“Padel is more dynamic than tennis. Since four people on a smaller court play Padel, there are tactical and ball velocity changes that constantly happen during a game. What this means is that you need to be focused all the time because the ball keeps rolling from one player to the other constantly. And of course there are hardly any dull moments and pauses like in tennis, where time is spent fetching balls.” – (Rishi Dabrai, 26) 

“I have been playing tennis since I was 6 years old and I love tennis! But I learnt to play Padel in just one class! I could also rally easily in Padel so I am excited to come back and play more regularly!” – (Rishon Sehgal, 11)

“I have been playing tennis for more than 3 decades, but Padel really blew my mind! There is a huge involvement of your mind in this game, much more than tennis because of the higher speed and I need to really use my brain to calculate my volley.”  – (Mike Shah, 75)

It is fun playing Padel as it serves well as a good sport and an effective work out. The most exciting part of playing Padel is to use the wall to play rebounds unlike in tennis. The game keeps me more alert as I get a second chance in returning the ball which bounces back from the wall. Playing padel has helped me in keeping myself active and more productive at work and cheerful in my personal life as well.” – (Shubha M. Gopal, 33)

I used to play racket sports like, table-tennis and badminton but after I started playing Padel, I fell in love with this sport! It is an addictive sport and once you start playing, you want to learn more and excel in it! This is what I am currently  focusing on right now. It is a very high energy sport which is mix of two popular racket sports, that is…Tennis and squash. According to me, the best part of this sport is that, the small space and four people playing together, gives rise to so many layers of emotions that makes us strong along with a very positive effect on the team. – (Pavithra M Manu, 40) 

“Being from a squash background, I had to learn the hard lesson of regulating the ball because if you hit a padel ball very hard, it doesn’t get to the floor first. So we use a slicing motion that helps place the ball more accurately. You cannot be emotional and hit the ball all over the place. Padel definitely needs a lot of focus and practice!”  – (Hriday Desai, 32) 

“Since there are less level differences in Padel compared to other racquet sports, I enjoy playing with my wife and two children. This is our quality family time where we bond with each other over a few laughs while being active.  These are moments we cherish..”  – (Bharat Bhandari, 40) 

“Since I have played a lot of squash, I thought Padel is going to be easy. Boy was I wrong! Yes, Padel is easier to pick up than any of the other racket sport, but it requires as much physical strength and technical skills. But I think the distinguishing factor in this unique sport is that, there just enough technicalities and physical prowess that is required for a people to have a lot of fun together, while mastering a sport and getting fit. I cannot think of any other sport that can offer all three. And I believe this is the reason for the explosive growth of Padel in every country it has been introduced to. Padel is addictive!” – (Kashyap Shah, 35)

“I have played squash but Padel is more fun because you are playing it with 3 other people, while simultaneously getting an intensive cardio workout.” – (Krishna Shinde, 55)

“Padel is kinder on my body than any other racquet sport- especially knees, spine, shoulder, elbows and wrists. I encourage all elderly to try this sport at least once, trust me you will come back for more. Since the court is smaller and the racquet is lighter, Padel puts less strain on the knees, elbows and wrist. Despite the fact that it is less strenuous, we can still get a great cardio workout without any serious problems. This means I can continue to play Padel as long as I can move!”  – (Sudha Medappa, 63) 

“I am very wary about playing too much racquet sport. I had an injury a few years ago while playing tennis and so I was very skeptical about playing any sport after that. A friend told me that Padel is much less prone to injuries and so I tried my hand at it. My shoulder injury is almost recovered and I can play Padel with pleasure because of the underhand service and slower turns puts less strain on the back and spine.”  – (Adinarayan Pathi, 33)

I have been a sports fanatic all my life, but playing Padel gives me different rush altogether! The nature of the sport is such that, after every session, you feel satisfied along with a sense of accomplishment. I feel that there is no other sport which balances entertainment and fitness as much as Padel! It is the perfect recreational sport and I can’t never get enough of it.  That is the reason I’m down to play Padel anytime! (Prashanth Sambargi, 45)

I have never played tennis but I was instantly hooked to Padel ever since I played it for the first time! The smaller court and rackets make it a very entertaining and rejuvenating experience when played with friends and family. I have been playing Padel regularly and I am addicted to it  for life! – (Ganesh Raj, 32) 

Padel is a sport that is experiencing an international boom, with Asia-Pacific being one of the places where it has been experiencing a tremendous growth in the past few years. The Asian Padel Cup is already in the 3rd edition, which proves that Padel is here to stay! With the rise of Padel in Asian countries, India is all set to make its mark in the Asian and World Padel scene.

Ronnie Sehgal, General Secretary of the Indian Padel Federation, the national governing body of Padel in India says, ’’Padel is gaining tremendous popularity in India among Men, women, children and senior citizens. This is due to the nature of the sport which caters to all walks of life. Players tend to pick up the basics of the game within the first 20 minutes, regardless of any prior racket sport experience. This is also one of the main reasons why Padel has has become so popular across the globe with currently more than 30 million players in more than 40 countries across 5 continents, and the International Padel Federation (FIP) is making tremendous efforts for the sport to be included in the Olympics. Thus,  Padel has proven to be successful, affordable, profitable and revolutionary!’’

Padel is a unique racquet sport typically played in doubles on an enclosed court, a third of the size of a tennis court. Scoring is the same as tennis and the balls used are similar but with a little less pressure. The main differences are that the court is enclosed in glass and mesh walls, the balls can be played off these walls as in squash, and that players use solid, string less rackets.  The sport originated in Mexico before it spread to other hispanic countries and has found a lot of support in Spain off late. Many media reports have put padel right behind football in Spain in terms of popularity. Given similarities between Padel and Tennis, it isn’t exactly surprising that quite a few players, including some of the India team players, have played tennis at some level.

According to India’s current women’s champion, Chaithali Narde,’’It was indeed a proud moment for me to represent India at the 3rd Asian Padel Cup in Japan, I have been playing professional tennis all my life. When I played for the first time, I was instantly hooked to it! The smaller rackets and court make it much easier to control the ball as compared to tennis. It required less technical effort and being a doubles sport, it is a lot of fun to play. With my experience, I can say that Padel is easy to learn, but tough to master! I am looking forward to improve my game and represent India at more international competitions.’’

The 3rd Asian Padel Cup and FIP125 World Ranking Tournament was held earlier this year in Chiba, Japan.  The first edition took place in Thailand (in 2017), and Australia (2018) with just two countries as the participating countries. The third edition of this tournament had a record-breaking participation of 7 Asian countries (Japan, Australia, India, Qatar, China, Thailand, South Korea).

According to India’s current Men’s champion, Rishi Dabrai,’’Everyone in the tennis and squash community should definitely try Padel! I play tennis regularly and since I have been introduced to Padel, I try to play it at least twice a week. Playing Padel has also improved some of my tennis skills which mainly include volleys and smashes. It has also helped me to improve my speed my reflexes. It was a great feeling to be part of the Indian contingent at the 3rd Asian Padel Cup. We got to assess the level of the game of players from different countries and it was a great learning experience. Thanks to the Indian Padel Federation, who are making continuous efforts to popularise the sport in India!’’

In India, the sport truly took roots in 2017, and the Indian Padel Federation has ensured that the courts in Bengaluru are centrally located for easy access to the players. Formation of the respective State Associations are underway and the IPF is working towards setting up multiple Padel courts across all the metropolitan cities in the country!

Visit https://www.padelfip.com/tournaments2019/ to view upcoming international tournaments! 

Surely, we have all done that right?!

What is Padel?

That’s what Enrique Corcuera, a Mexican industrialist, did in 1969. His search for a slightly less exhausting and fun sport ended when he combined the elements of both tennis and squash to form a new sport called PADEL.

He started off by making a 3-meter high wall opposite a  wall of his house and also guarded the sides with two low walls, with the initial idea being just to avoid the ball from bouncing into neighboring houses. Approximately 10 meters wide and 20 meters long, the first padel court was made!

Though we owe Enrique for giving us Padel,  it was actually presented to the world by one of Enrique’s friends, Alfonso de Hohenlohe, the Spanish businessman responsible for the promotion of the beautiful city of Marbella and the Marbella Club Hotel in Spain. On his visit to Mexico in 1974, he was so impressed with this new game that he took it all the way to Spain and set up 2 Padel courts in the Marbella Club. This was the beginning of the sport that would go on to be known as “tennis within walls” or “squash under the sun”. 

Is Padel a popular sport?

Padel spread like wildfire in Spain and many courts started coming up in every other street. Today it has almost paralleled the futsal court scenario in Spain! It is the 2nd most played sport in Spain after Football with over 10 million players and over 2500 courts across the country!

On the 25th July 1991, the Federación Internacional de Padel (FIP) was established in Madrid, Spain and Julio Artiach Joy was appointed as the president and was successful in creating a circuit of international tournaments and championships. Today there are about 38 countries that are affiliates of the FIP.

The World Padel Tour (WPT) was founded in 2013. Each year there are between 15-20 WPT tournaments plus a Final Master in which the best pairs of the ranking compete.

During the last couple of years, Padel has spread rapidly across the globe. In 2016 Padel racket sales in Spain had overtaken tennis racket sales.

The WPT 2016 saw Argentina win the Men’s title, while the Senoritas of Spain won the Women’s title comprehensively.

Padel Open Tour 2019 (Bengaluru, India)

Padel has become immensely popular across most of the European and Latin American countries and is now establishing a strong footing in the Asian Sports scene.

Racquet Sports in India

Badminton, Tennis, and Squash have been in the Indian sports scene for a long time now. But have we as a nation seen a whole bunch of Sporting heroes rise from these sports?

To be honest, no.

In the recent past, we have had some of our super girls like PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, Sania Mirza, and Dipika Pallikal achieve the impossible and make it big in their respective games. And if they could do it, why not other boys and girls?

There are quite a number of reasons for this –

• Lack of exposure
• Lack of sponsors
• High technical prowess required
• Not enough training centers

However, we know that there is great potential for all these sports in our country.

Now what if a sport which was much more easier to learn and catch up on was taught to the people of our country? What if you could grasp a game similar to tennis within say, 20 minutes ? What if you could play this game with family and friends? And what if we told you it requires much lesser physical effort than tennis?

Sounds interesting, right?

Padel offers us just that! A sport that involves 4 players and smaller courts, let’s see why Padel could be a huge hit in India –

• Lesser physical effort and technicalities when compared to Tennis and squash
• It can be played by people of any age group and hence cuts across the generation gap and for us Indians who value family time, this could be the perfect outing on a weekend.
• The Racquets are not stringed and are made up of carbon fiber and other composite materials and hence are almost like one-time investments
• Padel courts charge very less per hour ( approx. 400 – 500 Rs an hour )
• India currently has the highest population of youth ( aged between 18-30 ) in the world and hence the need to remain physically and mentally fit is very important.

Indian Padel Federation (IPF )-

Padel was introduced in India by Ronnie Sehgal, General Secretary of Indian Padel Federation (IPF). IPF is a not-for-profit body that governs the sport of Padel in India.

IPF also facilitated a Portuguese based company to run Padel operations at Play Arena, Bangalore.

The IPF also set up two certified courts –

• Sadashiv Nagar in Bangalore, in a BBMP park
• L&T Eden Park, Chennai.

On March 30, 2019, Indian Padel team participated in the 3rd Asian Padel Cup in Chiba, Japan. This marks the beginning of something great that is to come. 

Advantages of setting up a Padel court in India –

• High Profitability and ROI – A typical Padel court is much smaller than a tennis court. ( size of 1 Tennis court= size of 2 to 3 Padel Courts ). While only a maximum of 4 players could play on a tennis court at any given point of time, in the same area, with 2 to 3 padel courts, at least 8 players could play at any given point of time. This also would mean that the Padel player pays lesser per hour to play while the Club still earns its fair share of the profit with a higher number of players playing per hour.
• Not much space required – The dimensions of the court are 10 * 20 meters and requires a 65.6 by 32.8 ft plot.

Easy Installation – The time taken to the lay the foundation slab depends upon the soil conditions. Once the foundation has been laid,  the artificial turf is installed.


Extremely fun, social and accessible for all, padel is a breath of fresh air that is revitalizing clubs with an activity complimentary to tennis and golf.