You could take a professional player outside the top 100 in tennis and give them 6 months to train and this girl would get destroyed. You could similarly do the same thing for badminton or table tennis. The whole point of pickleball is to remove the athleticism by shrinking the court and slowing down the ball.
"one of the most elite athletes in history" sure jan. She couldn't rank within the top 10 of the best female athletes of all time let alone best athlete period. She doesn't even contend with people like Serena Williams, Lebron James, Michael Jordan, and many many more who have accomplished more than a pickleball player. Pickleball is intended for elderly people thats why its a slower game with a smaller court. This is like saying volleyball in the pool is at the same level as volleyball on a court, or even in a beach.
Well, we agree she is not the athlete that others are in terms of pure athleticism. But at the same time it is hard to compare athletes outside their sport, which they play. She is in terms of wins, records and winning percentage "one" of the top athletes of all time, yes. Now will she win in a race against a sprinter, of course not. It's like saying Tiger Woods was not a good athlete because he would lose to Jordan in a pick-up game. We can agree to disagree, just hard to say this girl is not impressive when turning pro at 12 and continuing to win throughout her teen years.
Agree, it’s growing at such a rapid pace and the next generation of players are already training at a young age. Before long I feel most players will not have a tennis background. Just developed through pickleball alone. Thanks for the comment.
Tennis is played at on international stage with competitors from around the world. An average age of a Pickleball player is a retiree. The pool of young players still remain small compared to tennis. Is there even a junior league for Pickleball yet?
