Sport Spotlight: Why Pickleball could be Kent's next big sport

Whilst the poor weather might have left you inside this summer, it could be time to try out this emerging US sport.

Transcript

00:00 Well, you wouldn't think it was August from the weather outside today, so what better

00:06 way is there to avoid the rain but by playing some indoor sports?

00:10 Pickleball is becoming an increasingly popular game in the UK, but what makes it so special?

00:17 Well I went to the Weald Sports Centre in Cranbrook to find out just what scratches

00:21 that pickleball itch.

00:23 Played on a badminton court, the game is somewhat like tennis, but with paddles instead of rackets

00:28 and a focus on tricking your opponents into a bad position, as well as keeping on the

00:33 good side with the many different fouls, like stepping over the serve line or not dinking

00:38 in the kitchen, which is essentially just volleying too close to the net.

00:42 Well, this is me after playing pickleball for about two hours.

00:44 You can see behind me everyone else is still going, putting my fitness levels to shame.

00:49 Now here I have a pickleball racket and a pickleball ball, so it's not quite like tennis.

00:54 It's a little bit harder.

00:57 I was shown the ropes by some of Cranbrook's players and managed to win my first game,

01:02 though I had my fair share of fouls.

01:05 Hopefully to keep my winning streak, I asked an ex-badminton player and club member Peter

01:11 on the tactics of the game and how he keeps up with younger players.

01:15 We have got people who play by power.

01:18 The harder they hit it, the better they like it.

01:21 It's not the way to play.

01:24 The soft return or one diagonally will pull them out of position.

01:32 So when they get it back, your partner is there, placed, hammer it into the space that

01:38 they vacated.

01:39 Yes, there's a lot of thinking goes into it.

01:43 It looks like pickleball, similar to other American sports we've adopted, like volleyball,

01:47 basketball and skateboarding, is only set to grow in the UK.

01:51 With 7,000 members at the moment, Pickleball England are aiming to have 25,000 members

01:56 in two years.

01:57 Now, if you're looking for a low-impact game or want an indoor sport to see you through

02:01 this poor summer weather, pickleball might just be for you.

02:05 Finn McDermott, for KMTV.