Pickleball: A career opportunity and an inclusivity driver

Pickleball has taken the world by storm and now, the sport has started making its presence felt in the country.

With pickleball courts popping up across urban centers at a fair clip, observers count it as one of the fastest growing sports in India. 

A unique blend of badminton and table tennis, pickleball has emerged as an excellent recreational activity for both office goers and retirees. And now, it has become a professional career option for those that have a knack for smacking a perforated plastic ball with a carbon fiber paddle.

Nothing can describe the growing popularity of the sport more than the advent of the World Pickleball League (WPBL), a six-team league that is all set to debut on January 24 in Mumbai. 

One of those teams, the Chennai Super Champs, have pulled out all the stops in assembling a strong squad trained by experienced Florida-based coach Joey Farias.

"Sports in India, especially racquet sports have had a big history and it (pickleball) being a new sport was a driving force for me (coming to India)," said Joey, in an exclusive interview with The Bridge. 

Indian players will excel

Having been associated with the sport for nearly a decade, Joey has been all around the world popularizing the sport and his latest adventure is in India, with the Chennai Super Champs. 

"I've been part of pickleball in Australia, in Mexico, and now in India it is another country where I'd like to be a part of in the ground floor," he said. 

"Seeing the energy from the people and how they have adopted the sport made me even more of a believer," he added, talking about the growing buzz around the sport and WPBL. 

Calling pickleball as an 'off-spring' of badminton and table tennis, two sports that India has excelled internationally, Joey is certain that pickleball too will have the same trajectory. 

"We'll start seeing players get introduced to pickleball in no time and once they get introduced, you'll see them explode at the international level," he remarked. 

A case for gender inclusivity

Given the reduced complexity of playing the sport, women are not just taking up the sport, but are on the vanguard, spearheading initiatives to promote inclusivity and diversity in the sport.

"It is very important to have that kind of inclusivity where women feel welcome to play the sport and feel like it is one of their own," Joey said. 

Chennai Super Champs is owned by the hugely popular Indian movie star Samantha Ruth Prabhu. Also, the team has entered into a partnership with Sathyabama University, an educational institution in Chennai led by Dr. Mariazeena Johnson. 

"It (women's participation in Pickleball) is one of the main reasons for me to get involved with the sport," Dr. Johnson said to The Bridge. 

"70% of my university staff are women. 90% of the leadership positions are occupied by women. I want more women from all age groups playing pickleball," she added. 

Chennai Super Champs begin their World Pickleball League campaign on 24th January against Bengaluru Jawans, at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.