Waters and Johns both lose Thursday at Takeya

Thursday was the rarest of days on the PPA Tour.

Maybe it was something more than that, because for the better part of three years we have never seen anything like it on the PPA Tour.

It was a hand-to-the-side-of-the-face, you-gotta-be-kidding sorta day, because when Ben Johns and Anna Leigh Waters lose, it’s notable, but when they lose on the same day, it’s remarkable. 

There’s really no other way to describe it.

The top players in the game and the most-prolific winners, dominant, and every other superlative you want to put in front of their name, both got beat, and, more than that, neither will be on the medal stand.

Instead, it’s Gabriel Joseph, the No. 24 seed playing against No. 2-seeded Federico Staksrud in the final, and on the women’s side it’s the ninth-seeded Tyra Black against sixth-seeded Yana Newell Championship Sunday.

Wait, what?

Black’s win was the biggest shocker of the tournament. After all, Waters hadn’t lost since March, was working on a streak of having won six triple crowns in a row. But Black dominated the third and deciding game against Waters in the quarterfinal and won 11-8, 2-11, 11-3. 

“I thought I was going to lose the whole time, even when I was up in the third game,” Black said. “Obviously she’s a great player, 1,000 times better than me. I think I just got lucky today.”

And after that win, Black still had to take the court. She went on to beat Lauren Stratman, 11-5, 11-6 earning her first spot on Championship Sunday and guaranteeing her first medal on the PPA Tour.

After the final point, Waters ran to the middle of the court with her hands above her head, seeming to be congratulating Black, but it wasn’t clear. She tapped paddles with Black, tossed her paddle toward her mother sitting courtside, and sprinted off the court.

“I had to turn all my notifications off,” Black said. “My phone was blowing up. I like to look at social media, but I was a little freaked out because a lot of the posts were about me.”

Well, people are going to talk. That’s what happens when you dominate the world’s best player in the final game and then follow it up with another impressive win. Black is, as yet, still a free agent when it comes to a paddle sponsor, something that isn’t likely to be the case for long.

And people were talking about Johns, too. He fell in the second round to Yates Johnson, the No. 16 seed, 11-7, 11-6. That put Johnson in a quarterfinal match against Joseph, who had an impressive run Thursday.

Joseph beat No. 9 seed Pablo Tellez in the first round, No. 8 seed Connor Garnett, then Johnson, then got by against No. 4-seeded Tyson McGuffin, 2-11, 11-5, 11-4. 

It’s Joseph’s first medal on the PPA Tour since August of 2020 when he lost to Johns in the final of the PPA Showcase.

“I just have to believe in myself,” Joseph said. “I can compete with the best. “It’s me vs. me. It’s the mental mindset. As long as I stay in tune and don’t fold, I’m in good shape. How much do I want it? You know what, it doesn’t matter who’s on the other side of the court. It’s just another face. I try not to check the draws and take it a point at a time and never fold.”

Johns had won the previous two singles titles – taking the gold in Seattle and Denver. He had won three of the past four tournaments as well, and while Joseph didn’t get to play Johns, he said he was looking forward to the chance.

Johns beat Joseph last week in Seattle.

“Absolutely, he’s the GOAT,” Joseph said. “I love playing him. I’m 0-8 against him, but he makes me raise my game and my level.”

Meanwhile, Yana Newell earned bronze in singles just last week and now is going to be in Championship Sunday this week. Talk about leveling up.

“Mary is a tough player,” Newell said. “We all want gold. I have to keep working hard. I’m looking forward to it.”