2023 PPA Las Vegas James Ignatowich & Anna Bright - Mixed Doubles Finalists

 

Bright and Ignatowich Discuss Their Aggressive Playing Styles and Supportive Partnership

1. 0:00 Aggressive Game Plan
   • Bright and Ignatowich talked about having an aggressive game plan, pushing the pace, and trying to emulate top players like Ben Johns and Riley Newman.
   • "I think that usually you know playing mix that's just kind of how you want to play as a guy I think the best mixed players take a lot of court and they're always pushing the pace." - James
2. 0:26 Aggressive Serves
   • Ignatowich and Bright discussed hitting bigger, more aggressive serves.
   • "Travis was like well yeah you're not going to do that in a tournament you're going to get tight you're going to push it in so I was like okay Travis we'll see we'll see." - James
3. 0:51 Rec Play with Travis
   • Ignatowich mentioned playing recreational games with Travis and clocking big serves to prepare for the tournament.
   • "I was playing rec with Travis yesterday and I was clocking the serve like just like how I did today maybe a little less hard and he was like, "Well, you're not going to do that in a tournament. You're going to get tight." - James
4. 1:17 Does James have the best serve on the PPA Tour?
   • Ignatowich responded to a comment that he might have the best serve on tour.
   • "I would say Tyson and Dekel are right there. I think my serve is so linear. It's going like this high over the net. It can give people problems. But, Dekel's serve I still think is probably the hardest." - James
5. 2:09 Best serve that does not push the boundaries of legality
   • Bright said Ignatowich has the best legal serve, not Dekel.
   • "For serves that do not push the boundaries of legality, James is undoubtedly the best." - Anna 
6. 2:26 I want to see his belly button. Put him in a crop top
   • Bright jokingly said she wants to see Dekel's belly button and wants him to wear a crop top.
   • "I want to see the belly button put him in a crop top." - Anna
7. 2:35 Touching the video board
   • Bright said she touches the video board before points as a reset method, not a superstition.
   • "I would not call it a superstition per se. I mean maybe you could say that it's a reset method. It's like you know Lea and some other people do the crossbody thing. So, that's all it is. Maybe that is a superstition?" - Anna
8. 3:08 Sitting so far apart during time outs
   • Ignatowich said he sat far away from Bright during a timeout just to mix things up.
   • "This was a new thing that he was sitting so far away. I mean the rest of the day we're usually sitting on the same bench. But, he saw a chair over there and he was like I'm going to be as far away from you as possible." - Anna 
9. 3:38 A big supportive person on the court
   • Ignatowich said having energetic, supportive partners like Bright is very helpful.
   • "I think that's one of the coolest things about who I have as as partners this year. The most supportive highest energy in terms of just personality. They are best partners I could possibly have: Anna, Tyson, Matt. I'm super lucky to have that." - James
10. 4:34 On court fights
    • Ignatowich said he and Bright never get into fights on court because she is too nice.
    • "She's too nice she couldn't fight me look at her ." - James 
11. 5:06 Back and forth comments with Christian
    • Ignatowich and Bright discussed the minor back and forth comments during their match against Christian and Tyra.
    • "He said a couple of things. Everyone says stuff it wasn't anything that was a big deal." - James

Summary:

In this interview after their semifinal match with Christian Alshon and Tyra Black, mixed doubles partners Anna Bright and James Ignatowich discussed their aggressive playing styles and strategies, including hitting big serves and pushing the pace. They also talked about being supportive, energetic partners for each other on the court. Ignatowich responded to a comment that he might have the best serve on the pro tour. Bright said Ignatowich has the best legal serve. They also mentioned minor trash talk during their match against Christian and Tyra but said it wasn't a big deal. Overall, they emphasized being aggressive, playing with energy, and having a supportive partnership.

0:00 Aggressive Game Plan 0:26 Aggressive Serves 0:51 Rec Play with Travis 1:17 Does James have the best serve on the PPA Tour? 2:09 Best serve that does not push the boundaries of legality 2:26 I want to see his belly button. Put him in a crop top 2:35 Touching the video board 3:08 Sitting so far apart during time outs 3:38 A big supportive person on the court 4:34 On court fights 5:06 Back and forth comments with Christian