A lot has changed since we published our most recent Men's Doubles Power Rankings back in April.
With Dylan Frazier overtaking the top spot in PPA rankings, is it time for him to overtake Ben Johns in our power Rankings too?
This is a subjective view of the men’s doubles field. I use data and some analytics, but these represent a combination of stats, data, and good old observations.
Here are some of the key factors I take into consideration:
- Overall play in the last two months
- Average finish on the year
- Medal count
- Injuries and/or extended absences
- Played at least 50 percent of the events on the year (Riley Newman has only played five events so he was not considered)
20. Tyler Loong (Prev. - N/R) - Loong won a silver medal with Connor Garnett at the Indoor Championships but nothing since. He switches up partners quite a bit in men's doubles but has had some good results recently. Loong has made the quarterfinals or better in five of the last seven PPA tournaments. I'd like to see him team up with a more steady partner and put together a couple of consistent finishes together.
19. Zane Navratil (11) - Zane has three medals on the PPA Tour this year with three different partners. He got married earlier in the year and has taken some events off for that. He hasn't really had the results he would like in the last couple of months, finishing 32nd and 13th in his only two events over that stretch. Zane didn't play great at his only MLP event in Atlanta and will look to bounce back next week at the Mid-Season Tournament.
18. James Ignatowich (N/R) - Ignatowich still does not have a medal in men's doubles in 2024. Who would have guessed that at the beginning of the year? He just played well with Tyler Loong at the Orange County Cup. It seems like a lot of the guys between No. 11-20 are playing musical chairs with partners: Loong, Ignatowich, Patriquin, Tellez, Wright, Staksrud, Alshon, and Garnett. I think James will see success if he just chooses one of those other guys and stays with them for the second half of 2024.
17. Connor Garnett (16) - CG has finished in the quarterfinals or better in eight of the last 10 tournaments on the PPA Tour. He has a great "twoey" roll dink and drive. The problem for Garnett is, again, the musical partner chairs being played. If he can get a consistent partner, Garnett may soon reach the podium again. He got that silver with Loong in Minnesota, but no medals since that event in March.
Jason Flamm
16. Will Howells (12) – Howells drops a little in the rankings just because he plays both on the APP Tour and PPA Tour and hasn't had a ton of great results in the last two months. His last medal was in APP NYC – a bronze with CJ Klinger. Outside of that, here are Howells' last two months of finishes: 17th, 13th, and 16th. Howells is playing this weekend in APP Newport Beach and then in the MLP Mid-Season Tournament next week and has the opportunity to reestablish himself.
15. Jaume Martinez Vich (14) – Jaume has two silver medals and a bronze on the year thus far on the PPA Tour. I expect that number to continue going up, because Tyson McGuffin is going to be teaming up with the Spaniard. They got bronze together at PPA Texas. In the last three months, Jaume has only missed the quarterfinals twice and won all three of his medals.
14. Christian Alshon (8) - Alshon and Thomas Wilson won the PPA Indoor Championships and Alshon followed that up with a silver medal with Zane at PPA Austin. Since then, Alshon had a minor surgery, keeping him out for about a month. He hasn't medaled in almost four months. Once he picks a steady partner, I expect him to start moving back up the rankings.
13. Thomas Wilson (6) - This is a weird one. Wilson had such a good 4-5 months. He got a gold, a silver and two bronze medals. His last medal was a bronze with Dekel Bar at PPA Houston in April. Since then, Wilson has finished 5th, 8th, 29th, and 30th. I am sure he will get back on track, but he has dropped a few spots in our rankings.
12. Hayden Patriquin (NR) - Big H is on the rise. He barely missed our last power rankings but surged up the board with a gold medal with Federico and a silver medal with Pablo in the last two tournaments. Patriquin also got a bronze in the Indoor Championships with Callan Dawson. If Hayden semi-permanently picks one of these top guys as a partner for the second half of 2024, I could see him entering the top 10 before long.
11. Matt Wright (18) – Wright just keeps defying age and is proving he still has some of the quickest hands on tour. Wright won the PPA Austin with Andrei Daescu. He also got a silver in Atlanta with Federico Staksrud and followed that up with another silver at PPA Texas with Dekel Bar. Whoever Matt plays with has a good chance of medaling.
10. Pablo Tellez (10) – Pablo now has four medals on tour this year in men's doubles. The lefty has been switching up partners over the last few tournaments, coming up just short in the Orange County Cup with Big H. Pablo is fiery and can be a little inconsistent, but when he's on, he's really on.
9. Federico Staksrud (9) – Fed is just above Pablo because they played together in the early part of the year and Fed won a silver with Matt Wright in Atlanta and won his first ever men's doubles gold medal with Big H in Sacramento. Fed is extremely consistent and if he can get a powerful and offensive right-side guy, he will be seeing the podium plenty more in 2024.
8. Gabe Tardio (7) - Four silver medals and a gold? I would say that's a very good first half of 2024 for Tardio. In addtion, he has beaten the Johns brothers twice with Daescu and even pickled them in a game. Tardio drops slightly because he hasn't medaled in over two months.
7. Andrei Daescu (5) – Daescu dropped due to his 60-day suspension. Daescu was playing amazing prior to the suspension – two gold medals and four silver medals on the year. The big man should be back at the next PPA Tour event and will probably want to take out some frustrations on the competition.
6. Dekel Bar (15) – The last time that Bar missed the podium? Over three months ago. Bar has two silver medals and five bronze medals on the year. I am interested to see who Dekel partners with in the second half of 2024 and if he can keep his winning ways going.
5. Tyson McGuffin (13) - After taking a little time off due to a foot issue, McGuffin is on a tear with two silver medals and five bronzes on the year. I have McGuffin with the extremely slight edge over Bar because he got the silver medal with Jaume when Dekel didn't play. I look forward to seeing McGuffin and Martinez Vich play together more consistently.
4. Collin Johns (2) – Two months have passed since Collin and his brother Ben have medaled in men's doubles. I never thought I'd type that sentence. It's kind of insane. Last year, when they lost, they lost early – not the case in the last two months. Their results from the last four events – 4th, 4th, 4th, and 5th. People are overreacting and saying Ben needs to drop Collin, but I don't see it. I think they will right the ship in their next tournament and get back to their winning ways.
3. Ben Johns (1) – How could anyone be third in our power rankings with five golds on the year? The two guys ahead of him have simply been better of late. Ben hasn't made it to the podium in over two months. The competition continues to get better, plain and simple.
Erik Tice
2. JW Johnson (3) – The last time that JW Johnson and Dylan Frazier missed the podium? The PPA Masters in January – the first event of the year. The duo has eight gold medals in 2024. Five golds on the PPA Tour, two on the APP Tour, and one at the US Open. They have become the most consistent team in men's doubles this year.
1. Dylan Frazier (4) – Dylan has gone from a 3.5 player with no tennis or pickleball skills in 2016, to the No. 1-rated player in men's doubles on the PPA Tour. Dylan is easily a top 3 right-side guy. He also gets the nod over his partner JW because he's played in a couple more tournaments, earning him some extra points. Frazier is a consistent dinker and has some of the best forehand speedups of anyone in the game.
