Is pickleball coming to the 2024 US Open? Not yet, but the fastest-growing sport in the U.S. has been a topic of conversation among the world's leading pro tennis stars at the season’s final Grand Slam.
Before his first-round win, American Taylor Fritz (UTR Rating 16.01) was asked if tennis should be worried about pickleball’s explosive growth.
“I think there are some people in the tennis world that are just absolute pickleball haters, and that's fine. But for me, like, I don't really have an issue with pickleball. I like playing sometimes. It's fine. I don't see any reason why both of them can't exist,” said Fritz, who faces 2019 US Open semifinalist Matteo Berrettini (UTR Rating 16.08) in the second round.
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Others playfully declined to weigh in on the ongoing pickleball and tennis “discussion.”
American Ben Shelton (UTR Rating 15.61) laughed when asked about a similar question.
“No, man, I got no comment about that,” he said before laughing.
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Shelton reached the US Open semifinals last year. On Monday, he sent 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem (UTR Rating 14.68) into Grand Slam retirement with a straight-sets win in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Shelton, the 2022 NCAA men’s singles champion, will meet Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut (UTR Rating 15.50) for a place in the US Open third round.
READ MORE: Pickleball vs. Tennis: Why Pickleball is Taking Over
Novak Djokovic has also shared his thoughts on pickleball and tennis. The 24-time Grand Slam champion implored the global tennis community to work harder in order to ensure a robust future at the grassroots level.
“Tennis is the king or queen of all the racquet sports, that's true. But on a club level, tennis is endangered. If we don't do something about it, as I said, globally or collectively, padel, pickleball in States, they're going to convert all the tennis clubs into padel and pickleball because it's just more economical,” Djokovic said last month at Wimbledon.
“You have one tennis court. You can build three padel courts on one tennis court. You do the simple math. It's just much more financially viable for an owner of a club to have those courts.”
But US Open stars haven't just talked about pickleball; they've also played it. Fritz and 2022 US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz recently played, as did Djokovic and top seed Jannik Sinner.
As the leading men's tennis stars in the world have shown, tennis and pickleball can exist together.
Plenty of UTR Sports providers have also put that into practice by offering both tennis and pickleball. Get in touch today!
Do you play both tennis and pickleball? Let us know!
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