 "What the Pickleball World Rankings DUPR India League, launched by Andre Agassi and Rohan Bopanna in Mumbai, is all about")
Eight-time Grand Slam champion and former ATP world No 1 Andre Agassi and Indian tennis icon Rohan Bopanna helped launch the Pickleball World Rankings (PWR) DUPR India League by playing a friendly game of pickleball at an event in Mumbai on Friday. Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Mansukh Mandaviya and South African cricket legend Jonty Rhodes were also among those present at the launch of the event in Mumbai.
The fast-paced racquet sport of pickleball originated in the United States in 1965 and bears similarities to tennis, table tennis and badminton. Pickleball has been gaining popularity worldwide in recent years, with the US witnessing a participation boom of 223 per cent in the last three years and NBA stars such as LeBron James acquire stakes in Major League Pickleball francises recently.
It has also been making steady progress in the cricket-mad nation that is India since the turn of the decade with Mumbai having recently hosted the India leg of the World Pickleball Championships in November, with approximately 650 players from seven countries arriving in the ‘Maximum City’ for the same.
Also Read | Pickleball is poised to become one of the most prominent sports in India,' says AIPA president
Pickleball World Rankings had been introduced at a ceremony in Dubai in July this year and is a joint venture between Pickleball League Asia and The Times Group with support of the Indian Pickleball Association, the Asian Pickleball Association and the Global Pickleball Federation. That was followed by the PWR DUPR India Masters in Delhi from 24 to 27 October, which had attracted top talent from India as well as abroad and helped showcase the country’s potential in the sport.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe newly-launched PWR DUPR India League, which is expected to take place in early 2025 in Mumbai, is expected to boost pickleball’s growth even further in a country where even football, the world’s most popular sport, has struggled to compete with cricket.
“Over the last two years, I’ve been playing pickleball quite a lot. It’s been a great outlet for me and my wife, a fantastic exercise. Those of you that watch it from a distance might think that it’s all the way over. Maybe the old people have played it - but I guess I’m a little old - but I promise you, you can challenge yourself on any level that you pour yourself into it," Agassi, a four-time Australian Open champion who also won the US Open twice, said at the event in Mumbai.
“I’m proud to be here on behalf of DUPR. It’s the most accurate rating system in the sport, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity and the platform to hopefully grow this sport globally. We have 30 million people in America now playing it, more or less, and I promise you it’s still at its infancy.”
“I believe in the sport from top down, but I believe in it mostly from a participation standpoint, what it brings to people’s lives individually, what it brings to communities, what it brings to bringing people together, which is what life is about… I’d say, you know, give pickleball a go, because that’s all you have to do is try it a few times, and it’ll be part of your life,” the 54-year-old added.
Also read | India joins global pickleball, Padel boom as sports surpass tennis’ growth
Bopanna, a Grand Slam winner in men’s doubles (2024 Australian Open) and mixed doubles (2017 French Open), thanked Agassi for lending his support to the “great sport” and helping spread its popularity in India.
“It’s really nice to be in an event where today India is picking up a new sport. It’s trending, it’s a vibe. It’s nice to have you here Andre, and to learn and support a great sport like pickleball here in India. And I’ve also watched you play many, many times and it’s lovely to have you here as well. It’s nice when sportsmen come together to support other sports and I think congratulations and good luck for this league," Bopanna said at the event.
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