Other sports

This is perhaps not what you want to see on a site called Tennisnerd. But in my recent trip to Marbella I played padel for the first time.

I played padel for the first time thanks to Irakli from the brand Nordic Dots, I had the chance to test a few of their padel racquets and do an hour of singles padel. I know padel is mainly played in the doubles format, but it gave me an idea of the sport and how padel racquets differ. In many parts of Europe, padel is becoming increasingly popular. Tennis Warehouse Europe has even started to sell padel racquets.

What is padel?

Padel is what happens when doubles tennis and squash has a baby. You play in a glass cage and you can let the ball bounce and hit the back wall before you hit it. That is what I struggled with the most. Otherwise, my slice and volley skills from tennis made padel pretty easy to get the hang of. But I guess it might be a completely different animal if you play doubles and need to communicate with your partner.

You can read about the rules and the court on this Wikipedia page about padel. You can also read my post “What is padel tennis?”

What does a padel racquet consist of?

The racquets are made of carbon and are perforated. The stiffness and the placing and the number of holes makes a difference in terms of feel, power and aerodynamics. There are also different molds to consider.

A padel racquet has no strings, which simplifies things, but you will need to replace the racquet every 12-18 months on average as the carbon breaks down.

Padel racquets are quite expensive. If I randomly choose the HEAD Delta Pro on the Tennis Warehouse Europe website, it's €279.90. But then again, you have the option to go for a Bullpadel K2 Power for example, with the retail price at €79.90

Padel racquet specs

The specs are listed similar to tennis racquets. Let's take the Nox AT Genius Attack 22 as an example.

• Weight: 360 – 375 Grams
• Head Shape: Diamond
• Balance: High
• Beam: 38mm
• Core Composition: HR3 EVA
• Frame Composition: 100% Carbon
• Surface Composition: Carbon 18k
• Ability Level: Advanced

Technologies:

• HR3 Core: rubber at core that decreases the racket's face deformation at impact for added power
  
• Carbon 18k Surface: carbon fibers providing maximal stiffness without compromising the weight of the racket
• Carbon Frame: provides the racket greater rigidity and durability
• Anti Vibration System: protects your arm with shock absorptions
• Rough Surface: provides access to spin
• Oversize Grip: a longer racket handle for better maneuverability
• SmartStrap: allow you to change the safety cord of your padel racket in a quick and easy way

Padel vs Tennis

In Europe, we see many tennis players moving over to padel. Why?

There are several reasons.

Padel is a very hyped-up sport at the moment and the doubles format makes it more social than singles tennis. It's also easier to play. Players can get started quickly, which makes the player pool larger.

I've been frustrated with the growth of the sport in a way that it has removed tennis courts in both Malta and Sweden in favour for padel. I love that people exercise and racquet sports is a great way to do so, but tennis has my heart, so I don't enjoy when tennis courts disappear.

I must say that the brief experience I had was fun and I can see myself playing again. But the sensation and sound of the racquet hitting the ball is quite unpleasant compared to tennis. And I don't see the same variety and strategy in padel as there is in tennis. Another thing is that finding four players to play with makes scheduling matches much more difficult.

Summary

Padel seems like a lot of fun and I enjoy the social element. It won't compete with tennis for me, but I can understand why people like it. If I want to have some fun with friends in a sporting environment, padel will work better than tennis, but when it comes to the depth of the sport, there is no contest for me.

Have you played padel? What do you think of it?

Many of my tennis friends are also playing padel. Meanwhile, I have never tried it. Can you learn anything from playing padel?

I mean, can you learn anything related to tennis from playing padel? What are your thoughts? Have you tried padel? What do you think about it and how does it compare to tennis?

Padel has been around in countries like Argentina and Spain for a long time. But a few years ago the bug hit Sweden and now it's spreading faster than a certain virus. I focus my sporting attention on tennis and find the obsession with padel to be quite annoying, but I guess I should be happy that people exercise and enjoy racquet sports, even if it isn't tennis. Maybe it could even be beneficial for your doubles communication, your volleys, your footwork, or hand/eye coordination to play padel. If you have the time and place for it.

Why is padel growing so fast?

There are a few benefits to padel compared to tennis (although tennis has more history, requires more effort, is more skillful, and is a “real” sport :)).

It's social because you always play doubles.

It's easy to get going, it doesn't require the technical ability of tennis, which can be frustrating to learn.

It doesn't require the same physical effort, it's a smaller court, you are two players and the ball doesn't travel as fast (and is softer).

Influencers took to padel like flies to dog shit and post pics/videos of themselves holding a padel racquet, before/after padel sessions, and so on.

Celebrities and investors realized there was money to be made from the padel bug so invested in padel by building padel courts everywhere you look. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of them with his Padelzenter, but there are many examples of ex-athletes and other celebrities putting their money into this growing “sport”.

I'm sure you can learn plenty of stuff from playing padel and it's far better than watching Netflix and eating pizza.

Padel is quickly becoming an extremely popular sport around the globe, courts are popping up absolutely everywhere to try to satisfy the huge demand from players that have been bitten by the Padel Bug. From being a sport with a broad popularity only in Spanish-speaking countries, it is now becoming a full-blown success all over Europe. 

It has actually got quite a few things going for it, for example it is not very demanding physically. Skills are more dependent on technique and tactics, rather than strength, so anyone can learn how to play regardless of age – you can even see grandparents having a great time with their grandchildren on the padel court! It is also a social sport, perfect for hanging out with friends and even to play with your partner since mixed matches are very common.

If you have the space for it, here is an interesting article on how to turn your backyard into a padel court.

How to get started with padel

The only thing you need to get started are some good shoes – tennis shoes for clay work perfectly, they have the same kind of soles as padel shoes – and a proper racket that suits your type of game. A padel racket is actually called a shovel, and it hasn't got strings like a tennis racket. Instead it has holes in the surface, and it can be made from a wide range of materials such as carbon or fibreglass. The Swedish website Elitepadel has listed several different padelrackets, to help you get an idea of which type of racket would suit you the best the next time you go to have some fun on the court.

If you’re still not sure what padel is really about, you can just read our article “What is padel tennis? that will explain everything you need to know. This is what all your colleagues at work will be discussing shortly during the coffee break, if they haven’t already started, so it will come in handy. It definitely is a highly addictive form of exercise, since it doesn’t take long to be able to keep the ball passing from one side to another, and once that first obstacle has been crossed you can quickly improve your shots and technique to go to the next level. While you are playing with your friends you also get to know a lot of new people, players are known to form communities where they can discuss the latest equipment and share experiences. Another good resource is an article with 16 padel tennis tips for beginners.

The relatively new sport padel tennis is taking the world by storm. It looks like a mix of squash and tennis. But what is padel tennis?

Padel tennis is growing every year. You have probably seen the courts. The size is a third of a tennis court and the walls are made of glass. The ball can bounce on any wall but can only hit the ground once before being returned. Similar to tennis.

The padel racquet is short, stringless but with holes on the surface. You use a low compression tennis ball and always serve underarm (Kyrgios might like it!). Shots are played either before or after the ball bounces off the surrounding glass walls, adding a unique dimension to the sport over conventional tennis.

Have you tried padel tennis?

Confession: I have not tried padel tennis myself. I want to of course, but tennis has a special place in my heart and will take priority. But many of my tennis playing friends rave about it. Especially some of those guys that were really good tennis players but never made it to the pro tour. It sure looks like a lot of fun, especially since most points are won through tactics and clever play, not so much power.

I do also like the idea of not having to restring a racquet (!). Stringing can be nice therapy, but stringing 3-5 racquets in a row can be quite tedious and boring. Padel players don't have this problem.

Since you mainly use the slice shot and volley in padel, I thought it would have fewer instances of elbow injury, but it actually seems to be quite common based on my research.

Do you want to try padel tennis?

If you like to try padel tennis, I am sure there is a court somewhere not too far from you. In my home country, Sweden, they have really bought into the padel craze. You will soon see more padel courts than tennis courts. This breaks my heart a little bit for the sake of tennis, but it is, of course, good that people exercise in whatever way possible.

Let's look at some pros and cons of padel versus tennis.

+ It is much easier to learn than tennis
+ You don't need to worry about strings
+ Always being four players create a social element
+ A court is smaller so you can fit more courts into a smaller space
– Tennis is arguably more varied since you can overpower opponents, play a slice and dice game or anything in between.
– You only need two players to play tennis, but you can also play doubles so more options.
– Tennis has a rich history as a sport.

Are there any other pros and cons of padel vs tennis that I have missed? Please comment below!

Summary

I think padel tennis or “padel” as it is more often called, is a great new addition to racquet sports. It is easier to learn than tennis and you don't need to be as fit as you the court is smaller. You don't need to choose one sport over the other but can obviously play and excel at both.

I will not create “Padelnerd” any time soon, but I hope to try the sport as we just had our first court installed in Malta!

If you are looking for padel racquets, you can check out one of our affiliates and advertisers below.

Padel racquets in Sweden (padelracketrea.se)
Padel racquets on Amazon (affiliate link)

What do you think about padel tennis?