New Balls Please

Padel is the new buzzword in fitness. Here’s the full lowdown on the tennis alternative and the best places to serve up a treat…

Move over Wimbledon, with your regular rackets and your old-school tennis courts, padel is the new kid on the block. Invented in 1969 in Mexico by Enrique Corcuera, padel was recognised as an international sport in September 2019 and is one of the world’s fastest-growing sports by participation. Played predominately as a doubles game, it’s very similar to regular tennis with a bit of squash thrown in: the court is about 25 per cent smaller than a tennis court and enclosed in glass walls, which can also be utilised during play – and metal mesh fences that can’t. When it comes to keeping score, you go up 15, 30, 40 as usual. The serve is underarm, the racket is smaller and more of a flat bat, and the balls have a lower pressure. It’s often called padel tennis, which can be confusing as there’s another less-played sport called Paddle Tennis, which is similar but doesn’t use walls.

RIGHT, YOU’RE READY TO PLAY. HERE ARE THE FIVE TOP PLACES TO VOLLEY, LOB AND SMASH YOUR WAY AROUND A PADEL COURT…

01 Smash Padel and Fitness Club

Newly opened in April, Smash offers three courts alongside its modern indoor-outdoor gym on The Palm. In fact, if you take out a yearly gym membership you get eight padel court bookings thrown in for free. If you’re not one for the gym, padel courts can be booked for Dhs200 for a 90-minute session during offpeak hours, or Dhs320 during peak hours. Racket and ball hire starts at Dhs30. Playing singles? It’s Dhs95 per person to book.

Smash Padel and Fitness Club, Golden Mile Galleria, Building 1, Palm Jumeriah, Dubai open 6 am daily (peak hours: Friday, Saturday and after 4.30 pm weekdays). Tel: [phone]. smash.ae

02 Real Racquet Academy X Dubai Golf