Meet Team Australia: 2026 MLP Nations Cup Roster
Meet Team Australia: From the Other Side of the World, Hungry for History
They’re crossing half the planet with the pride of a country that fell in love with pickleball and the dream of writing the first page of Nations Cup history. And their roster features our August cover star, Danni-Elle Townsend, who hardly needs an introduction.
Some journeys are measured in miles, and others in dreams. Team Australia’s trip to Dallas is both.
Just days ago, Brisbane shook like never before. The biggest professional pickleball tournament in the country’s history packed Pat Rafter Arena, put more than $500,000 on the line and brought America’s stars to play on Australian soil. The crowd responded so loudly that even Hunter Johnson, the men’s singles champion, ended up leading the “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!” chant and called it “one of the best crowds I’ve ever played in front of.”
But the image that stuck was a different one: an Australian, Andie Dikosavljevic, lifting the singles trophy at home. That day, Australia understood it’s no longer here to learn. It’s here to compete.
With that fire burning, the team lands in Dallas for the first-ever MLP Nations Cup presented by DoorDash, Oct. 30-Nov. 1 at Brookhaven Country Club. Eight nations, one trophy, and the first page of a story no one has written yet.
A Country That Fell in Love With Pickleball
Australia’s relationship with pickleball was love at first sight. The sport arrived around 2010 on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, almost as a curiosity, and within a few years it became a national passion:
LOVE PICKLEBALL?
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The Pickleball Australia Association grew from 967 members in 2019-2020 to more than 22,000 in 2024-2025.
Today, the country counts about 155,000 players.
Its 2025 national championships drew 1,235 players, the largest pickleball tournament in the world outside the United States.
Australia has its own PPA Tour Australia and its own league, MLP Australia. And now, for the first time, it has a national team carrying its flag onto the court.
The Roster: Six Warriors and One Flag
Captain: Sange Carter
Danni-Elle Townsend: The Star Who Needs No Introduction
For DINK Authority readers, Danni-Elle hardly needs an introduction. Our August cover star is the face of Australian pickleball and the player her country looks to when things get tough. Her rookie season in MLP was explosive, and in Brisbane, in front of her own people, she fought all the way to the women’s doubles final alongside Parris Todd to take silver. This week she’s competing in Hong Kong with Federico Staksrud. She isn’t arriving in Dallas cold: she’s arriving on fire.
Sahra Dennehy: A Singles Player’s Heart
She’s the kind who never gives up. In Brisbane, she reached the singles semifinals and went out in a third game decided 12-10, with the crowd holding its breath until the last point. She also reached the women’s doubles semifinals with Jessie Irvine. In MLP’s format, where ties are settled in the DreamBreaker, an all-or-nothing singles showdown, a player like her can be worth an entire match.
George Wall: A Veteran of Many Battles at Home
A men’s doubles semifinalist in Brisbane alongside Joey Wild, he’s one of the longtime faces of Australian pickleball. He knows the pressure of big tournaments and what it means to play with a country on his shoulders.
Mitch Hargreaves, Chris Crouch and Sarah Burr: The Team’s Backbone
They round out a group with options in every discipline. Mitch Hargreaves is another leading name in Australian pickleball, and together with Chris Crouch and Sarah Burr, they form the foundation on which Australia hopes to build something special.
The Group of Death
Australia landed in Group B, the tournament’s most balanced and unpredictable group, alongside Team Latin America, Team Europe – East and Team Asia International. There’s no clear favorite here: every point matters, every match could be a final, and only the best will make it to Sunday.
And along the way come matchups with a DINK Authority flavor. Against Latin America, Danni-Elle Townsend will cross paths with Alexa Schull, our July cover star. Against Eastern Europe, Lina Padegimaite, our June cover star, will be waiting. Three covers, three flags and one question: who takes the glory?
The Details
When: Oct. 30-Nov. 1, 2026.
Where: Brookhaven Country Club, Farmers Branch (Dallas, Texas).
Format: group play Friday and Saturday; single elimination on Sunday.
What’s next: the event kicks off the Opendoor Pickleball World Championships, at the same venue through Nov. 8.
Australia isn’t coming in as the favorite, and that’s what makes it dangerous. It brings something you can’t train: the pride of a young pickleball nation that just discovered it can beat anyone. From the other side of the world, with the flag on their chests and their hunger intact, Team Australia is coming to write its name into history.
Meet Team Australia: From the Other Side of the World, Hungry for History
They’re crossing half the planet with the pride of a country that fell in love with pickleball and the dream of writing the first page of Nations Cup history. And their roster features our August cover star, Danni-Elle Townsend, who hardly needs an introduction.
Some journeys are measured in miles, and others in dreams. Team Australia’s trip to Dallas is both.
Just days ago, Brisbane shook like never before. The biggest professional pickleball tournament in the country’s history packed Pat Rafter Arena, put more than $500,000 on the line and brought America’s stars to play on Australian soil. The crowd responded so loudly that even Hunter Johnson, the men’s singles champion, ended up leading the “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!” chant and called it “one of the best crowds I’ve ever played in front of.”
But the image that stuck was a different one: an Australian, Andie Dikosavljevic, lifting the singles trophy at home. That day, Australia understood it’s no longer here to learn. It’s here to compete.
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With that fire burning, the team lands in Dallas for the first-ever MLP Nations Cup presented by DoorDash, Oct. 30-Nov. 1 at Brookhaven Country Club. Eight nations, one trophy, and the first page of a story no one has written yet.
A Country That Fell in Love With Pickleball
Australia’s relationship with pickleball was love at first sight. The sport arrived around 2010 on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, almost as a curiosity, and within a few years it became a national passion:
LOVE PICKLEBALL?
Get Dink Authority Magazine updates, new editions, pro stories and event alerts.
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime.
The Pickleball Australia Association grew from 967 members in 2019-2020 to more than 22,000 in 2024-2025.
Today, the country counts about 155,000 players.
Its 2025 national championships drew 1,235 players, the largest pickleball tournament in the world outside the United States.
Australia has its own PPA Tour Australia and its own league, MLP Australia. And now, for the first time, it has a national team carrying its flag onto the court.
The Roster: Six Warriors and One Flag
Captain: Sange Carter
Danni-Elle Townsend: The Star Who Needs No Introduction
For DINK Authority readers, Danni-Elle hardly needs an introduction. Our August cover star is the face of Australian pickleball and the player her country looks to when things get tough. Her rookie season in MLP was explosive, and in Brisbane, in front of her own people, she fought all the way to the women’s doubles final alongside Parris Todd to take silver. This week she’s competing in Hong Kong with Federico Staksrud. She isn’t arriving in Dallas cold: she’s arriving on fire.
Sahra Dennehy: A Singles Player’s Heart
She’s the kind who never gives up. In Brisbane, she reached the singles semifinals and went out in a third game decided 12-10, with the crowd holding its breath until the last point. She also reached the women’s doubles semifinals with Jessie Irvine. In MLP’s format, where ties are settled in the DreamBreaker, an all-or-nothing singles showdown, a player like her can be worth an entire match.
George Wall: A Veteran of Many Battles at Home
A men’s doubles semifinalist in Brisbane alongside Joey Wild, he’s one of the longtime faces of Australian pickleball. He knows the pressure of big tournaments and what it means to play with a country on his shoulders.
Mitch Hargreaves, Chris Crouch and Sarah Burr: The Team’s Backbone
They round out a group with options in every discipline. Mitch Hargreaves is another leading name in Australian pickleball, and together with Chris Crouch and Sarah Burr, they form the foundation on which Australia hopes to build something special.
The Group of Death
Australia landed in Group B, the tournament’s most balanced and unpredictable group, alongside Team Latin America, Team Europe – East and Team Asia International. There’s no clear favorite here: every point matters, every match could be a final, and only the best will make it to Sunday.
And along the way come matchups with a DINK Authority flavor. Against Latin America, Danni-Elle Townsend will cross paths with Alexa Schull, our July cover star. Against Eastern Europe, Lina Padegimaite, our June cover star, will be waiting. Three covers, three flags and one question: who takes the glory?
The Details
When: Oct. 30-Nov. 1, 2026.
Where: Brookhaven Country Club, Farmers Branch (Dallas, Texas).
Format: group play Friday and Saturday; single elimination on Sunday.
What’s next: the event kicks off the Opendoor Pickleball World Championships, at the same venue through Nov. 8.
Australia isn’t coming in as the favorite, and that’s what makes it dangerous. It brings something you can’t train: the pride of a young pickleball nation that just discovered it can beat anyone. From the other side of the world, with the flag on their chests and their hunger intact, Team Australia is coming to write its name into history.
