’t sprint off the court. I at least walk off. I learned to shake my opponent's hand and just take my paddle and go. I don’t do anything crazy.”

Waters was just 16 years old when she had to learn one of the biggest lessons in sports – how to lose with grace.

In retrospect, she grew exponentially from the defeat. 

“Number one, I learned there is more to life than just pickleball. Number two, you’re going to lose and you can’t act like an idiot when you lose. Number three, be respectful to your opponents, especially when they beat you because not only is it a big moment in their career, but it’s also a big moment in my career because I’m not necessarily losing all the time,” she explained. 

Now 18, Waters has a few key strategies to help handle her losses, including muting the online critiques and relying on her family as her support system.  

“Not focusing on what people are saying about me on social media has been a big lesson,” she shared. “Now, if I ever lose a match, I delete Instagram for a couple of days.”

There's no denying that Waters' willingness to be open and vulnerable about that moment is a clear sign of growth and maturation.

“I’ve been in the limelight, I’m still young, I’m still learning,” she concluded. “I’m going to make mistakes, but I’m also going to learn from them.”