
Show Notes
Zane Navratil and Nico the Lefty break down MLP St. Petersburg — the stunning blown foot-fault call that saved Nico and Mari Humberg's mixed doubles match, the eleventh-hour Casey Diamond signing drama between the Palm Beach Royals and Columbus Sliders, and why "super teams" like the St. Louis Shock, LA Mad Drops, and Columbus Sliders keep struggling out of the gate.
Then St. Louis Shock star Kate Fahey joins to talk her MVP weekend (top Player Impact Rating in the field), the art of playing "squishy" on defense, her breakdown of Sofia Sewing and Tina Pisnik's breakout run, and an honest conversation about on-court anxiety, working with a sports psychologist, and the line between competitive fire and burnout.
Plus: Zane and Nico draft an all-time Blue Card team, and the crew tries to guess a duper's rating.
💊 Marek Health → www.marekhealth.com | Code: THEDINK for 10% off
🗳️ Vote on our Blue Card Draft in the Pro Pickleball Talk Discord → https://www.discord.gg/JxEcUZ54z
📚 Be the first to try Zane's new course here: https://www.tzpickleball.com/
#Pickleball #PPATour #PickleballPodcast
Leave your voicemail for the PicklePod at (512) 200 - 4299
------------------
Like the ep? Do us a favor: subscribe to our channel and leave a review on Apple or Spotify
-Subscribe to our 'all things pickleball' *free e-newsletter* at https://www.thedink.beehiiv.com
https://www.instagram.com/thedinkpickleball/ -Follow us on IG
-Continue the convo in our private FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thedi...
-For everything else we do, visit https://linktr.ee/dinkfam
-Read more about Zane and subscribe to his newsletter at https://zanenavratilpickleball.com/
-Follow Zane on IG @zanenavratilpickleball
#pickleball #pickleballcourts
------------------
0:00 Intro
2:34 Glazing St Pete Athletics
7:24 The Chicago Slice are outperforming expectations
15:38 Blocking out the haters
19:20 Sports Predict is giving away $1 million
Kate Fahey
24:33 Kate joins the show
24:56 Kate goes the extra mile for dogs
27:22 MVP of the weekend and weaponizing unpredictability
33:57 The definition of Squishy Pickleball
39:16 Palm Beach Royals bending the rules
49:11 Super Teams feeling the pressure
56:10 Embracing competitive spirit
1:04:02 The Blue Card Draft
1:11:56 Guess my DUPR Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
More from PicklePod
Pickleball is getting louder, messier, and more interesting—and this week’s conversation proves it. Zane Navratil and Nico break down the latest pro pickleball stories, from tournament scheduling chaos in Australia and Hong Kong to first-time gold medalists, the rise of Elliott Shupp, and the debate over what belongs on center court.
The biggest indoor pickleball business story of the year collides with a wild Chicago recap, and the debate around Annalee Waters, Ben Johns, and the future of pro pickleball gets surprisingly deep fast. If you want the sharpest takes on the PPA Chicago chaos, the Pickler bankruptcy, and the next wave of stars, this is the episode.
Anna Bright joins Zane and Nico after her gold-medal run in Las Vegas to explain the moment everyone was talking about: challenging a ball at 10-0 with a double pickle on the line.
Zane Navratil is a PPA gold medalist again—and Nico Acevedo nearly turned a grueling tournament run into a championship of his own. Zane shares what made PPA Barcelona feel like a throwback, while Nico joins the conversation to unpack his breakout performance alongside Yuta Funemizu.
One of the wildest pickleball Sundays in a long time just got even crazier. A 15 seed nearly hijacks men’s doubles, a bird literally crashes the singles final, and the new PPA format changes are already reshaping who gets rewarded, who gets punished, and who might be gaming the system.