A Dynamic Duo Reunited: Ben Johns and Matt Wright Join Forces Again
The Pickleball World Awaits the Rekindling of a Phenomenal Partnership
In the world of professional pickleball, partnerships are often a pivotal factor in a player's success. Recently, the pickleball community has been buzzing with excitement over the reunion of two formidable players, Ben Johns and Matt Wright. The dynamic duo, well-known for their incredible chemistry on the court, has come together once again, and the anticipation is palpable.
The announcement of Ben Johns and Matt Wright partnering up again took many by surprise, even within the professional pickleball community. Their partnership will be on display at the upcoming tournament in Kansas City, a partnership born out of a twist of fate. When Colin Johns, Ben's previous partner, faced an injury, it was Matt who extended the offer, suggesting he was ready to team up if needed.
The history between Ben Johns and Matt Wright goes back several years. They first joined forces approximately a year and a half ago, and the results were spectacular. However, during their initial partnership, Matt primarily played on the right side, which posed some challenges. Matt recalls his struggles playing on the right and how he realized it made more sense for him to adapt and excel on that side. Since then, he has honed his skills, staying on the right side for the majority of his matches with other partners. This evolution promises an even stronger partnership this time around.
One of the most memorable moments of their previous partnership was a remarkable comeback from a 10-1 deficit in the Texas Open of 2021 against Tyson McGuffin and Riley Newman. Matt's fiery and chippy play played a significant role in turning the tide in their favor. This match is etched in the minds of pickleball enthusiasts as a testament to their tenacity and competitiveness.
Ben Johns is quick to praise Matt Wright's attributes, highlighting his exceptional speed-up shots, outstanding hands, reliable drops, and aggressive drives. Matt's versatility as a player, able to adapt to various roles on the court, makes him an ideal partner for Ben.
When asked about their expectations for the upcoming tournament in Kansas City, both players agree that the gold medal is their ultimate goal. They share a competitive spirit and a mutual desire to succeed, both individually and as a team. Their partnership isn't just about winning; it's also about the thrill of competing at the highest level and giving their best effort on the court.
As with any rivalry, there's potential for some heated matches, especially when considering their likely opponents, Riley Newman and Julian Nichols. Riley Newman, who was once Matt's partner, adds an intriguing dynamic to the competition. With the possibility of some chirpy matches, fans can expect an electrifying atmosphere and some exciting pickleball action.
Looking ahead, Matt Wright has plans to partner with James Ignatowich for the first six months of the next year. The decision to team up with James is rooted in the belief in his immense potential and his ability to be a game-changer in the sport. Their partnership aims to bring chaos and disruption to the court, especially at the kitchen line.
Pickleball enthusiasts can't wait to witness the rekindling of the Ben Johns and Matt Wright partnership in Kansas City. With their history of memorable matches and shared competitive spirit, they are sure to be a formidable force. And as Matt Wright embarks on a new partnership with James Ignatowich, the pickleball world eagerly awaits to see if their chemistry can replicate the success of Ben and Matt.
In the fast-growing world of pickleball, partnerships like these add an extra layer of excitement and intrigue, promising thrilling showdowns and unforgettable moments on the court. As the Kansas City tournament draws near, all eyes will be on these players, showcasing their exceptional skills and fierce determination to secure the gold.
Time Code List (Unedited)
[00:00] Hannah Johns: Well, welcome everybody. Hannah Johns here with the PPA tour. We have a little interview in progress here. Matt Wright, Ben Johns, joining us on here to answer a few questions about the fantastic new partnership that we're going to be able...
[00:13] Hannah Johns: ...to see in Kansas City later this week. Uh, something that surprised a lot of us, some of us didn't even know that Colin was injured. So you guys will be taking the court together. Uh, you have partnered up in the past. Uh, Matt, who called who? How did this partnership happen for Kansas City?
[00:28] Matt Wright: So, I talked to Ben when, when Colin got injured in Los Angeles. I had just said to Ben, "Hey, I don't have a partner..."
[00:42] Matt Wright: ...as of now, um, if anything happens with Colin or he can't play, let me know, you know where to find me. And, um, we left it at that for, I don't know, Ben, what a couple of weeks, week and a half, two weeks, however long it was. And, yeah, I hadn't really heard anything since then. And Ben, I'll let you take it from there.
[00:55] Ben Johns: Yeah. So, basically I was just kind of waiting on Colin to get looked at by his PT. And, um...
[01:09] Ben Johns: ...he kind of got a mediocre kind of like, "Hey, you're okay, but um, you're at an increased risk of injury if you play, you know, soon. And the longer you wait, the, the, you know, less those chances..."
[01:22] Ben Johns: "...are that you get re-injured." Um, so I think after this interview, maybe about a week ago or so, he was like, "I think I'll be fine for Cincinnati, but I think it's smart if I take off Kansas in order to definitely be more ready for Cincinnati."
[01:36] Ben Johns: "So yeah, basically just left it up to Colin and whether he wanted to play or not. And once he did finally, you know, kind of confirm, uh, that he didn't want to play Kansas, uh, then I kind of just reached out to Matt and said, 'Hey, if you're still available, let's make it happen.' And, uh, it's as simple as that."
[01:49] Hannah Johns: Well, this wouldn't be the first time you all have partnered up. You were set partners about a year and a half ago, or a little bit more, I want to say. Uh, will it be like old times to partner back up again, Matt?
[02:04] Matt Wright: For me, it will be. I mean, Ben is just incredibly dominant. He, um...
[02:18] Matt Wright: ...I mean, the way the guy plays the left side, he's the Savant over there. And, um, hopefully, the biggest difference is when we were...
[02:32] Matt Wright: ...playing a couple of years ago, I really didn't know how to play the right very well. I don't know if I, I might say I struggled over there a little bit. I was certainly winging it from time to time. But by playing over, I mean, when we were, when I was playing on...
[02:46] Matt Wright: ...the right with Ben, kind of the first half of our partnership, I just, I said at one point, I said, "Look, it makes no sense for me to be on the left, even though that's my better side. Right now, you're so dominant on the left. I just need to figure it out." And so I forced myself to play the right side more and...
[03:01] Matt Wright: ...more. And then, of course, playing with Riley over the last year and a half, I stayed on the right side for, whatever it was, 90% of the time. So hopefully, the good news is that I'm better there than than I was when I was playing with Ben several years ago.
[03:16] Ben Johns: Yeah. Once upon a time, Ben played the right side with Matt Wright. The last time I played the right side was, uh, was with Matt in the Texas Open of '21, which Matt remembers that match well, as do I because it was a...
[03:31] Ben Johns: ...spectacular match, and I remember what was the score. We played against Tyson and Riley when they were back together. Um, and I believe we were down 10-1 in the first game and ended up coming back...
[03:45] Ben Johns: ...and winning that game, and then won the second game, uh, maybe six or seven, uh, maybe four. I don't know, but it was a lot more handily than the 10-1 deficit. But I just remember it because, uh, Matt got chippy and fiery, and then, uh, that helped...
[04:00] Ben Johns: ...us come back from a 10-1 deficit. And to be clear, we got down 10-1 with me on the right side, and Ben looked at me and said, "Get out. Just get over on the left side, go." And then it worked seamlessly, played amazing, and I played the right. And that...
[04:17] Ben Johns: ...was the last time I played the right, but it felt pretty fun. I love it together. Um, I think it was the Masters, right, in the 2021, and, uh, in the desert, but it was the...
[04:31] Ben Johns: ...Masters, which we did win. What a way to end it, if only a way to end a partnership. It's, it's, it's to win. I think we played, yeah, we were playing Tyson and Riley a lot at the time. So we played them in the final as well...
[04:45] Ben Johns: ...ironically, they, I recall they switched formations in that final. I think they had Tyson on the left and Riley on the right, which, yeah, they did. We had played them a bunch, and we had not seen that before. Did that make it harder to play against them in that one?
[05:00] Hannah Johns: Uh, I thought it made it easier.
[05:12] Matt Wright: Yeah, uh, how many tournaments did you guys play together? Uh, how many medals do you guys know? Uh, uh, the article you sent over, it was...
[05:25] Matt Wright: ...we played together, um, like ten times in '21, and I think it was ten medals and seven golds or something like that. Unless there were tournaments we didn't medal in, which, uh, I can't recall if we had any of those.
[05:40] Ben Johns: Yeah, I think we would have medaled in all of them. We might have. I think, yeah, I think if ten's the number of medals we had, I think there were seven golds and three silvers. Uh, we had a bronze in Vegas and, uh, maybe...
[05:54] Ben Johns: ...one bronze in, uh, in Newport, the first time.
[06:08] Hannah Johns: Yeah, you're, you're right. You're right. Nobody remembers medals like pickleball players, down to, like, matching tails point by point.
[06:22] Hannah Johns: Well, you know, some losses hit pretty hard, so you tend to remember those and some wins are very sweet, so you remember those too.
[06:36] Ben Johns: Yeah, I remember the losses, the, the losses in the big matches, those, those linger more than the big wins, at least for me. Any 10-1 deficits that you...
[06:50] Ben Johns: ...remember, Matt? That is a dig, and that is unfair.
[07:05] Ben Johns: So, for those of us at least, we've got a 10-1 deficit. Back together, yeah, we, um, we did get one back together. There was a chicken and pickle final for...
[07:19] Ben Johns: ...those watching who don't know this, that would have been what, 2020 maybe, Ben? Does that sound...?
[07:29] Ben Johns: 19, actually. It was 19. So, Kyle Yates and I played Ben and Colin in the final of, uh, chicken and pickle, which, at the time, I'd say from a money standpoint, was the biggest...
[07:43] Ben Johns: ...money tournament in pickleball that rose up to that point, yes. Yeah, up to that point. We played them in the final. We got up 10-1 in game three, and these were not three out of five game matches...
[07:57] Ben Johns: ...so we had nine match points. Or nine opportunities added, and they came storming back and ended up winning 12-10 in the third. That one...that one hurt as much as any loss I've ever had, combined...
[08:12] Ben Johns: ...with when Ben was on the other dishing out. And, again, when he played with Kyle in the finals and Nationals in '18 or '19, Ben, that was '18.
[08:26] Ben Johns: Yeah. Dave Weinbach and I had several match points, and Kyle, on one of them, hit the lob, as I told the other day, he hit the lob hurt around the world where, uh...
[08:40] Ben Johns: ...being down match point, he lobbed one right over my left shoulder and put it in the corner. They ended up winning the point and the match. So, those are my two...
[08:55] Ben Johns: ...hardest losses, I think, I've had in pickleball because then I'm starting to get a lot of bad feelings, remember?
[09:11] Hannah Johns: Yeah. Why are we going in this direction here? This was unexpected.
[09:24] Hannah Johns: No, let's talk about expectations. Are you...what would be a good tournament out for the two of you?
[09:36] Matt Wright: Oh, hopefully gold. I think that's what we would always be going for when we play together.
[09:49] Ben Johns: The gold is the expectation. And I think, regardless, uh, being back on the court with Matt will be fun. Just being back will be a fun experience to play again together. But, yeah, I think the expectation is...
[10:03] Hannah Johns: Well, guys, you've been friends and partners in the past and present day, but you've also had some heated matches against each other, been rivals. Will that play into how you feel when you step on the court together again?
[10:17] Matt Wright: Uh, well, I think Matt is a competitor. That's what...
[10:31] Matt Wright: ...you know, first and foremost about him. Um, but, yeah, obviously good friends off the court, and um, respect him as a competitor very much so. I mean, I look forward to playing with anybody that can...
[10:45] Matt Wright: ...compete and win as well as he can in any situation.
[10:56] Ben Johns: Yeah, and I think you use the word if you use the word rival, and I, I would never consider myself. He's too good. He's been too dominant. So...
[11:10] Ben Johns: ...I would just try to, you know, when we're on opposite sides of the net, I would just try to be the fiercest competitor I can be. And so, kind of echoing what he said, he knows he's always going to get my, you know, my maximum effort, whether...
[11:25] Ben Johns: ...opposite sides or same sides. And, um, I think we've always been able to separate, you know, regardless of what side of the net we're on, we've always been able to separate that on and off the court. And, uh, this weekend will be no different.
[11:41] Hannah Johns: Yeah, absolutely. I remember a good number of dinners where y'all had played earlier in the week or planned to go to dinner later in the week, and you had just played each other or were going to play each other. Lots of nights out like that.
[11:56] Matt Wright: No question, yes.
[12:01] Hannah Johns: Well, you guys may be playing Riley and Julian, uh, Riley being your former partner, Matt, and, uh, Julian being one that can create some interesting...
[12:17] Hannah Johns: ...and fiery moments on the court. Uh, do you see them as an obstacle for gold?
[12:30] Matt Wright: I'll let Ben take that one or me. Uh, yeah, sure. Um, obviously, both good players.
[12:43] Matt Wright: It also depends on how the...
[12:57] Matt Wright: ...seeding turns out. I expect we'd be the one seed based on points. Uh, Dylan and JW are probably the two, which puts Riley and Julian, Julian on, uh, you know, 50-50 to be on either side.
[13:11] Matt Wright: I mean, I guess to be honest, uh, going into it, you know, JW and Dylan kind of have the track record, so, in my eyes, they're kind of the, uh, the main one. But, of course, with any team, can be a good competition on any day. And that, uh, of course goes for, for two players who have a high level, um, really at any given time.
[13:27] Ben Johns: Yeah, and, and I'll just, I, I think, uh, Riley and Julian are both great players, um, very fiery competitors, obviously. And, you know, there are a lot of good teams out there now. A lot of people ask me about it, like, do...
[13:43] Ben Johns: ...you see a lot, you know, you see so many new players coming in. And they're right. I mean, the biggest thing I've noticed is just the depth, right? And it used to be that, in your, you're around the 16 match, wasn't the end of the world. You felt pretty confident going out there. Now, I...
[13:58] Ben Johns: ...mean, you have to be ready for every single match. So the depth is there. And so, whether it's Riley and Julian or whoever it is, you're gonna have to be on your A-game. And if you're not, you're gonna lose.
[14:13] Hannah Johns: Um, any chance we get some chirpy matches? That's what the fans love. I'd say, uh, knowing that, uh, if anybody dishes it out, they're going to get it back from them.
[14:29] Matt Wright: Well, yeah. Colin will get into it once in...
[14:42] Matt Wright: ...a while with players as well. And people find that fun. I know he and Julian have gone back and forth. He and Riley have gone back and forth. So, maybe they'll even have a chirpy match. Uh, for...
[14:56] Matt Wright: ...with Matt at your side, I don't even know. Never depend on a quiet matchup.
[15:11] Hannah Johns: I love it. My eyes and ears are open at all times. If I hear, if I hear a little chirping or gamesmanship, I will, I will engage and I will react in kind.
[15:26] Matt Wright: I like it. I'm...
[15:37] Matt Wright: ...that's how I, I think I'm genuinely built as well. I, I rarely dish it out as a starting point. If I have a history with someone, that could be the exception of the rule a little bit. That's just sports. That's what you...
[15:51] Matt Wright: ...I think that's what a lot of people fail to realize is, in a lot of sports, there's a lot of chirping and a lot of, uh, chippiness that's out there. A lot of times, athletes are doing it just to get themselves going as well. So, some people are very subdued and cerebral, like Ben.
[16:07] Matt Wright: Some people get more fiery. But I think, by and large, they're doing it to, to do what they feel like they need to do to play their best. But, um, typically, you know, I'm... I I feel like I'm... I'm reacting to something. And then once...
[16:22] Matt Wright: ...that happens, I'm usually home.
[16:31] Matt Wright: And absolutely, I named me any sport out there where that doesn't happen, correct? All right. Well, guys, Ben, I want... Why did you call Matt to replace Colin this...
[16:45] Matt Wright: Weekend, rather than any other of the many free agents and talents and, uh, male players out there?
[16:58] Ben Johns: Because I think he's the best right side player other than Colin. Me explaining something. Thanks, man. All right...
[17:11] Hannah Johns: Thanks for saying that, Ben. I appreciate it. Uh, what skills does Matt bring to the right side that makes him the best right side player besides Colin?
[17:25] Ben Johns: I think he's got the best speed up off the forehand off the bounce of anybody...
[17:39] Ben Johns: ...Um, I think he's got some of the best hands and heavy counters, especially fading with the backhand. Um, very consistent drops. He gets you in pretty much every time. Uh, an aggressive drive that can be very difficult to handle for some people.
[17:54] Ben Johns: All-around player. He can play roles. He knows how to play with me. So, yeah, there's a lot of qualities there that are really what I... I would look for. And how would you say playing with Matt is different from playing with Colin?
[18:10] Ben Johns: I think Matt has more of a tendency to be aggressive. Uh, he can reach in with the backhand a little more often than Colin can most likely. Uh, he's gonna pull the trigger off the bounce a little more. And, um, I can probably expect, you know...
[18:25] Ben Johns: ...generally more aggressive plays, more hands rallies, and a little less thinking. But, of course, I think he can do that as well if we need to in any given matchup. No 60, 70, 80-point rallies, I'm guessing?
[18:39] Ben Johns: Uh, not a 60, 70, 80-point rally... Again, I'll...
[18:53] Ben Johns: ...I'll defer to Matt's discretion. If Matt's feeling hot, then we can get into that. But if he's not feeling hot, we can kind of just bang it out and hit balls and, you know, let me stay in the backhand and the dinkers and let him stay in the kitchen and stuff.
[19:08] Hannah Johns: Yeah. That's, that's fun. Fun to see when, when he decides to pull the trigger and, and execute it. It's a, it's a sight to see, for sure. Well, gentlemen, I can't wait to see you all back together again this weekend. I know you're gonna do amazing, amazing things on the court.
[19:23] Hannah Johns: But until then, have fun, and thank you for, for joining me here today. Good luck.
[19:37] Matt Wright: Thanks, Hannah. Appreciate it.
[19:51] Ben Johns: Thanks. Thank you for having me.
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[00:00] Hannah Johns: Well, welcome everybody. Hannah Johns with the PPA tour. We have a little interview in progress. Matt Wright, Ben Johns, joining us to answer a few questions about the fantastic new partnership that we're going to be able to see in Kansas City later this week. Something that surprised a lot of us, some of us didn't even know that Colin was injured. So you guys will be taking the court together. You have partnered up in the past. Matt, who called who? How did this partnership happen for Kansas City?
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