Caption: Julie Kirkup (blue) and Renae Poot (pink) playing pickleball. Photo: Bastien Herotin.
Australia’s fastest growing sport will be trialled in Esperance on Sunday, with the goal of launching a longer-term competition in term three.
The Esperance tennis club is hosting a pickleball trial day from 12pm for locals to test their racquet skills.
Esperance Tennis Club Coach Bastien Henrotin said the club wanted to gauge interest in town.
“We will set up the courts and hopefully the weather will be good but it’s going to really be a come and try out – a couple of hours of explaining the rules and seeing if people are interested,” Mr Henrotin said.
Pickleball is a combination of tennis, badminton and ping pong and is played on a small court with paddles and a plastic ball.
More than 90,000 people now play the sport in Australia and its popularity is largely attributed to its inclusiveness of all ages and physical abilities.
Mr Henrotin remains devoted to his beloved tennis but he said the club had the space for a pickleball competition so he thought they should get it started.
He said ideally the club would host weekly sessions twice per week.
“It’s thriving in all the big cities and I think it’s much easier to learn and enjoy than tennis because there is much more success faster,” he said.
“I will end up having to play it but I am still addicted to my tennis, so if I get a chance I would play tennis all the time.”
On Sunday morning he said the club was also having a “busy bee” where people could help tidy up the courts by weeding and cleaning the sheds in preparation for the event.
