WHAT’S WITH ALL THE RACKET?

IF PADEL HASN’T HIT YOUR RADAR YET, HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOUR NEXT DINNER PARTY. IT IS, AFTER ALL, THE SPORT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT

WORDS AYANDA NGCOBO

WHILE PADEL HAS BECOME INCREDIBLY POPULAR in recent years, the sport has actually been around for decades. It was invented in 1969 by Enrique Corcuera in Alcapulco, Mexico, and his friend, Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, later took it to Spain, building the first two padel courts in Marbella.

A racket sport – it is essentially a hybrid between tennis and squash – it’s played in doubles (two teams of two players) on an enclosed court made with glass walls and mesh sections. The scoring method is the same as tennis (15, 30, 40, deuce and advantage), with the difference being that the serve is underarm and the balls can be played off the walls, similar to how one would play squash.

The game is easy and quick to learn at a basic level, having many similarities to tennis. It is also not solely dominated by strength, technique or serve but more match-craft, as the game is won through strategy. Being a sport that is always played in doubles and often in groups of mixed ages, it has a great social quality as opposed to being purely competitive. The smaller enclosed court also encourages constant communication between players.

Worldwide, there are roughly 10 million people playing the sport in more than 60 countries and, considering how popular it is overseas, it’s no surprise that some of the most beautiful courts can be found abroad. For example, Padel Cassis Club in France is nestled between forest, sea and mountains with breathtaking views, while the Hurawalhi Island Resort in the Maldives is host to a court built on a picturesque white sand beach surrounded by coconut trees. If you’re lucky enough to be counted as part of the exclusive few, Padel Villa Marbella – an invite-only club in Spain – is one to try.

Padel Hacks From The Pros

Simon Raab, the co-owner of Padel Gear (padelgear.co.za), has seen more than his fair share of funny moments on the court.

“I’ve seen someone trip and fall through the back glass, which then smashed. It was quite frightening at the time, but when we realised the player wasn’t injured, it quickly became very funny. I’ve personally run into and tripped over the net on a few occasions, and once I went for a boast lob off the back wall and hit the ball directly into my face, taking my sunglasses and cap right off. The ball hit me on my nose and I couldn’t brush my top teeth without some considerable pain for a month!”

Simon recommends that you put a frame protector on your racket and get a ball re-pressuriser. “The frame protectors are cheap in comparison to the price of the racket and they do an amazing job of preventing frame damage to your racket. The ball re-pressuriser saves you the cost of buying balls in the long run – and is also better for the environment. The repressurisers are easy to use and can keep your padel balls bouncy for as long as the felt lasts.”

Damian Oosthyuzen, owner of PadelZone (padelzone.co.za), fell in love with the game after a summer holiday in Europe. “I hadn’t heard much about the sport, but it was extremely popular in two of the countries I visited – the Netherlands and Spain. My fiancée and I played padel almost every morning in the Spanish sun and were completely hooked.”

Damian has also seen his fair share of entertainment on court. “The first thing that comes to mind is the uncanny ability of a padel player to smash the ball into the net, no matter how close they may be to it,” he says. “When the ball is lobbed into the air, every fibre in your body makes you want to smash that ball onto the opponent’s side and out of the court for an outright winning shot, but it’s more challenging than one may think. I’ve seen my partner almost touching the net, smash the ball with all his strength straight into the back of the net on our side. It lost us a point that should have been a sure winner.”

• Alejandro Galán from Madrid is currently number one in both the World Padel Tour and Premier Padel World rankings.

• It’s very popular among some of the world’s sporting greats, including David Beckham, Roger Federer, Lionel Messi, Serena Williams and Zlatan Ibrohimovic.

• In Spain it’s the second most popular sport after football.

• According to the Guinness World Records, the longest padel marathon lasted 30 hours, 30 minutes.

• The highest padel court in Europe is at the world-famous St. Moritz ski resort in Switzerland, and has an altitude of around 1 822 metres.

• The first South African padel court was opened in 2019. There are currently 50 sites and 140 courts around the country, and it costs between R600k and R1 million to build one.

In order to maximise your enjoyment and improve your game quickly, he suggests that players focus on control over power and aggression. “Although coming from other racket sports like tennis and squash where you have to hit the ball hard to get it going and make your points, padel requires a much more controlled approach. Once you are a bit more comfortable, it’s all about pushing forward to the net with your playing partner to control the point.”

For a list of padel courts around the country, visit www.africapadel.com. ■

ABOVE:

Padel Club de Cassis

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Nox Equation Lady WPT Racket, R4 999,95, and Nox AT10 Trolley

Padel Bag, R2 099,95, both PadelZone; Bullpadel Hack 03 racket, R6 995, and Nox AT10 Lux Padel Shoe, R3 750, both Padel Gear; RX #Greenpadel Racket, R3 499,95, PadelZone

Words Richard Holmes

RAS AL KHAIMAH IS THE FOURTH LARGEST of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE). And while Dubai has built its tourism offering on western-friendly glitz and glamour, and Abu Dhabi stakes its claim as the cultural and spiritual heart of the UAE, Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is all about outdoor adventure.

It’s a destination on the up, and 2022 proved to be something of a watershed year for this tiny emirate with very big ambitions. Even the venerable Time magazine sat up and took notice, including Ras Al Khaimah on its list of the World’s Greatest Places of 2022. International visitors grew by more than 40 percent, attracting a slew of global hotel investments. With the likes of Marriott, Sofitel and Anantara building new properties, hotel inventory is set to nearly double in the next few years.

Not that you’ll be spending much time in your hotel room, that is.