The Deceptively Simple Strategy That Finally Beat Anna Leigh Waters

It’s one thing to plan to avoid the best player on earth, it’s another thing entirely to pull it off.

In yesterday’s Mid-Season Tournament final between the New Jersey 5s and St. Louis Shock, that exact game-plan was put on display for the pickleball world to see – and finally executed flawlessly.

The Shock swept the 5s thanks largely to an approach that many have tried but few have been able to sustain for an entire game: Just don’t hit the darn ball to Anna Leigh Waters.

Like, at all. Simply refuse to let her play.

Pro coach and commentator Matt Manasse summed it up perfectly:

Anna Bright and Kate Fahey wiped the court with Anna Leigh Waters and Jorja Johnson, handing them their first MLP women’s doubles loss of the season after going a staggering 25-0.

There are a lot of factors involved in a match of this magnitude, of course. And Jorja Johnson was clearly nervous throughout the first women's doubles game.

But credit where credit it due: The Shock women put all egos aside and committed to beating the team across from them by any means possible instead of letting them take control.

In this case, that meant removing one player from the equation almost entirely.

If you can’t beat ALW, don’t let her play.

Watch the full match below:

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Image via St. Louis Shock on Instagram.