Mumbai, India – In a country where cricket reigns supreme and football is a close second, pickleball is slowly but steadily carving out its niche – not just as a recreational activity but also as a community sport.
In the last two years, pickleball has gained popularity in many major Indian cities, particularly Mumbai and Bengaluru, attracting players ranging from children to senior citizens.
Pickleball was invented in 1965 as a backyard game for children in the United States and is now played professionally worldwide. Pickleball is a mix of tennis, badminton and table tennis. It’s easy to learn and fun.
It serves as a great workout without the physical intensity of tennis and is ideal for older adults and those looking for a low-impact exercise or social interest.
For Parnika Waghmare, a resident of the city of Thane near Mumbai, pickleball has helped promote community interaction.
“Through pickleball, I reconnected with old friends,” said Waghmare, an architect.
The 28-year-old loved tennis but had no chance to compete. Pickleball gave her an opportunity to get back on the court.
“Even if I’m not in shape, I can play without any problem,” she told Al Jazeera after a two-hour pickleball session. “I plan to play every weekend to keep up my sportsmanship and I hope to compete in local tournaments.”
Waghmare was one of around 15 people who turned up on a Sunday morning to play pickleball on an outdoor court at the Sharadchandraji Pawar Mini Stadium TMC in Thane.
Sujay Kumar, 53, a businessman and veteran badminton player, has signed up for twice-weekly coaching sessions at the venue.
“I recently had a back injury that forced me to take a break from badminton, so I took up pickleball,” Kumar said.
“I’ve been playing for a month and it’s been going great. There is a community for pickleball, which is not the case with badminton. I met about 20 new people,” he added.
What is Pickleball?
Pickleball is played on a badminton-sized court with a low, modified tennis net, making it suitable for both indoor and outdoor play.
Using a sturdy bat, usually made of wood or composite materials, players hit a perforated plastic ball that is about the same size as a baseball but significantly lighter.
The craze for the sport first began in the upscale areas of Mumbai – Bandra, Andheri, Goregaon and Nariman Point – and is now slowly spreading to other parts of India’s second-largest city of about 20 million people.
“The low barrier to entry makes it very easy for anyone to love the sport,” said Chirag Shrivastav, co-founder of Elev8, a sports company that organizes pickleball meets.
In India’s urban centers, pickleball is quickly becoming a popular option for weekend activities. Friends meet at a game or young couples plan pickleball dates. Pickleball meetups are even used as a networking tool.
“Earlier, it was tennis or squash that brought investors or industrialists together, but now they meet over a game of pickleball,” Shrivastav said.
Mumbai may be the home of Indian pickleball, but the game has become increasingly popular in Bengaluru, in southern India.
The bustling city of 14 million people is widely known as the “Silicon Valley” of India for its luxury, high-tech global software companies. And pickleball resonates here.
Yashodhan Nakhare, a former national-level junior tennis player, has been playing pickleball four times a week in Bengaluru’s affluent Indiranagar area for the past six months and is part of a small group called ‘Pickle Ricklers’.
“There are six of us running the Pickle Ricklers, but at least 26 to 27 people in our community play at the highest level. “We participate in tournaments and have our friendly mini-tournaments,” said the 24-year-old, who works at a consulting firm.
Companies are also recognizing the charm of pickleball and using it as a tool to market their products.
Local Ferment Co (LFC), a beverage manufacturer in Bengaluru, hosted a pickleball party for 30 people in October at an indoor sports arena for an hour and a half.
Participants, hand-picked through an application process, played pickleball and sipped kombucha and ginger ale.
“We now have a WhatsApp community called ‘Dink and Drink’ made up of all the people who have come to play and others who are interested. It has around 70 to 80 members,” said Tarini Thakur, head of brand and culture at LFC.
“We try to have pickleball games every now and then. It’s a great way to meet our customers and get them to try our drinks in an organic environment.”
Become a professional
While many are interested in pickleball for its recreational activity, others see it as a path to professional success.
Vrushali Thakare, who hails from Jalgaon in northern Maharashtra, has been playing pickleball since 2017 and represents India.
Her desire to compete professionally led her to move to Mumbai permanently. This month she won a gold and a silver medal in the Hong Kong leg of the Pickleball World Championship.
“I am motivated to play pickleball professionally because it provides financial stability,” Thakare said. “It has become a good option for athletes professionally.”
Like Thakare, Sonu Vishwakarma moved to Mumbai from Dhanbad, Jharkhand to focus on his professional pickleball career.
The 22-year-old said interest in pickleball skyrocketed after the 2022 Bainbridge Cup, the first international pickleball event in India named after the birthplace of the sport.
“The prize money was $50,000, which was huge for pickleball in India,” Vishwakarma said. “Since this tournament, the growing popularity of pickleball has never stopped, and even us players have received a lot of attention.”
Thakare and Vishwakarma are two of the many players supported by the All India Pickleball Association (AIPA). Its president Arvind Prabhoo says AIPA plans to spread the sport to every corner of India.
“The long-term vision is the Olympics,” Prabhoo said. “If anything, pickleball will only be considered for the 2032 or 2036 Olympics. So we have time to prepare. … All 12-year-olds we are training now will be eligible by then.”
At the elite level, pickleball is enjoying unprecedented momentum in India, and next month Mumbai will host the country’s first global franchise-based pickleball league, the World Pickleball League.
The inaugural season will feature six teams combining local talent with international players and aims to attract participants from around 15 countries.
“The purpose of this league is to make it a commercial success and grow the pickleball ecosystem in India,” said Gaurav Natekar, co-founder of the league.
“We want to do what the Indian Premier League has done for hundreds of players,” he said, referring to the richest tournament franchise in cricket.
Pickleball’s future in India
One of the biggest hurdles to sustained pickleball growth in India is the lack of adequate infrastructure.
There is a big gap between the number of courts and demand for games, but Natekar believes this is a “good problem to have” for those involved who are already working on building more courts. According to Prabhoo, there are almost 500 courts in Mumbai and the number is expected to rise to more than 200 in Bengaluru in the next three months.
There is also a perception that some members of the urban elite want to keep pickleball as an exclusive sport, a factor that fuels both its aspirational value for newcomers and the challenge of becoming more accessible.
“Partly the rich want it to remain an exclusive sport and maintain the profile of the game,” Prabhoo explained.
“There are clubs in Mumbai where only the rich play – outsiders are not allowed. They form a group and play. … They want it to stay that way. This is where the aspirational value lies for someone who is not that rich and wants to make it big,” he added.
As pickleball continues to gain traction in India, it is becoming more than just a sport. It is a bridge that connects different metropolises and a path for ambitious athletes who dream of global recognition.
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