The Bandeja Magazine Issue 2

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When the Lawn Tennis
Association became the UK’s
national governing body for
padel in 2020, the two sports became
intrinsically linked under the leadership
of one organisation.
Yet does padel need tennis as part
of its promotional arm to open doors
to a curious audience in the UK or can
it thrive independently? The
International Tennis Federation believes
it does need tennis back-up and made
what many viewed to be a clumsy
attempt to assume governance of the
sport worldwide recently. The move
failed - for now.
Sports journalist Kevin Palmer
is writing for The Bandeja on
a wide range of padel topics.
Some of you may know him
from his brilliant coverage for
Tennis365 and he’s worked
with Sky Sports, ESPN, Yahoo,
Goal.com, Planet Sport and
femalefirst.co.uk. His Twitter
account has been named the
most influential in Irish sports
media for the last four years.
There may not be a definitive answer
to the question, as seven-time Grand
Slam tennis doubles champion Jamie
Murray discussed in an exclusive
interview with The Bandeja:
”Is padel a rival to tennis? That’s a big
possibility in terms of pure numbers,”
suggested Murray at a Game4Padel
event at London’s Westfield shopping
centre. “You can see that it could rival
tennis at some stage in the UK in terms
of the number of people playing, but
that’s not a problem. I don’t see any
negative to having a couple of padel
courts in your tennis club as it adds to
the offering for members and could
bring new people to both sports. Padel
is growing rapidly and will continue to
do so as long as we get more courts
installed and people get a chance to
experience playing.”
Murray’s sentiments should be
shared by all as the success of padel
can only have a positive impact on the
tennis community; tennis is striving to
attract younger generations to get on
court and play the game and padel
could provide a new entry route into
both sports.
With tennis clubs across the country
installing padel courts at an increasing
pace, the opportunity for those who
enjoy playing both sports should be be
embraced by all as the bar continues
to be raised at all levels.
With the amateur game thriving in
Britain, the FIP Rise London Padel Open
event at the LTA’s National Tennis
Centre in August offered a snapshot of
what could be the future for the sport,
with the first professional tournament
staged in the UK proving to be a huge
success. The vibe around the event
replicated the mood we all see when
at our padel venues, even if the
standard of play on show in an event
that concluded with a title triumph
for British No 1 Tia Norton highlighted
the stunning standards required to
compete with the best.
I don’t think we need to look at it as a
“
choice between tennis or padel as we
can have both. Padel has an X-Factor
that is hard to ignore and that’s why it’s
on a massive upward curve.
”
Jamie Murray
What comes next will define where
padel is heading over the next
12 months and beyond, with those
promoting the sport eager to
establish that it can thrive without
its long-established racket partner.
And the push to get padel included
in the 2032 Olympics is a campaign
that could offer a breakthrough
moment that would open the door
to a huge global audience.
And the eagerness of the Qatari-back
Premier Padel global tour to take the
professional game to the next level is
an exciting development that could
provide a route to find a voice in a
crowded sporting landscape.
Consistent broadcast and mass
media exposure is required to reach
audiences that don’t even know
they need to be part of a revolution
that will uncover new role models to
promote the sport moving forward.
“Padel is here now, there is nothing
stopping it and I don’t think we need
to look at it as [a choice between]
tennis or padel as we can have both,”
said Andrew Castle, former British No 1
tennis player. “This game complements
tennis and offers those of us who love
that game something different and
exciting…..we need to get away from
this padel vs tennis debate because
we don’t need that. The two sports
fit together nicely and both can
thrive independently.
“I love the social aspect of padel and
you can get to a reasonable level quite
quickly, allowing a group of friends to
have an enjoyable game and that is
one advantage it has over tennis, which
is a much more difficult sport to learn,”
added Andrew. And his last word?
“Padel has an X-Factor that is hard to
ignore and that’s why it’s on a massive
upward curve.” •
WINTER 2023
47