Best Pickleball Paddles to Improve Your Game in 2024

Pickleball, a cult sport dating back to 1965 in the US, has only recently seen a surge in popularity here across the pond.

It has been called one of the fastest growing sports in the world and its loyal fan base is expected to grow from 10,000 to 25,000 in Britain alone by 2025, the organizing body said. Pickleball England.

Picklecore has taken over and trying out the sport is easier than you might think. Once you know the rules, you won't need much equipment besides the comfortable and breathable workout clothes you probably already have in your wardrobe. That is besides a place to play with a lower net, the paddleball itself and a paddle. But before we share expert recommendations for the latter, we decode everything you need to know about pickleball.

Alex Minogue-Stone, director of Lemon Pickleball, explains Pickleball, combining elements of table tennis, tennis and badminton into a fun and exciting new sport. It is played on a badminton-sized court, with paddles that resemble a large table tennis bat, and a tennis ball-sized plastic ball with holes in it.

He continues: What sets pickleball apart from other racquet sports is that it is much more accessible and easier to learn than a sport like tennis. That is why it is a sport for all ages and levels. But at a high level it's also incredibly intense – if that's what you're looking for. It is also more social, due to the smaller field and the fact that it is usually double.

First and foremost, it is important to learn the vocabulary. Minogue-Stone breaks it down.

Now that you know that, he says, Pickleball is a game of volleying and the pickleball-specific shot, dinking. Because it is a slow-moving ball, pickleball is mainly played on the kitchen line, so all four players are quite close together.

A high-level pickleball rally will involve a lot of fiddling, which will eventually lead to someone speeding up the rally, allowing players to manically volley back and forth to each other at close range, something that would resemble a very fast-paced version of bat and ball on the beach.

The scoring and rules can be a bit complicated. To quote Jeremy Clarkson, the rules make American football look like the 100-meter dash, but once you get the hang of it, after 20 minutes you can play a real game.

Unusual terms characterize the sport and that starts with the name itself. Pickleball was invented by two men named Joel Pritchard and Bill Bell, who wanted to play a game with the equipment they had lying around, Minogue-Stone says. This was a badminton court, table tennis paddles and a whistle ball. And because the sport was created from leftover equipment from other sports, they chose the name pickleball, after pickle boats that consisted of leftover rowers.

There is also another story that states that Pickleball was named after their dog Pickle, but my extensive research into this matter has shown that this is in fact a myth.

Is pickleball the same as paddle tennis?

Often confused due to their emergent nature, these variations of tennis are very different. Daniel Weir of Pickleball Social pickleballsocial.co.uk reveals: Although they are both racket sports, padel is played on a special enclosed sport, which uses different paddles and balls and has different rules.

Minogue-Stone adds: Padel is almost an exact mix of tennis and squash.

After the court (you can play on a badminton or tennis court, but lower the net and mark it with markers or tape, Weir explains), you'll need:

Buying a pickleball paddle can be quite daunting, says Minogue-Stone. More and more brands are popping up eager to add some technological jargon to mislead you. So I'll make a simple summary of what to look for in a pickleball paddle.

There are three main things that affect the paddle's performance:

It's worth remembering that all paddles will have a different feel, so it's important not to change paddles too often or you'll be constantly having to adapt to the differences, so once you've chosen one, then make sure you stick to it!

Shop the best pickleball paddles below