Pickleball Newbie Roger Federer Clears the Air on a Potential Career in the Sport With a ‘Strange’ Take

A good deal of former tennis players have picked up the paddle after hanging up their racquets. As Pickleball garners a huge fan base around the world, Andre Agassi had just one thing to say: “Demand is a whole different animal.” And the former tennis star has joined his legendary wife on the tour. However, when Roger Federer was questioned about his transition to the sport, he had a contrasting view! The 20-time Grand Slam champion would prefer to be a spectator than try his hand at the paddle sport.

In a recent video interview with the Extratv’s Billy Bush, Federer was asked about his latest adventure. The Swiss tennis legend gave Pickleball a try during his visit to Vietnam a fortnight ago. Hence, Billy asked Federer whether he would be joining the sport as the star had relatively more time at hand after he retired from tennis. In response, the 20-time Grand Slam champion laughed off the question and had just one thing to say, “Not on the tour.”

Moreover, Federer had an intriguing take on pickleball as he narrated his Vietnam experience. He compared it with a ‘big version’ of ping-pong. “I’ve been on a pickleball court 10 days ago in Vietnam for the very first time. It felt like a very big version of ping pong,” – He said.

However, it was an incomplete and strange experience for Federer, as he tried his hand at singles and not doubles. He further added, “I still have to play doubles. I only played quick singles. It was- I don’t know, it felt strange.” Moreover, Federer was not just battling his opponent during his match. He had another opponent over his head to take care of. The weather! It was unpleasantly hot and the Swiss Maestro was unable to enjoy the game!

While narrating his match circumstances, he said “Uh it was unreal hot. It was 110 degrees when I played so I was more like battling circumstances than actually the game.” Despite not enjoying playing the game, he certainly enjoys watching it. “But I like to watch Jack Sock, who plays professional Pickleball and I see highlights of him on Youtube sometimes”.

That was not all. Knowingly or unknowingly, Roger Federer has joined the Tennis v/s Pickleball bandwagon with these words, “It’s an easier game than tennis, and it’s fun.” Everyone has a different stance, while Agassi pointed out peculiar differences and considers pickleball to be a precursor of tennis, rather than a successor. However in a separate incident, Christian Alshon, a retired tennis player who transitioned into pro-pickleball, infuriated Miami Open director with his remarks on the same.

Christian Alshon’s lop-sided pickleball stance displeases Miami Open director

Since the paddle sport has made its debut into the sporting world, the unending debate of which is better- tennis or pickleball has started. And a few months back, the pro pickleball star, Alshon, while drawing comparisons between the two much-debated sports, disregarded tennis skills. He said, “Pickleball has made me a much better athlete than tennis ever did. Faster reaction time and speed are needed, since the ball is only coming from 10 feet away. Point for point, pickleball requires more skill than tennis.”

Despite being an opinion of the player, the response irked James Blake, director of the Miami Open. The latter jumped into the debate, defending tennis skills, and questioned Alshon’s tennis. Taking a dig at the pro star, he said, “Haha. That might be because you were playing a pretty low level of tennis. Maybe if you were familiar with the athleticism it takes to excel at the sport, you would realize how ridiculous this statement is.” 

It’s not possible to compare apples and oranges. Similarly, being two different sports, they require a specific set of skills and athleticism. It would be interesting to watch Federer change his mind and enter pickleball and join the already extending list of tennis legends.