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Johnson, Klinger Sweep Johns, Tardio For First Title Together
JW Johnson/CJ Klinger earned their first title together with an 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 victory over No. 2 seeds Ben Johns/Gabe Tardio.
One of the key moments of the contest came in Game 2, when Johns/Tardio earned a 9-4 lead. It looked like they would even the match ahead of the third game, but Johns/Klinger went on to score seven points on a single side out to give themselves a two-game advantage.
They wouldn’t look back from there, using a brand of consistent, opportunistic pickleball to eventually take the match in straight games for their first title as a partnership.
Klinger played at an especially high level throughout the affair, applying lots of pressure with his length at the kitchen line and showcasing top-tier hand speed in quick exchanges.
“I think a lot of that comes from practice and hard work and dedication,” he said. “My dad’s a big part of it, so big thanks to him. He’s the best coach out there.”
This result is also a moment of revenge for Johnson and Klinger, since they fell to Johns and Tardio in the quarterfinals of last month’s Veolia North Carolina Open.
Johns—who will go for men’s singles gold later on Sunday—gave his thoughts on the match from the losing side.
“Those guys played really well. They both obviously have great hands, and that made it tough when we got into some of the long, extended points,” he said. “I think our thirds could have been a little better. They got into the net a little more than we did, and oftentimes matches come down to that.”
In the bronze medal match, No. 3 seeds Christian Alshon/Andrei Daescu defeated No. 4 seeds Dekel Bar/Dylan Frazier by a 13-11, 11-7 score line.
