Megan Fudge remains alive for a three-gold-medal performance at the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships after sweeping her three semifinal matches on Friday in Naples, Fla.
Fudge, the No. 1-ranked female in the Association of Pickleball Players, also arranged a juicy showdown against Anna Leigh Waters, the top-ranked woman on the PPA Tour, in the women’s pro doubles final.
Fudge and Jillian Braverman will face Waters and her mother Leigh Waters in that final on Saturday.
Fudge and Braverman battled past Shelby Bates and Sofia Sewing 11-5, 11-6, 13-11 in the semifinals on Friday, while the Waters duo defeated Daria Walczak and Allison Harris 11-2, 9-11, 11-1.
Anna Leigh Waters, 18, was in the spotlight earlier this week as she played with former tennis star Andre Agassi in the mixed pro doubles bracket in Agassi’s first professional pickleball competition. Agassi and Waters won their first match but lost in the Round of 16.
Fudge, 37, remains alive in that draw with partner Jack Munro. They dismissed Casey Diamond and Sewing 11-3, 11-5 in the semifinals and moved on to the final against Richard Livornese and Riley Bohnert, who were 11-9, 11-7 victors over Mark Dancuart and Braverman.
In the women’s pro singles draw, Fudge is seeking a gold medal after settling for silver at this event last year. She eliminated Simone Jardim 11-2, 13-11 on Friday and will square off with Bobbi Oshiro in the final. Oshiro topped Amanda Hendry 11-6, 11-6.
Christopher Haworth is another 2024 silver medalist hunting for gold — the men’s pro singles gold in his case. He got past Ammar Wazir 11-9, 11-2 on Friday and will face Grayson Goldin in the final, after Goldin beat Ronan Camron 11-2, 11-6.
In the men’s pro singles bronze medal match, Wazir defeated Camron 4-11, 11-9, 11-4.
In men’s pro doubles, Livornese and Ryler DeHeart will tangle with Munro and Len Yang in the Saturday final. Livornese and DeHeart outlasted Brandon Lane and Ben Newell 11-6, 6-11, 11-7. Munro and Yang edged Armaan Bhatia and Harsh Mehta 11-6, 7-11, 12-10.
–Field Level Media
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