Chennai| Pickleball, the city’s viral sport, thrives with more venues and players

Over the last year, pickleball has seen an unprecedented number of takers in the city with several new courts opening. We tell you where to head, to try out this viral sport

Amitash says his life is now scheduled keeping in mind his pickleball game time in the evenings. 

“Three to four days a week, I get together with a large group to play and we have at least one court booked in advance for the month. I much prefer getting my cardio outdoors, and through a sport which pickleball has made possible,” says the Chennai-based actor, who has been playing sport all his life.

“We have over 10 great courts to pick from, and clubs in the city have been generous enough to add a pickleball court. The community might be small compared to cricket, but the tournaments are amazing … even for a spectator,” Amitash says. Having taken to the sport seriously in the last year, he now also has an endorsement deal with a company that manufactures pickleball gear.

Open up the Turf Town app and at least 15 pickleball courts in Chennai instantly show up. While the sport has seen a steady following post pandemic, the last year has seen the city take to the sport like never before.

One can now take their pick — from courts in malls such as Ice Water sports arena in Express Avenue and DoubleDribble at Ampa Skywalk, sporting facilities such as Huddle Up in Mahalingapuram, Pickleball Park in T Nagar, and K Square sports hub in Tiruvottiyur, and private courts in recreational clubs including Madras Club and Presidency Club.

Even the mere promise of the sport has begun to grab eyeballs — an upcoming real estate project in the city by Baashyaam constructions recently advertised that a pickleball court would be part of the facilities offered in its residential space. In big news for the pickleball community earlier this year, actor Samantha Ruth Prabhu was named the owner of the Chennai franchise of the World Pickleball League(WBPL).

“We estimate that the city will have five to 10 more courts in the next couple of months,” says Dr Kavya Somesh, a board member of the Tamil Nadu Pickleball Association. While the association’s first state tournament a few years ago had around 20 participants, this year’s tourney saw nearly 300 players participate. “This year was the first time we also opened up an under-10 category because of how the sport has picked up even among children,” she says.