The new hit in sports,
what is pickleball?
Lately you may have seen more headlines related to pickleball, a sport that has been going strong and that some people dare to say that it will replace paddle, will it be so?
This new sport has grown 35% in amateur players in United States over the last 5 years, nowadays three million people trains it on that country.
Now the pickleball pretends to expand on European countries, you want to know what pickleball is and how is it plays? Keep reading!
What is Pickleball?
The pickleball is a racket sport which combines tennis, paddle, badminton, and ping pong elements.
It is a sport easy to learn, with a fast pace and because of the long points tends to be funny to play.
Also, the rules and the game play require less physical demand than other sport such as tennis, so this gives the opportunity for everyone to get involve faster.
One of the advantages pickleball has among other sports, is that it doesn’t really matter your condition or age, for this reason, is considered one of the most inclusive existing sports.
How is pickleball played?
Most of the time, pickleball is played doubles, it also can be practiced individually. In case it is played individually it will require a faster pace and a more elaborated strategy.
It is played using a special perforated ball, with a net like tennis and on a court with dimensions equivalent to a badminton court. The rackets are larger than ping pong rackets and smaller than paddle tennis.
The game begins by serving the ball from below, moving the racket below the waist in an upward movement, without the ball bounce on the court.
Necessary gear for pickleball practice
- Pickleball paddles: these are made of wood or a high-tech composite material. cannot exceed 61 cm length and width combined.
- Pickleballs: Are made of plastic and have small holes. It has a dimension of 7 and 7.5 cm in diameter and weighs between 22 and 26 grams. They can be found in any color.
- Pickleball net: the net is very similar to the used to play tennis or paddle tennis. Its length is 6.7 mts and the height is 91.44 cm at each end and 86 cm in the center.
Technical information about the pickleball court
Pickleball is played on a court very similar to tennis or paddle tennis.
It is made up of baselines, sidelines, non-volley lines, non-volley zone, center line and serve area.
The dimension of the court is 6.10 mts wide by 13.41 mts long. The total playing surface should have dimensions of 10.40 mts wide by 19.50 mts long, leaving a space around the court of 3 mts on the bottom line and 2 mts on the side lines.
What are the pickleball rules?
A game is won by the player or team that reaches eleven points, with a difference of two points.
Points are earned only by the player who served and take place when the opponent fails.
The non-volley zone is a very important part of the pickleball court. In this zone players cannot make a volley hit, and in addition, a player cannot step on the line of the no-volley zone or be inside it.
The main causes of fouls that we find in pickleball are:
- If the ball doesn’t enter the correct zone on the serve.
- Hitting a volley before the ball has bounced once on each court after the serve (double bounce rule).
- Hit the ball into the net.
- Touch the net with the paddle or the body.
- Perform a volley in the non-volley zone.
- Stepping on or being in the non-volley line during a volley or landing on it after hit.
- Touch the non-volley zone and the lines that delimit it with the racket, clothes or any other belonging that the player is carrying before or after making the volley.
- Fail hitting the ball.
- Allow the ball to bounce twice on the lane before being hit.
- Fail hitting the ball on a serve.
- Letting the ball touch any part of the clothes or body of the player involved in the hit (except for the hand that carries the racket, since it is considered an extension of the racket).
What is the objective of pickleball?
The main objective of pickleball is that anyone have fun with a simple game of rackets while improving their physical condition.
Like any game, the main objective is to win the game. It is played to eleven points with a difference of two, that is, if both parties are tied at ten, the game will continue until one team wins by two points. Only the serving team can score points.
Points are scored on winning hits or if the rival team makes a foul.
Pickleball History
Pickleball was born in 1965 in the United States, in Washington State. It was developed by the American congress man Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, Jordania Steranka y Barney McCallum. His intention in creating Pickleball was to design a new sport that was fun, challenging, and inclusive.
They created the rules and they got better at practicing it on Joel Pritchard's backyard badminton court with some wooden paddles and a perforated plastic ball.
The name came out because his dog, Pickle, was always going to catch the ball (Pickleball).
How Sportmadness is adapting to this new trend?
At Sportmadness we have reached a collaboration agreement with the Spanish Pickleball Association, and we were lucky enough to attend the 1st National Inclusive Pickleball Event held in Madrid.
The objective of the event was to make Pickleball known. On that day, a detailed explanation of the practice of the sport was made, with an initial exhibition of experienced players and several training sessions to all the participants could try it themselves.
This is an initiative that is part of the Pick4all 100% Inclusive project, co-financed by the European Commission within the framework of the Erasmus + Sport program for the 2021/2022 season.
Furthermore, our franchisees are already organizing pickleball events.
Would you like to organize Pickleball events?
Formulario Sportmadness contacto EN
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