PPA Denver Finals: My Toughest Match Against Ben Johns

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Pro player Christian Alshon

What’s up, guys, this is Christian Alshon. A while back during the finals of PPA Denver, I faced Ben Johns—yeah, that Ben Johns. We were the last match of the day on Sunday, and I had no clue when we’d play. I was hoping to go on first, get a good warmup, and go straight into the match. Instead, I had to wait around all day, not knowing if we’d start at 1 or 5 PM.

I got to the site around 10:30 AM, hit on the backboard for 20 minutes, warmed up Federico and Pablo, then played a few points with Dylan Frazier. I thought I had a solid warmup, but once the match started, I realized I wasn’t ready. Playing on a Sunday is different. You don’t have earlier matches to build into it—you’ve got one shot, and that’s it. If I could do it over, I’d play for two hours in the morning, rest, and go again before the match. What I did just didn’t work.

Facing Ben: Every Mistake Exploited

From the start, Ben was locked in. He covered the court well, used his height, and made tough shots look effortless. Meanwhile, I made some bad decisions—like running around my backhand when I shouldn’t have, or popping up returns that should’ve stayed low.

His shot placement was brutal. He knew exactly where to put the ball—low, spinning away, just out of reach. Even when I hit decent shots, he was already there. I’ve never had someone read me that well before. It wasn’t about him being more athletic—it was mental. Shot selection, anticipation, and discipline. That’s where he crushed me.

Altitude, Nerves, and Serving Woes

Denver’s altitude made serving tricky. You can’t put as much shape on the ball, so you have to drive it more. Ben has it dialed—he hits it right at the legal limit for height and keeps it piercing. I hit mine too low, like a tennis forehand. I’ve been working on raising the contact point, but it wasn’t there yet.

Learning the Hard Way

The second game didn’t go much better. I started feeling pressure to hit winners instead of playing smart. I’d roll a forehand behind him—great idea, bad execution. He kept exposing my backhand, especially with those two-handed down-the-line passes.

Thinking back on this, I realize now I wasn’t getting my drops down, my returns floated, and I let the moment get too big. And it all happened fast. I waited six hours for a 16-minute match. That’s… absurd.

Pro Player Christian Alshon

Reflection: Growing from the Loss

Losing close matches is hard, but this? This was the worst singles loss of my career—11-1, 11-2. I usually get something valuable from watching film, but this time it just stung. I need help. What did I do wrong? What did he do right? What can I learn?

Ben knew exactly how to beat me—and I expected that. I’m not afraid to admit my weaknesses because it forces me to improve. I want opponents to find my flaws so I can fix them. That’s how I get better.

Final Thoughts

Even though he knew my game, a lot of people do. That doesn’t mean they can execute. But Ben did, and now I know what I need to work on. If he watches this analysis, he’ll know even more. It’s layers on layers.

If you got anything from this breakdown, click here for more. Thanks for reading. Catch you in the next one.

Peace.

🎥 Check out full-version breakdowns on my YouTube channel, where I dive deeper with real-game analysis, and exclusive content.

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