The Bandeja Magazine Issue 2

More documents

Info

commentthe sport withthe X factorby Kevin PalmerAs momentum continues to build behind the fastestgrowing sport in the UK, the tennis community isevaluating where the padel juggernaut fits into itsexpanded rackets family.Tennis players Laura Robsonand Andrew Castle.46 thebandeja.com
commentWhen the Lawn TennisAssociation became the UK’snational governing body forpadel in 2020, the two sports becameintrinsically linked under the leadershipof one organisation.Yet does padel need tennis as partof its promotional arm to open doorsto a curious audience in the UK or canit thrive independently? TheInternational Tennis Federation believesit does need tennis back-up and madewhat many viewed to be a clumsyattempt to assume governance of thesport worldwide recently. The movefailed - for now.Sports journalist Kevin Palmeris writing for The Bandeja ona wide range of padel topics.Some of you may know himfrom his brilliant coverage forTennis365 and he’s workedwith Sky Sports, ESPN, Yahoo,Goal.com, Planet Sport andfemalefirst.co.uk. His Twitteraccount has been named themost influential in Irish sportsmedia for the last four years.There may not be a definitive answerto the question, as seven-time GrandSlam tennis doubles champion JamieMurray discussed in an exclusiveinterview with The Bandeja:”Is padel a rival to tennis? That’s a bigpossibility in terms of pure numbers,”suggested Murray at a Game4Padelevent at London’s Westfield shoppingcentre. “You can see that it could rivaltennis at some stage in the UK in termsof the number of people playing, butthat’s not a problem. I don’t see anynegative to having a couple of padelcourts in your tennis club as it adds tothe offering for members and couldbring new people to both sports. Padelis growing rapidly and will continue todo so as long as we get more courtsinstalled and people get a chance toexperience playing.”Murray’s sentiments should beshared by all as the success of padelcan only have a positive impact on thetennis community; tennis is striving toattract younger generations to get oncourt and play the game and padelcould provide a new entry route intoboth sports.With tennis clubs across the countryinstalling padel courts at an increasingpace, the opportunity for those whoenjoy playing both sports should be beembraced by all as the bar continuesto be raised at all levels.With the amateur game thriving inBritain, the FIP Rise London Padel Openevent at the LTA’s National TennisCentre in August offered a snapshot ofwhat could be the future for the sport,with the first professional tournamentstaged in the UK proving to be a hugesuccess. The vibe around the eventreplicated the mood we all see whenat our padel venues, even if thestandard of play on show in an eventthat concluded with a title triumphfor British No 1 Tia Norton highlightedthe stunning standards required tocompete with the best.I don’t think we need to look at it as a“choice between tennis or padel as wecan have both. Padel has an X-Factorthat is hard to ignore and that’s why it’son a massive upward curve.”Jamie MurrayWhat comes next will define wherepadel is heading over the next12 months and beyond, with thosepromoting the sport eager toestablish that it can thrive withoutits long-established racket partner.And the push to get padel includedin the 2032 Olympics is a campaignthat could offer a breakthroughmoment that would open the doorto a huge global audience.And the eagerness of the Qatari-backPremier Padel global tour to take theprofessional game to the next level isan exciting development that couldprovide a route to find a voice in acrowded sporting landscape.Consistent broadcast and massmedia exposure is required to reachaudiences that don’t even knowthey need to be part of a revolutionthat will uncover new role models topromote the sport moving forward.“Padel is here now, there is nothingstopping it and I don’t think we needto look at it as [a choice between]tennis or padel as we can have both,”said Andrew Castle, former British No 1tennis player. “This game complementstennis and offers those of us who lovethat game something different andexciting…..we need to get away fromthis padel vs tennis debate becausewe don’t need that. The two sportsfit together nicely and both canthrive independently.“I love the social aspect of padel andyou can get to a reasonable level quitequickly, allowing a group of friends tohave an enjoyable game and that isone advantage it has over tennis, whichis a much more difficult sport to learn,”added Andrew. And his last word?“Padel has an X-Factor that is hard toignore and that’s why it’s on a massiveupward curve.” •WINTER 202347
Page 1 and 2: ISSUE 2 WINTER 2023GB starshold the
Page 3 and 4: contentscontents// Issue 2 / Winter
Page 5 and 6: editor’s commentCourt Build• Pl
Page 7 and 8: newsWant to see how themetal cage i
Page 9 and 10: productsPadel Magazine - WINTER 202
Page 11 and 12: productsSMART-SPACESUPPORTS PADELIN
Page 13 and 14: BounxPADEL | SWIMMING | TENNIS | FI
Page 15 and 16: newshaving the potential to work to
Page 17 and 18: productsTHE WIZARD OF PADELPlay wit
Page 19 and 20: OdinFlexible frame (can be bent wit
Page 21 and 22: Feature: GB seniorsSquad members Ro
Page 23 and 24: featureHENLEAZE LAKEpadel4all Lockl
Page 25 and 26: feature: padel products festivalRea
Page 27 and 28: feature: padel festivalI’m hittin
Page 29 and 30: feature: padel festivalOpenWINTER 2
Page 31 and 32: editor’s commentPadel Magazine -
Page 33 and 34: newsTHE UK’S #1 PADEL SPECIALIST
Page 35 and 36: InternationalLa Mangapadel upgradeI
Page 37 and 38: Feature: tournamentsGB’s Nikhil M
Page 39 and 40: Feature: tournamentsPadel Magazine
Page 41 and 42: editor’s New new commentcourtsWye
Page 43 and 44: New courtsFairmontWindsor ParkIf yo
Page 45: featureWhat three words?Devon. Univ
Page 49 and 50: feature: Oliver GranthamIf you’re
Page 51 and 52: coachingBetter forehandshots In 2 e
Page 53 and 54: productsPlay padel?Visit ipadel.co.
Page 55 and 56: feature: the serveThe Australian se
Page 57 and 58: entrepreneursWhere to start talking
Page 59 and 60: productsJuan Lebron Technical Viper
Page 61 and 62: productsuctsMsWilsonPrices from £1
Page 63 and 64: productsfrom Acapulco sincePadel ra
Page 65 and 66: featureThe anatomy of a racketDo yo
Page 67 and 68: ipadel finalsiPadel SummerLeague fi
Page 69 and 70: ipadel finalsWinners: Roehampton(Ja
Page 71 and 72: CLUB FEATURE: epsom LTCgrass court.
Page 73 and 74: club newsFede smashes compactcoachi
Page 75 and 76: Court Build• Planning• Working
Page 77: products“It’s great to be part

The Bandeja Magazine Issue 2

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?