Ranking the Top 10 men's doubles duos in Major League Pickleball

Alex Lantz

Director of Content

Last Edited

May 20 2026

Top 10 men's doubles duos in Major League Pickleball

1. St. Louis Shock: Hayden Patriquin/Gabe Tardio

The No. 1 spot in this ranking is not up for debate at this time. Patriquin and Tardio went 39-4 together last season (24-1 in regular-season matches) and both of them have since improved. Tardio played in 10 PPA Tour events from January-May this year, and won gold in men's doubles in all 10 of those tournaments. He's the best right-side men's player in the game, and Patriquin is the second-best left-side men's player in the game (behind only Ben Johns).

2. Columbus Sliders: Andrei Daescu/CJ Klinger

These two started slow last season, but got it together when it mattered most toward the end of the year and in the playoffs. They were 14-6 together in the regular season, but 8-0 in the playoffs against the stiffest competition. I think they will carry that momentum over into the 2026 season.

3. Los Angeles Mad Drops: Ben Johns/Max Freeman

I'm probably higher on this team than others, and part of the reason for that goes back to the beginning of 2025, when Johns and Freeman were rumored to be playing at least one PPA Tour event together after Ben and his brother, Collin, split up. That didn't end up coming to fruition because Freeman was in the middle of a contract dispute at the time, and Johns ended up going with Gabe Tardio as his full-time partner. But it's clear that Johns has always been interested in playing with Freeman, and probably had a say in the Mad Drops trading Hunter Johnson for Freeman in the offseason.

4. Brooklyn Pickleball Team: Christian Alshon/Riley Newman

These two have had success together in MLP in the past, back when this franchise was the D.C. Pickleball Team in 2023. Alshon has been a Top 5 men's player on the PPA Tour the past two seasons, and Newman just made the semifinals in men's doubles at the PPA Finals, so he seems to be playing well right now.

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5. Texas Ranchers: Eric Oncins/Dylan Frazier

These two played together on the PPA Tour for much of the spring and had solid results. They earned bronze medals at the Indoor National Championships in Minnesota in January and at the PPA Tour Asia Hanoi Cup in April, which was a strong field that included a lot of top U.S.-based pros. They consistently made the quarterfinals outside of those two events, so I think they will win a lot of matches in MLP this year, but will need to play their best in order to beat any of the teams ahead of them on this list.

6. Orlando Squeeze: Jack Sock/Federico Staksrud

Sock has put together a pretty strong 2026 campaign so far, making the quarterfinals in men's doubles in four out of his six PPA Tour events this spring. He also finished fourth in one of those tournaments -- the Sacramento Open -- with Pablo Tellez. Sock has one of the highest ceilings of anybody on tour, while Staksrud has arguably the highest floor. I think Staksrud's consistency will keep them close in a lot of matches, and if Sock plays well they're dangerous.

7. Atlanta Bouncers: Jay Devilliers/Jaume Martinez Vich

Devilliers has flown a bit under the radar lately, but has been remarkably consistent this year and is almost always making the quarterfinals in men's doubles. He and Martinez Vich played a few tournaments together this spring and earned a bronze medal at the Texas Open, so they've shown they can hang with the top teams.

8. New Jersey 5s: Will Howells/Noe Khlif

They didn't play very many matches together last year because Khlif joined the 5s at the trade deadline late in the season. They finished with a 10-7 record in the regular season and playoffs, and that's including several playoff matches against the other top teams in the league. I think there's room to improve and I'll be interested to see who plays the left -- they played it both ways at times late in the season last year.

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9. Dallas Flash: JW Johnson/Augie Ge

This team took a big step back in 2025 compared to 2024, and their losses in men's doubles toward the end of last year were a big reason the Flash weren't able to defend their title. They were 14-11 in the regular season in 2025 and 0-3 in the playoffs. That's not gonna get it done.

10. Utah Black Diamonds: Connor Garnett/Tama Shimabukuro

Both of these players have been on fire lately. Garnett made the finals and finished second in men's doubles at the Atlanta Pickleball Championships, and Shimabukuro made the semifinals in men's doubles in that event. The very next week at the PPA Finals, Garnett made the semifinals with Riley Newman and Shimabukuro won gold in men's doubles in the 500-point event the PPA held alongside the Finals. The question is: Are those recent results an outlier or a trend? We'll find out soon enough.

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