How many skirmishes will there be in the tennis vs. pickleball war? I thought we reached a ceasefire.
Some recent social media posts from top pickle pros might have reignited something.
Christian Alshon recently tweeted about how pickleball made him a “better athlete than tennis ever did.”
Modern tennis legends Nicholas Kyrgios & James Blake did not take kindly to that comment (scroll right):
We have to wonder how the likes of Kyrgios, Blake, or even Andy Roddick came upon this tweet to begin with. But do they have a point, despite the harshness of their replies?
On the surface: of course they do. There’s no doubt that one has to run much more in tennis compared with doubles (or, let’s be honest, even singles) pickleball.
Then, the plot thickens when Andy Roddick and Sam Querrey get involved...
"Tell you what. If anyone [sic] pickle person ever ranks higher in tennis than what Sock will be at the end of this year in his new paid pickle hobby, I'll commentate a pickle match standing on my head." - Andy Roddick on Twitter
Of course, what the tennis legend Roddick fails to realize is that many tennis players who come to pickleball don't find immediate success in the sport.
Just ask Sam Querrey (from Memes of Pickleball, not actual tweets):
In Christian’s defense – the phrase “better athlete” isn’t only qualified by how hard an athlete physically needs to work in order to play at the top level.
There’s a mental acuity aspect to athleticism that it’s clear Alshon referred to in his tweet.
Reaction time and split-second decision making in pickleball may have tennis beat in some respects (not that this is even an argument worth having or one which makes the world a better place in any respect).
ALW Has Something to Add
Pickleball GOAT Anna Leigh Waters took a slightly more tongue-in-cheek approach when she tweeted this out recently:
Pickleball players and tennis players need to stop this feud! We all know pickleball is better 😂
— Anna Leigh Waters (@AnnaLeighWaters) March 26, 2024
Except, instead of tennis pros responding, it was just your average keyboard warriors:
“Pickleball is the definition of a Mickey Mouse sport. There’s a reason why the best player in the world is a D3 tennis player.”
“Easier* there, fixed it for you.”
“Pickleball is a plague.”
Whatever, haters.
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