Tennis legend Andre Agassi believes that pickleball is still in its infancy amid unprecedented growth

Ho Chi Minh It was a return to a golden era in the Rach Mieu Sports complex in Ho Chi Minh City on March 26, while Andre Agassi went to the field for a full crowd.

But instead of a tennis racket, the American tennis legend used a paddle and the pickleball played alongside some of the world's top professionals as part of the Joola Legends Asia Tour.

Organized by Joola, a pickleball and table tennis company, the Tour contains coaching clinics, exhibitions and product demonstrations, with extra stops in Hanoi (March 27) and Shanghai (28 to 29 March).

What started as a family activity during the COVID-19 Pandemie has evolved into a passion for Tennis Great Agassi, who has become deep involved in Pickleball, both as a player and investor.

PickleBall has experienced unprecedented growth, with participation increasing in recent years.

And the American, who won eight Grand Slam titles in more than two decades since his rise as a early teenager in 1986, believes that this is just the start of the sports rise.

He told The Straits Times: Froma Participation Deal, I think the infancy stood. So they say that about 30 million people play in America. I think that will double, triple, not at all too long … worldwide I think it will probably be the fastest growing sport we've ever seen.

According to a market.us report from October 2024, the global PickleBall -Market size is expected to increase from US $ 1.5 billion (S $ 2 billion) in 2023 to US $ 4.4 billion in 2033.

Although Agassi is optimistic about the future of pickleball, the 54-year-old believes that the sport must consolidate to grow further.

Currently, Picleball does not miss any, universally recognized ranking system, with the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) Tour and Major League Pickleball (MLP), both of which have merged at the beginning of 2024 and are now under the United Picleball Association (App) that are separately from the Association of Piceociation.

The former world no. 1 said: I believe that if we all worked together, we can increase the water level, and all boats would rise …

I would like to see the sport as a whole together, to bring the entire sport collective to the world and not to be so fragmented.

There is a constant debate about whether pickleball is a real spectator sport, but Agassi believes that it has entertainment value.

He said: it is a more difficult sport to communicate in the nuance. People who ever try tennis can then look at tennis and go, wow, right?

People who try Pickle watch for a while, and then they think they can do it, but the more you do it, the more you realize how nuanced it is.

Thirty million people play in America, but perhaps only 1 million really appreciate the nuance, right? So I think there is always a delay in that consciousness.

Many pickleball players come from a tennis background, including Jack Sock and Eugenie Bouchard, who reached a career-high ranking of world no. 8 and fifth respectively.

Agassi and his wife, 22-way Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf, belong to those who have embraced the sport, just like former world no. 1 and four-time Grand Slam winner Kim Clijsters, who co-own MLP team, the Las Vegas Night Owls.

Despite the overlaps, there is a resistance in the tennis community against Pickleball.

But Agassi believes that both sports can co-exist and say: at the end of the day I think we can all get along with each other, because one sport will grow dramatically from a participation position, and that other sport has such a long history of traditional events that hundreds of thousands of people open the US or the Grand Slam.

They cannot be able to can be able to can be able to can be able to be proud of both someone who does not see that, they are not my friend.

Agassi still has a deep affinity with tennis, especially the Majors, while he hits an interested eye on Novak Djokovic's attempt to put the all time Singles Grand Slam Mark of 24 that he shares with Margaret Court.

At the age of 37, age is not on the Serbs, but Agassi, who coached Djokovic from 2017 to 2018, still believes that the Olympic champion has at least one Grand Slam victory in him.

He said: he has the mentality to keep pushing himself as far as he can. His body has to stand, so he has to play enough to make sure it does. But of course I think he can do it. Pretty great, considering his age. But gambling against Novak gambles at your own risk.

In the meantime, Agassi and Graf, who retired in 2006 and 1999 respectively, showed that they still have that winning touch after claiming the victory over Pickleball SLAM 3 in February after beating Andy Roddick and Bouchard.

But beyond the trophies, PickleBall has brought something even more valuable for their lives.

Agassi joked: As they say, PickleBall strengthens your marriage or breaks you up, but for us it has only been made stronger.

• Kimberly Kwek joined the Straits Times in 2019 as a sports journalist and has since dealt with a wide range of sports, including golf and sailing.

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