Corporate leaders' new-found love, business interest: Padel and pickleball

There is a padel court on top of the JSW Group’s office in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex. There is also a similar court at the Jindal family home in Mahabaleshwar and Vijaynagar. All because Parth Jindal, the founder of JSW Sports and Inspire Institute of Sports and the next generation of the Jindal family, is a keen padel player.

 

He is among the many from the top echelons of India's corporate sector to have fallen in love with padel and pickleball. At the recent, Monsoon Pickleball Championship, many from India Inc could be spotted, such as a next-gen woman family business leader who used to be a keen tennis player but now loves pickleball, another from a well known Mumbai-based business group that is one of the richest in the country, and so on — it will not be ethical to name them here because they were not present at the pickleball championship in their official capacity.

 

This rising sporting interest is translating into business interest as well. For instance, the pickleball championship was sponsored by Vedanta Foundation. Last month, JSW Sports and Inspire Institute invested an undisclosed sum in PadelPark India, which is dedicated to the sport in India.

 

“PadelPark is building an ecosystem for the sport of padel in the country, ranging from establishing the infrastructure to creating a coaching programme to a robust tournament framework,”Jindal told Business Standard. "Padel is a fast growing global sport that I have no doubt will become an Olympic sport."

 

Both sports are not only growing in popularity but also vying for investments in the United States and around the world, now finding takers in India as well. Both are racquet sports. Pickleball is played with solid faced paddles and plastic balls with holes. The courts are made of hard surfaces like the tennis courts at the ongoing US Open. It began in the 1960s in Washington as a sport that was easy on the limbs and joints therefore suitable for players of an older vintage. But those days are long gone and competitiveness has risen.

 

It is the same situation with padel, which is like tennis played in an enclosed space with paddles that, as in pickleball, have solid faces without strings. Its scoring system is similar to that of tennis.

 

The vibrant presence of marquee surnames from the corporate sector in the two sports is understandable. Both are expensive sports. The price of a pickleball racquet, for instance, can go up to Rs 45,000 and constructing a court for it can set you back by upwards of Rs 10 lakh. Padel is not far behind in expenses. Just as important, as some senior executives and scions of business families have taken to the two sports, the others are inevitably following. As in golf, the appeal of hobnobbing with the boss, or the future boss, in a non-work, non-formal ambience is irresistible to any ambitious executive or deal maker.

 

"Our aim is to build accessible sports in the country. A sport like pickleball transcends age, gender, and all other barriers. It can bring people together and instil discipline, good health, and sportsmanship," said Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Ltd and non-executive director with Vedanta.

Ronnie Sehgal, secretary at the Indian Padel Federation, says the sport began to be played in India eight years ago in Bengaluru. It picked up steam as people became confined to their homes and video meetings during the pandemic, and grew faster in popularity from 2022 onwards. "Companies are investing in the sport because the younger generation is picking up the sport, though the interest is still nascent," he says.

 

According to him, there are 150 padel courts in India and likely to rise to 250 by the end of this year.

 

Nikhil Mathure, Treasurer, All India Pickleball Association, says the sport is now played in 23 states in India and has 35.000 amateur players. "Companies are looking at the game closely in terms of investments," he said.