We recently updated our list of the current top 20 men’s players who compete on the PPA Tour and in Major League Pickleball. To help us through the process, we collaborated with an anonymous men’s pro player who regularly plays with and against many of the top players.

We wanted this list — which our anonymous pro may or may not be on — to reflect doubles ability only.

Because this is such a tough exercise, we set some general guidelines to help us make decisions:

– Gender doubles results carried more weight than mixed doubles results (about a 70-30 split).

– Ranking is based on 2026 results + input from our pro player consultant on who they would least like to see on their side of the draw in a tournament.

– PPA Tour results carry more weight than MLP results (again about a 70-30 split) due to the smaller sample size in MLP (1 game to 11 and not as many events).

Our ranking of the top 20 women’s players — which we made with the help of a women’s pro — can be found here.

The Kitchen’s Top 20 Men’s Players — April 2026

1. Ben Johns (previously No.1) – Johns remains the undisputed best player on the men’s side, despite the fact that Gabe Tardio has pulled even with him in the official men’s doubles points standings on the PPA Tour. The gap between Johns and the field is still pretty big, but the next player on our list is gaining ground. Get his paddle.

2. Hayden Patriquin (previously No. 2) – At some point Johns won’t be the No. 1 player in the world. When that day comes, I believe Patriquin will be the one who passes him. Between men’s doubles and mixed doubles, Patriquin has 10 silver medals already in 2026 – and a gold in mixed. He’s clearly knocking on the door. It’s just a matter of time before he knocks it down. Get his paddle.

📈 3. Christian Alshon (previously No. 7) – He’s been ultra consistent in men’s doubles for more than a year (with Andrei Daescu in 2025 and now with Patriquin in 2026), but his mixed doubles results have also been very good so far in 2026. He has a gold with Tyra Black, a bronze with Rachel Rohrabacher and is also coming off a silver with Kaitlyn Christian at the PPA Tour Asia MB Hanoi Cup in Vietnam, which a lot of top U.S.-based pros played in. Get his paddle.

📈 4. Gabe Tardio (previously No. 5) – He has established himself as the best right-side men’s player in the game and he and Johns have been dominant in men’s doubles, but the mixed results aren’t quite there yet compared to the men ahead of him on this list.

📉 5. Andrei Daescu (previously No. 3) – His men’s doubles results haven’t been as good in 2026 as they were in 2025, when he partnered with Alshon for most of the year. He does have a gold, though – with Tardio at the Indoor National Championships in Minnesota. He also has three bronze medals in mixed doubles this year, which is more than any player behind him on the list. Get his paddle.

6. Federico Staksrud (previously No. 6) – He’s Mr. Consistent. He was No. 6 the last time we did our rankings in the fall of 2025, and he’s still No. 6. Here are his men’s doubles results so far in 2026: 4th, silver, bronze, bronze, 4th, 4th, 4th. That’s really good, but all of the players ahead of him (and a few of the players behind him) tend to have higher peaks in doubles. Get his paddle. 

📉 7. JW Johnson (previously No. 4) – His men’s doubles results in 2026 are pretty similar to last year – he’s almost always in the mix on the weekend, but usually ends up playing in the bronze-medal match instead of the gold medal match. But the real reason he falls in the rankings this time around is because his mixed doubles results haven’t been as good as previous years. He and sister Jorja Johnon have just two bronze medals together and have not made it to a mixed doubles final in six tournaments together this year.

8. CJ Klinger (previously No. 8) – Of the players we have named to this point, Klinger has by far the worst mixed results. But he’s a staple in men’s doubles and holds the title of best lefty in the game.

📈 9. Eric Oncins (previously No. 10) – Oncins has taken a step forward in early 2026, consistently getting to the quarterfinals or better in men’s doubles and also grabbing a silver in mixed doubles with Tina Pisnik. Get his paddle.

📉 10. Dylan Frazier (previously No. 9) – Frazier and Oncins have the same men’s doubles results because they’ve been partnering together, but Oncins jumps ahead of him this time around because Frazier hasn’t been as good in mixed.

📈 11. Noe Khlif (previously No. 17)

📈 12. Jay Devilliers (previously No. 14)

📉 13. Dekel Bar (previously No. 12)

📉 14. Will Howells (previously No. 11)

📈 15. Jaume Martinez Vich (previously No. 16)

📈 16. Augie Ge (previously No. 20)

📈 17. Connor Garnett (previously No. 19)

📈 18. Jack Sock (previously unranked)

📉 19. Tyson McGuffin (previously No. 15)

📉 20. Riley Newman (previously No. 13)

Notably absent: Max Freeman, Pablo Tellez, Matt Wright (previously No. 18), Wyatt Stone, Jonathan Truong, Hunter Johnson, Blaine Hovenier, Rafa Hewett, Armaan Bhatia.