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Pick(l)ing A Lifestyle: The Proliferation Of Pickleball And RUC’s Effort To Pave New Pathways
Pick(l)ing A Lifestyle: The Proliferation Of Pickleball And RUC’s Effort To Pave New Pathways
New-found obsessions have the ability to reboot a system that has seemingly reached a point of saturation due to the mind's inclination towards the unknown, which can prove to be a breath of fresh air given the circumstances.
The relevance of pickleball has mushroomed in the past couple of years, with folks in increasing numbers moving towards the racquet sport once obscure to the general public in the peninsular nation.
The Rise Up Championships Pickleball event, a first-of-its-kind three-day event, a vision of Selvakumar Baalu, a former tennis player and motorsport team owner, sought to combine the thrills of various walks of life, bringing together sport, entertainment and lifestyle.
“I felt that anything apart from cricket doesn't get the attention and support it deserves. There are a lot of downsides to sports in our country if it isn't cricket," opined Baalu.
“I wanted to start something that would bring a lot of people together. I have a lot of friends who play pickleball, but there weren't any avenues to support talent and nurture it. So I wanted to create a platform where everyone could come together and support each other."
“And the kind of support could be anything from infrastructure to support and that's how RUC was born. We wanted to bring like-minded people together and support each other," he added.
Veera, a thespian and a part of the organisation that looks to spread the appeal of the sport of pickleball in the city echoed his mate's thoughts, stating, “pickleball is the fastest growing sport and everybody's taken to the sport right from ages 16 to 45 and on.
“This is the first PWR100 event in India and I'm thankful to the associations for bringing it to Chennai," he said.
An eccentric mix of tennis-like net, played on a court similar to that of a badminton zone, with paddles from, well, paddles. Versatile enough to cater to participants of multiple age groups, the budding activity has gained massive traction, however, in a belated fashion. But, has opened up an avenue for a sense of community and networking opportunities.
“There is a lot of buzz about pickleball, as it is something that is very affordable. You don't need a huge space; it can be done both indoors and outdoors," Baalu explained.
“Pickleball, unlike tennis or badminton, the chance of injuries are less. The access to it is easier too. We use a plastic ball, and you get hurt easily. And that is one of the reasons why anyone can get into it without much training," he added.
A post shared by RiseUpChampionship (@riseupchampionship)
Lifestyle As A Culture
The presentation of an activity as a lifestyle, when done right, has the propensity to create an ecosystem with a varying degree of sustainability quotient.
“T20 clicked as the shorter format appealed to people, and a lot of people started following it."
“The whole idea about putting together a lifestyle by combining the glitz and glamour to give a festive feel to any sport. Pickleball is our first venture, and we look to take it to a bigger scale," Baalu said.
“Chennai could be termed as the cultural capital, and we have the second-longest beach. People talk about going to Goa or Bangalore in terms of concerts, and we thought Chennai should enter the fray too. And so it is a combination of sport and entertainment," he added.
“Mr Selva was set on making the first of its kind event as exotic as possible and give the audience a lifestyle experience. And as for Chennai, we like to celebrate the coastline of the city and hence we went all out to create a space for the event with the pickleball court by the bay," Veera revealed.
“We wanted to make it a lifestyle experience for everyone who comes in and to enjoy a full day with the families," he continued.
“The synergy of sport and entertainment has been a factor globally and is gaining traction in India as a lifestyle proposition in recent years. IPL changed the game for everyone with film stars buying into it," the actor added.
The event set by the shores served as a window into the confluence of the demonstration of a sport as a lifestyle with a music fest put together right out the exit door. An impressive lineup of locally loved musicians, headlined by ‘Masala Coffee', rendering their symphonic stylings in a mini-concert-like setting, added sheen to the show.
“We identified a lot of bands that have been around, and we were surprised to see how much the crowd loved the local bands," Baalu said.
A post shared by RiseUpChampionship (@riseupchampionship)
Up And Up?
With a couple of players from the Bay set to represent the national tricolour at the World Cup in Miami, stakeholders view the game as one that is on an upward trajectory, given the right type of treatment.
“India's got the infrastructure, the talent and the thirst," Veera asserted.
“It is a lot of time and energy that's got to be spent in the next couple of years, but I feel India has got the talent for every sport in the world. Youngsters are taking more to sports now. India is getting sportified, Tamil Nadu is getting sportified."
“And the way I see it, this is a great time for players, associations and government organisations to get into the sport," he added.
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“Tamil Nadu government has always been very supportive of sports. And the tournament here doesn't require as much support as we created this on a lawn. Hence, these type of tournaments do not necessarily need a lot of government involvement," said Baalu.
“India is big on sport. There's at least one sportsman in every family, so I guess it comes naturally to us. We have gone from hardcore academics to a more balanced lifestyle inculcating sport, so I guess it is just up and up here on out," he signed off.
Source: News18
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