Pickleball - Wikipedia

Pickleball is an indoor or outdoor racket/paddle sport in which two players (singles), or four players (doubles), hit a perforated hollow plastic ball over a 36-inch-high (0.91 m) net using solid-faced paddles. Opponents on either side of the net hit the ball back and forth until one side commits a rule infraction. Pickleball was invented in 1965 as a children's backyard game in the United States, on Bainbridge Island in Washington state. In 2022, pickleball was named the official state sport of Washington.[2]

The pickleball court and the manner of play resemble tennis in some respects and ping pong (table tennis) in others. The court is the size of a doubles badminton court (less than a third the size of a tennis court), and the paddle is larger than the one used in table tennis. The rules, and the position of lines on the court, are specific to pickleball. There are two 7-foot areas (2.1 m) on either side of the net, known as the non-volley zones, where the ball may be hit with the paddle only after it has bounced. The official rules specify side-out scoring, meaning that only the player or team serving can score a point. All serves are made with an underhand stroke. The hard plastic ball used in pickleball produces significantly less bounce than softer, flexible balls such as tennis balls. The minimal amount of bounce, the non-volley zones, and underhand serve combine to give the game a dynamic pace and a choice of hitting strategies, ranging from soft dink shots that stay within the two non-volley zones to powerful drive shots and overhead smash shots. To minimize any advantage the serving or receiving side might have at the beginning of the game, the ball must be allowed to bounce once on each side of the net before players are permitted to volley the ball (that is, to hit the ball before it has bounced on their side of the net).

Between 1965 and 2020, pickleball became a popular sport in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, and also began to grow in popularity elsewhere. In 2021, 2022 and 2023, the sport was named the fastest-growing sport in the United States by the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, and by 2023 it was estimated to have over 4.8 million players. The growing popularity of the sport has been attributed to its a short learning curve, its appeal to a wide range of ages and fitness levels, and its low startup costs. There are now thousands of pickleball tournaments throughout the United States, including the US National Championships and the U.S. Open Tournament, along with two professional tours and one professional league. Pickleball is also growing in popularity outside the United States: there are several other national and international competitions.

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