Padel Tennis – Grassroots news from the UK and beyond …

Aside from the court and some balls the only other bit of kit you’ll need to start playing padel is a racquet. (In Spanish padel racquets are known as palas). But as there are dozens of different padel racquet manufacturers out there, each producing a wide range of racquets, it can be hard to know where to begin when selecting one for the first time.

Just like selecting a racquet for tennis its important to think about the different characteristics of the racquets on offer, and to identify one that matches the style and level of experience of the individual player. A couple of the most critical characteristics to take into consideration when selecting a padel racquet are power and control:

POWER This one may seem obvious but the combination of materials used, the weight of the racquet, and the shape of the racquet-head, can have quite an effect on the power that can be generated when a ball is hit. However, if you are a beginner to the sport of padel most coaches would recommend that you concentrate less on the power with which you hit the ball and more on the precision with which you hit it. Accuracy will win you more points than brute force!!

This is why the level of CONTROL that a racquet gives you becomes so important….. Just like a golf club, a padel racquet will have what is known as ‘sweet-spot‘ – the ideal area for connecting will the ball. Generally, the larger the sweetspot the more forgiving the racquet and the more likely it is that the ball will end up going where you want it to go!! In this respect, control is therefore going to be determined by a variety of factors – from the shape of the racquet head (the most common being round or diamond), the type and distribution of the materials used in its construction, and the weight of the racquet itself.

These are just a couple of the things to think about when looking into purchasing a padel racquet and another post will follow shortly looking at other characteristics that are also important (such as the resistance, durability, balance and general playability), as well as providing an overview of the other important physical features that we’ve only briefly mentioned here (such as the weight, shape and materials).