How tennis legend Steffi Graf fell for the “fun factor” of pickleball

CNN—
Throughout her illustrious tennis career, Steffi Graf rarely struggled with nerves, despite frequently competing on the grandest stages in the sport.

The 22-time grand slam singles champion and world No. 1 for a women’s record 377 weeks, Graf tells CNN Sport, “I did something that I was so comfortable with, that I’ve done all my life.” “I was well-versed in everything.”

Therefore, it may have come as a surprise to Graf that she experienced sudden anxiety while performing in front of a large audience, 25 years after she had retired from tennis. In contrast to her professional career, the situation was different this time around: the court was smaller, the racket was lighter, and the game was proceeding at a breakneck speed.

Pickleball, which Graf had only played for a few years, was the sport in question. She and her husband, Andre Agassi, defeated John McEnroe and Maria Sharapova in Hollywood, Florida, last year, to the delight of nearly a million viewers on ESPN, demonstrating the sport’s growing popularity.

Speaking of the 2024 Pickleball Slam 2 competition, Graf states, “It’s such a fast game, things can happen so quickly you don’t have the time to kind of ease into a match.” “It was just so unknown, and you don’t know what your opponents’ strengths and weaknesses are.”

Graf, 55, will compete in a follow-up tournament called Pickleball Slam 3 in Las Vegas on Sunday, playing with Agassi and against other former tennis greats Andy Roddick and Eugenie Bouchard. Graf is not wholly upset by the experience. ESPN will broadcast the action live, and there is a $1 million prize pool up for grabs.

Pickleball, which many Americans would have never heard of before the Covid-19 outbreak, is now claiming to be the fastest-growing sport in the nation for the fourth year in a running. 48.3 million adults are thought to have played it. Megastars like Graf and Agassi are increasingly participating in pickleball. Beyond tennis, Tom Brady and LeBron James have made investments in professional teams, and in a recent Super Bowl advertisement, Hollywood actors Catherine O’Hara and Willem Defoe were seen whacking shots on a court.

Graf believes that pickleball’s widespread accessibility is largely responsible for its appeal.

She claims that compared to tennis, “you can see progress so much quicker.” “The game levels everyone out a bit more, playing more doubles and mixed … you feel like everyone you know can just jump in.” “The fun factor just is immediately there.”

In the lead-up to a Pickleball Slam 3 event, Graf and Agassi hope to play once or twice a week, if not more. Professional tennis experience is obviously a big factor in success, but it might not be as significant as you might expect.

Because of its smaller size (20 by 44 feet), pickleball is played with more urgency than tennis, making it a good choice for players who prefer soft hands and fast reactions in other racquet sports. Specifically, not Graf.

She says, “It was a lot of unlearning for me, and it was actually one of the things that I really enjoyed because it really challenged me.”

“I enjoy hitting the ball in tennis, but not in this particular match. Driving the ball is less important than the feel, the decision to reset, and reducing pace. So I’m not good at patience. The fact that it frequently pushes me outside my comfort zone is something I like.

Graf freely acknowledges that Agassi is the superior player between the two of them, having participated in all three pickleball slams.

According to the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP), about 19% of all US pickleball players will play at least once between 2022 and 2023. “He’s excellent,” she continues. He’s played a bit more, and his physical strength and speed have increased significantly. His aptitude for this game and the speed at which he learnt it were truly amazing to observe.

“It’s not that I didn’t notice it in the other sports he excels at, but he discovered it and enjoyed the analysis right away when he started watching YouTube and other clips. In order to improve, he will have very precise questions that he needs addressed when he plays with some of the pros.

Having won eight grand slam singles titles in tennis, Agassi is now a strong supporter of pickleball. He recently promoted tennis in India, calling it “the most difficult racket sport in the world” while praising pickleball as a more approachable substitute.

In addition to saying that he could “absolutely” see pickleball at the Olympics, Agassi said, “It’s going to grow like you can’t even imagine.”

The rise of pickleball and padel, which are particularly popular in Europe, has sparked debate about whether tennis is in danger. Unquestionably, tennis is one of the most straightforward racket sports to play, but as a spectacle, it has greater historical value, and its best players are among the most captivating, talented, and physically stunning athletes on the planet.

According to Graf, pickleball’s expansion simply gives leisure racket sport participants “more options,” as tennis and pickleball are complementary. Even though she hasn’t played tennis for almost thirty years, she still uses competitions like the pickleball slams to satisfy her competitive nature.

Graf remarks, “You can’t take the competitive out of us,” in reference to competing against and playing with past tennis players. “That’s just how it usually goes.”

She will undoubtedly be quite nervous when she takes the court in Las Vegas on Sunday because of that. people.