The latest PPA Tour stop in Mesa, Arizona was crammed full of storylines.

Amidst a sea of amazing matches and surprising results, one common thread prevailed: Replay drama.

The match everyone is talking about was Saturday's semi final singles bout between Federico Staksrud and Hunter Johnson – a long, grueling and highly contentious matchup for the right to face Ben Johns in the finals.

The match took a staggering 98 minutes, which is largely unheard of in singles, nearly half of which was allotted to various replay issues, multiple appeals to head referee Don Stanley, and one puzzling timeout call from Staksrud.

Carvana Mesa Cup Tournament Recap

This is a tournament recap of the Carvana PPA Mesa Cup Presented by Proton. The event took place at the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Arizona, that ended on February 23rd, 2025.

The Dink PickleballErik Tice

'I Don't Get What We're Doing Here'

The first two games were extremely close, with Staksrud winning the first 12-10 and Johnson taking the second, 10-12. 

Game two was where things got weird. 

As our own Erik Tice previously reported,

• Staksrud called a ball out, and Johnson had no free challenges. Johnson challenged the out call, and was at risk for a technical warning if he was wrong. 
• The replay official ruled the ball was out, even though it was very in.
• Johnson then got a technical warning and called in Don Stanley on appealed.
• Stanley overturned the out call and removed the tech for Johnson. 
• Staksrud then called a medical timeout, for reasons that haven't been made clear.

In game three, Johnson is up 6-2 at the side switch.

• Staksrud then allegedly made some choice comments, which the ref heard.
• A technical warning was issued, and because Staksrud had already had one in the match (for ball abuse), this resulted in a technical foul.
• So, an extra point was awarded to Johnson.
• Staksrud calls in Don Stanley to argue the call.
• Stanley upheld the call, and because he was called in and Staksrud was overturned, he was called for another technical foul.
• This resulted in another point for Johnson.

Johnson ultimately won the match, taking the third game 11-5.

For those counting at home, two of those points were awarded by technical foul at the side switch – pushing the score from 6-2 to 8-2 in Johnson's favor.

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In a post-game interview, both players openly admitted to struggling with the rhythm of the gameplay.

"They messed me up," Staksrud said of the match officials. "I don't get what we're doing here."

Replay System in Question

The match was, in more ways than one, a bit of a debacle. For such a fast and dynamic sport, the constant back and forth between players and officials really slowed things down. It was hard to watch – and, undoubtedly, very challenging for the athletes themselves.

There were also a few nuances that didn't come through for those of us watching from home.

After the match, for example, Staksrud suggested that he was targeted by referees because his is not American:

“It’s really difficult to win if I literally have to play against Hunter, as he’s a great player, and I also have to beat the refs. The refs are literally against me the whole time, so it’s tough. I don’t know, I think I just pay the price of being the non-American on the court. Honestly, that’s what it is. Sometimes the line calls are 50/50, but today it wasn’t 50/50. He was making out calls on balls that were in, so I had to challenge literally just to get a point. So, I’m doing that and then calling balls out that actually are out, and then they’ll overturn in his favor, so it’s like I’m fighting against everybody. It’s ridiculous.”

There was a lot going on in this match, no question. It was high drama and maximum entertainment, but the pace of play and various antics involved between players and officials caused a lot of strife as well, which trickled down to the audience experience.

"This controversy has happened a couple of times: A player challenges, a call is made on that challenge, and a player appeals the result of the challenge," Zane Navratil posted on X. "Players SHOULD NOT be able to appeal judgement calls to the head referee. Only rules issues should go to the head ref."

The frustration was palpable, as fans in attendance actually booed more than once.

What The Pros are Saying

Pro Zane Navratil, always outspoken on hot-button issues, had the following to say about the current state of line calls, replays and appeals.

This controversy has happened a couple of times: A player challenges, a call is made on that challenge, and a player appeals the result of the challenge. Players SHOULD NOT be able to appeal judgement calls to the head referee. Only rules issues should go to the head ref. Why?

There are so many calls that are 50/50. Are the head ref's eyes or judgements better than the refs reviewing the challenge?

If the answer is yes, then the head ref should immediately review all challenges and on-court refs have nothing to do with it

If the answer is no, then the head ref shouldn't be allowed to be consulted for judgement calls.

Think about a call that is so close that 50% of people would see it one way, and 50% would see it another. If player A challenges the call, they have a 50% chance of getting a favorable decision. If they get an unfavorable decision, they can challenge it again and have another

50/50 chance, thus bringing their cumulative probability of a favorable call to 75/25, which doesn't seem fair to me. Thoughts?