PICKLEBALL

The fastest growing sport currently trending is none other than Pickleball. Best way to describe the sport is the combination of tennis and ping pong mixed together. It can be played indoor and outdoor with a paddle and a whiffle ball. You can play singles or doubles. The best thing about it is any age can play. The pickleball court looks like tennis court but smaller measuring at 20 inches wide and 44 inches long. There's the kitchen line where the majority of the game is played.

I picked up this sport in beginning of 2023 when I injured my shoulder and needed to rehab. I wanted to do something that was fun and active. I heard about pickleball but never drew interest then I started playing more and more. Learning the basic fundamentals such as scoring up to 11, serving and most importantly dinking. Dinking is when a soft shot hit on a bounce from the kitchen intended to arc over the net and land within the opposing kitchen either straight across or diagonally crosscourt. The cat and mouse game. When you warm up before playing the game you start with dinking because aforementioned that's where the game is really about. Pretty much whoever faults first in the dinking game loses. There are rallys where its continuous back and forth between opponents. The pace is sometimes fast and sometimes slow and you never know where the opponent will hit the ball.

I been playing for the last 5-6 months and I am absorbed in it. Your dopamine goes up every time you play due to instant feedback and adrenaline is off the charts. The concentration needed it to hit the ball comes into play as well as hand eye coordination. It reminds me of meditation where you lock in and focus on the breath/ball coming at you each play. Natural instincts take over either hitting the ball with the forehand, backhand or smashing it. When I first played I was awful and couldn't play at all. However, as I started learning to pick up the game and practice I got better and improved daily. There are skill ratings for pickleball ranging from 1.0 to 5.5 higher the better obviously. The best part of pickleball for me is the community of people that play. Mostly everyone is helpful and cordial in teaching you the game and pointers. A lot of tennis players make that easy transition over to pickleball. It's great cardio workout and helps with hand eye coordination. Having good reflexes give you an advantage. I played with all types of age ranges from 9-70 and it's FUN! Great social game and I love the environment.

I get excited each time I play and you can always improve your game. I enjoy the game because there's an art to it and like life you keep practicing you get better and learn different strategies to counter the opponent. There are tournaments you can play in and some go professional with enough experience and skills gained. I believe the sport is going to continue to grow and develop internationally. Simple game but so fun and vibe is amazing to be in. I watched PPA tour and the professionals are something else. The advanced plays are so on point and amazing to watch the pros counter the different techniques.

I'm hoping to get better each time I play and use pickleball as a way to increase my focus while having fun meeting people that play at the same time.