Though it has been around for a while, pickleball is a sport generating a lot of buzz these days.
That buzz will only get louder in April as four American tennis legends and Grand Slam champions headline the first-ever Pickleball Slam at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida on April 2.
If you do not have the good fortune to get to Florida to watch this event live, the good news is that ESPN will be airing it on national television.
Who Is Participating?
Tennis champions whose careers spanned from the 1970s to the 2000s will take center stage on the pickleball court making this event must-see television for generations of tennis fans.
They are John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, Michael Chang, and Andy Roddick.
Between the four of them, there are 16 Grand Slam singles titles with Agassi leading the way with 8, McEnroe close behind with 7, and Chang and Roddick each having 1.
McEnroe was also an accomplished doubles player who added 10 doubles Grand Slam titles (9 doubles and 1 mixed doubles).
To the delight of fans, there will be both singles and doubles matches featuring these four.
In singles, Roddick will take on Chang, and McEnroe will play Agassi.
For the doubles action, Roddick will team with Agassi against Chang and McEnroe.
A $1 million prize will be split among the participants.
Novak Djokovic Has Also Dabbled In Pickleball
Tennis legend Novak Djokovic was spotted playing pickleball at a Lacoste event back in 2017.
Could we see future pickleball events with retired players like Roger Federer and Serena Williams?
It would be a treat for fans to get these recently retired players involved in the sport and back in the public eye on the courts.
Pickleball Is Surging In The US
Tennis players are the logical athletes to pick up the sport, but other professional athletes could be up for a pickleball challenge also.
The sport tallied 4.8 million active players in the US in 2022.
Unlike tennis, underhand serving is the norm in pickleball.
Paddles are used instead of tennis racquets.
There are also no double faults, and the court size does not change for singles and doubles matches.
There is a Pickleball magazine published monthly with celebrity cover models such as Katie Couric.
Major League Pickleball is also growing in popularity.
NFL players such as Drew Brees and Tom Brady are invested in the sport as well as tennis legend Kim Clijsters.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
