Ben Johns Unleashes His Secret Left-Handed Weapon at Worlds

Ben Johns, widely considered the greatest male pickleball player of all time, brought out a surprise weapon at this week's Opendoor Pickleball World Championships.

He hit a left-handed forehand during his singles match against Brandon French.

For fans who have only watched Johns play in recent years, it looked like a brand new shot.

But it is not new.

Johns originally used the left-handed forehand in men's singles during the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

He gradually stopped using it as his playing style evolved.

In the early days of singles pickleball, rallies were built almost entirely around powerful drives.

Johns later adopted a more tactical approach.

He began relying on drops and moving toward the net to pressure opponents.

That style became known as cat-and-mouse pickleball.

“Back in the day when people played singles, it was pretty much all drives,” Johns explained in a post-match interview.

“Then, I started dropping and coming in — the cat and mouse style as we know it today — and that required me to just hit backhand slices, basically backhand drops.”

“So I stopped using my left hand and I stopped really hitting a bunch of passing shots, as I would just drop and come in.”

“That’s kind of the style I just continued to play for singles after that.”

For years, that cat-and-mouse approach made Johns nearly unbeatable in singles.

But the game has changed considerably over the past decade.

Equipment has evolved.

New balls, such as the LT Pro 48 used on the PPA Tour, behave differently than older models.

Paddles have become more powerful, giving players more spin and speed.

These changes have altered the demands of singles play.

Johns believes the traditional drop-and-approach strategy is no longer as effective as it once was.

“You can’t really drop and come in super well with this ball,” he noted.

“You can hit accurate drops, but the ball bounces pretty high and people have a lot of spin on their paddles, so they can just take a drop and do a lot with it, so cat and mouse doesn’t really work very well.”

He added that drops remain useful to stay in rallies, but they are no longer a reliable way to build his game.

Since Johns does not generate much power with his backhand, the left-handed forehand offers an alternative.

It gives him a stronger passing shot option.

Johns began his campaign at PPA Worlds with an 11-7, 1-11, 11-5 victory over Brandon French on Tuesday.

During that match, he unleashed a series of left-handed forehands that caught many viewers by surprise.

The Dink Pickleball described the shots as “devastating.”

In a post-match interview, Johns conceded that during his tennis days, he actually preferred having two forehands.

He brought that two-forehand approach into pickleball until it stopped working with his shift to the cat-and-mouse style.

Now, he says, it is working again.

Johns exited the singles competition in the Round of 32 after losing 8-11, 8-11 to ninth seed Noe Khlif on Wednesday.

Despite the early exit, Johns made one thing clear about his future in singles.

“When I do play singles, you can expect to see it,” Johns said, referring to the left-handed forehand.

He is unsure how frequently he will compete in singles going forward.

But he has confirmed that the left-handed forehand is here to stay whenever he takes the court.

The PPA World Championships are being held at a venue that draws top players from around the world.

Johns has dominated the sport for years, winning multiple singles and doubles titles.

His ability to adapt his game has been a key factor in his longevity at the top.

The return of the left-handed forehand represents another evolution in his approach.

It also reflects broader changes in the sport of pickleball itself.

The LT Pro 48 ball, introduced to the PPA Tour, has a different bounce and feel than previous balls.

Players have reported that it makes drops and soft shots more difficult to control.

At the same time, paddle technology has advanced rapidly.

Modern paddles generate more spin and power, allowing players to attack balls that would have been defensive shots just a few years ago.

These equipment changes have shifted the balance between offense and defense in singles play.

Johns is not the only player adjusting to the new conditions.

But his decision to revive a shot from nearly a decade ago has drawn particular attention.

For younger fans who have only seen Johns play his cat-and-mouse style, the left-handed forehand looks like a completely new addition to his game.

In reality, it is a return to an older, more power-oriented approach.

Johns has also made headlines at this tournament for a different reason.

During a mixed doubles match with Anna Leigh Waters, the pair showed up in mismatched outfits.

Waters wore a teal skirt and black shirt from Nike.

Johns wore bright blue shorts and a white shirt.

Broadcasters Sarah Ansboury and Michelle McMahon noticed the mismatch and asked about it during a post-match interview.

“Ben, I don’t think you did your job today with matching Anna Leigh’s outfit, so what’s going on here?” Ansboury asked.

Johns, Waters, and McMahon all laughed at the question.