Have you ever thought that pickleball is just a version of tennis with a plastic racket? If you had asked Chennaiites about pickleball a year ago, you would have been met with blank stares or a casual “isn’t that something Americans play in their retirement homes?” Fast forward to today, and we’re inside the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, where the inaugural Tamil Nadu Pickleball Premier League (TNPPL) has transformed this once-dismissed game into a full-blown spectacle. Eight courts. Sixteen teams.
160 players. And a crowd that is invested for a sport they only learned about last week.Pickleball, it seems, has officially arrived.
Inside the stadiumA mix of serious athletes, casual players, and spectators keep the stadium buzzing. In one corner, a group of college kids, led by Arjun, a mechanical engineering student, is debating paddle brands like they’ve been playing for years. Nearby, a couple is casually shopping for pickleball gear, even though the girl, Aruna Kamal, an influencer with a penchant for high-fashion sportswear, is very loudly saying, “I’m only buying this if it makes me look like I’m going to Wimbledon.
”For every seasoned player in team jerseys, there are at least five people in aesthetic tennis skirts and polos, soaking in the atmosphere. “I’ve never even played badminton, but I’ve been following pickleball on Instagram, and I love the vibe,” says Renita P, a 28-year-old content strategist adjusting the straps of her all-white tennis-cor.
