Europe West vs Asia Domestic at the MLP Nations Cup: Match Review and Key Moments
Asia Domestic beat Europe West 3-1 in Group A on Day 1 of the MLP Nations Cup, finishing with an 11-9 mixed game decided on a line challenge. Pickleball.com's standings after Friday had Asia Domestic at 2-0 and Europe West at 0-1. This review follows the full broadcast, with clips, and flags where a detail comes from the commentary rather than an official stats page.
The match at a glance
| Game | Who played | What the broadcast shows |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (women's) | Judit Castillo and Estee Widdershoven vs Zoey Wang and Jamie Wei | Europe West builds a big lead and reaches game point |
| 2 (men's) | Will MacKinnon and DJ Young vs Len Yang and Augie Ge | Many lead changes, then Asia Domestic closes it out on game point |
| 3 (mixed) | Castillo and Young vs Wei and Jonathan Truong | Asia Domestic takes it, with game point at 10-1 |
| 4 (mixed) | Widdershoven and MacKinnon vs Wei and Ge | Tied at 7-7, then Asia Domestic wins 11-9 |
I read the game flow from the commentators' score calls and the on-screen action, so in-game numbers and some pairings are approximate. The 11-9 final score is as announced on the broadcast.
Game 1: stacking, and a lineup debate
Europe West started stacked on the left side. The women's game quickly became a story about one player's side. The commentators said Zoey Wang, a former women's doubles partner of Castillo, did not look comfortable on the right, and Europe West sent three straight balls to her backhand. When Asia Domestic fell behind 8-1, the commentators asked why the team did not keep the player who had just won a point on the left, instead of switching. Europe West led by a wide margin and held game point.
If stacking is new to you, our guide to stacking in doubles explains why teams keep a favored player on one side.
Game 2: Young's right-side ernes and the reverse curse
The men's game had many lead changes. DJ Young hit two right-side ernes in about three minutes, one of them a backhand that the commentators said they rarely see. They also kept saying he looked better on the left. At one point the analyst said that every time he suggested a change and the team did not make it, the team won three or four points in a row, which the commentators called a reverse curse.
Asia Domestic's Len Yang and Augie Ge eventually reached game point. The commentators said Yang likes the ball coming hard at him because his hands are out in front, while he can struggle when balls come at a slower pace. The game ended on a net cord after Europe West tried to save it, and Asia Domestic took the men's game to level the match.
Game 3: warm or fresh?
Going into mixed doubles, the commentators raised a good question: is it better to play a player who has already been warmed up in women's or men's doubles, or someone fresh? They said they had seen teams go both ways in the MLP season and that the answer is hard to pin down. Asia Domestic's Jamie Wei and Jonathan Truong built an early lead, and the scoreboard showed game point at 10-1 for Asia Domestic.
The broadcast also included a rules moment. One shot looked like a double hit, but the commentators said DJ Young had to hit the ball because the contact was in one motion and the ball was still live, so he was within the rules. Doubles rules at the kitchen line can be confusing, and our rules of pickleball guide covers the basics.
Game 4: no runs, one challenge
The last game was the most tense. Europe West had to win it to force a dreambreaker, and the commentators said no one was getting a run: both teams scored one point at a time and it was level at 7-7 late on. Jamie Wei and Augie Ge closed it with an 11-9 win after a challenge on an out call, which stood. Afterward, Wei said that she and Ge kept talking, stayed disciplined, stuck with the game plan and did nothing too crazy.
Takeaways for your own game
- Keep a hot hand where it is. The commentators kept asking why a player winning on one side was moved.
- Target the uncomfortable side. Europe West hit three balls in a row to one player's backhand.
- In a tight game, stay boring. The winning pair said they stuck to the plan and avoided anything too clever.
For the full event, groups and format, see our Nations Cup preview.
