Category: Padel | Page 12

My International Padel Experience in Rotterdam

Last updated: September 08, 2018Leave a Comment

Myself and Ole Muller, winners of Men’s B Category

During the past weekend I’ve had the chance to take part and play in the International Padel Experience tournament in Rotterdam.

Together with my partner Ole, I was really looking forward to my first experience playing and competing outside of Spain. Padel is the second most popular sport in Spain but it’s still in its early stages throughout the rest of Europe. I was therefore curious to see how the sport is picking up in the Netherlands.

We played at Padel club Victoria. They have 3 very nice padel courts and many players who converted to padel after playing other racket sports such as tennis and squash. It was very nice to chat with players from several countries and talk about their padel experience. I think in the coming years we will be seeing the definite explosion of this sport throughout Europe and many more new players.

Let’s get back to the IPE Rotterdam tournament, it was well organised. All the matches we had scheduled started on time and there was a very nice atmosphere at the club. Free beer was provided by sponsors Estrella Damm, although to be honest I would have preferred to have free water or at least a water fountain. We were lucky with the weather as it was hot and sunny during the whole three days, so it was very important to stay well hydrated while playing.

The tournament had four categories, Men A and B, Women, and Mixed. We took part in Men B, guided by the padel level guide available on the International Padel website. In reality we encountered players between levels 2 and 3.5 in this category, so there was quite a wide range. This led to some very easy matches against players who only started playing very recently. The final however was really hard and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We only managed to win at the very last moment after a super tense tie break that decided the match. After chatting with Luis from International Padel, I learned that every tournament is a bit different with regards to the players’ levels. For example, since padel is more established in countries like Spain and Portugal, the level is considerably higher. Luis therefore recommended that we stick to category B for our next tournament in Lisbon, Portugal.

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How to Keep Score in Padel

Last updated: January 23, 2019Leave a Comment

So you’ve started to play padel but you’re not yet sure how to keep score? Here’s a handy guide to solve your doubts.

Match > Set > Game

Each padel match is made up of two to three sets. To win a set, you must win at least six games.

The games are scored starting at “love” (or zero) and go up to 40, but that’s actually just four points. From love, the first point is 15, then 30, then 40, then game point, which wins the game. If each pair has equally won three points (40-40), that’s called a “deuce”, which is, essentially, a tie. In that case, the following point won will be called “advantage” and if the same pair wins the next point they have won the game. If the point is lost the score will return to “deuce”. And so on until one side has won the two consecutive points which are needed to convert into a game.

The first pair to win 6 games, always with a minimum advantage of 2 clear games, will convert into a set. In the case of a tie (draw) at 5 games, the players will have to play two more games, to win by two games, for example, 7-5. However, if there is a tie at 6 games a “tie-break” independent point system will be implemented.

During a tie-break, the point system is numeric. The first side to reach 7 points, with a 2-point clearance needed at 5-5 and so on to win the “tie-break” and convert the set. A set ending in a tie-break decision will be won by 7-6.

The first player to serve in the tiebreak is according to the order of serve followed in the set. For the first point of the tiebreak, this player will only serve one point from the right side of the court. The players of the opposing team (respecting the previous order of service) will then serve the following two points with their first point being from the left side of the court. After this, the players will serve two consecutive points always serving from the left side of the court, until the end of “the tie-break” always respecting the aforementioned order of service.

A “tie-break” set will be won by 7-6.

The player of the pair that did not begin serving in the “tie-break” will start serving in the next set.

Note: in some amateur tournaments, to make sure matches don’t take too long, the advantage system is eliminated, so upon tying at a deuce, the next pair to make a point will win the game.

Determining Who Serves First

To determine who serves first, the umpire flips a coin. Whoever wins the toss gets to decide one of four things: that they want to serve first, that they want to receive first, which side of the court they want to start on (in which case, the opponent chooses who serves first), or that they want to leave the choice up to their opponent.

Whoever starts serving continues to serve until that game is over. Then the opposing couple will serve. Both couples have the right to choose which player from their couple serves first. Once that decision is taken, the serve order has to be maintained throughout that set.

The first serve is always from the right-hand side. It must be hit diagonally across the net and bounce within the lines that limit the receiver’s box. The return of serve is played and the ball is in play until one side wins the point. The following service is taken from the left and served diagonally to the right and so on alternatively.

Keeping Score

In competitive matches, the umpire is responsible for keeping score. Typically the score is also shown on an electronic scoreboard.

During non-competitive padel matches, the player serving is responsible for keeping score and shouting out the current score before every serve. When announcing your score, start with your score first, then your opponent’s. So if you have zero and your opponent has 30, say “love-30.” In the case of a deuce, if the server gains the advantage he can announce “advantage server” and if the receiver gains the advantage he can instead announce “advantage returner”.

Before the first serve in each new game, whoever is serving announces the score in sets. Say your score first, then your opponent’s. So if you won the first set, you would say “1-0.”

Of course, the rest of the players should also try to keep abreast with the score, as mistakes can be made. We’re all human after all.

I’ve played in matches where the server forgot to shout out the score before serving, resulting in wildly different opinions on what the score actually was. This can lead to arguments and time wastage, so it’s better to just shout out the score before serving to make sure everyone is in agreement and aware of the score.

Alternative Configurations for Amateur Tournaments

During amateur competitions, the organizers might also decide to assign a specific time frame for each match, typically 20 or 30 minutes. At the end of the time frame, the match is ended at the current score. The time-frame method is useful when the organizers want to make sure that everyone enjoys the same amount of play time, and thus avoid potential complaints from people whose matches were too short and hence feel that they didn’t get their money’s worth.

Another option you might encounter is to play up to a specific number of games. For example, the winning couple can be the first to win 4 games. This is ideal when the organizer wants to keep matches relatively short. The same benefit can be achieved with the time limit mentioned earlier, and I consider that to be the better option. The only advantage of this option is that mismatched couples can finish a match quickly and move on to a more balanced match. However, ideally, the organizer would have taken care of the mismatching problem beforehand.

Using Apps

One handy tool for keeping score in padel matches is to use an app on your smartwatch. I use the Tennis app on the Fitbit Versa, and there is also a Tennis scorekeeping app for the Apple Watch. In this way if you remember to mark each point you will have no doubts about the score at any point, and it also helps you keep the score in mind when preparing the next serve or return, which is a very important part of the mental game in padel.

Questions?

I hope this basic guide to scoring in padel was helpful. If you have any doubts or questions please leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to give you a definite answer.

How to Find Out Your Padel Skill Level

Last updated: September 11, 20224 Comments

Myself with padel legend Miguel Lamperti. Definitely a few skill levels ahead of me!

When playing in matches and tournaments you will be asked what padel skill level you have. You have to be honest with yourself and make your best judgment. Putting yourself in a lower level means playing with slower players and you will not enjoy yourself. On the other hand, placing yourself in a group of higher skilled players means that you will be a nuisance to other players and potentially ruin a match for another three players.

Here’s a handy padel skill level qualification PDF that explains the padel skill levels. Apart from being useful for joining tournaments and matches, it is also useful to keep these levels in mind when setting targets for yourself. You can, for example, set a target to try and advance one level every 6 months, and you will know exactly when you get there based on the information provided in this PDF.

Note that the PDF is in Spanish, so use Google Translate to change it to your language if necessary. If there is enough demand for it, I can translate it to English, just leave a comment below if you need that.

If you prefer something interactive, there’s a form you can fill in here and it will give you the level as a result.

The British Padel Ratings System (BPRS) has been designed to provide a standardised reference for all aspects of amateur and professional play. A variety of systems in the marketplace today, adopted by padel clubs, all encourage their users/members to arrange games – In order to avoid an array of standards it is encouraged that all systems throughout the UK utilise the same numeric-scale, categorising all players accordingly as shown below. This same system is also currently the most commonly used numeric-scale in Spain (1.00 to 7.00).

Another useful level guide is this one provided by the Guia Padel book, which is probably the best book about padel there is at the moment. Again, it’s in Spanish. I found it even easier than the other guide, and qualified myself as 3.5-4. There’s definitely a lot of progress to be made, but that’s part of the attraction of this sport!

Best Padel Clubs & Courts in Barcelona

Last updated: April 05, 20246 Comments

Do you want to play padel but have no idea where the best courts and clubs are? This is exactly why I have prepared this article. It will give you several options all over Barcelona, be it in the city center or the surrounding towns.

You might also want to check out my post about tennis courts in Barcelona.

Barcelona Center

Here you’ll find the name of the padel sports center and the area (click here for a PDF showing all the barrios in Barcelona) they are in.

Putxet Sport – San Gervasi

Putxet Sport is a comprehensive fitness club that offers 2 recently built padel courts plus personal and group tuition. This is where I currently train and play most of the time.

Indoor Padel – Sant Marti

The only indoor padel courts in the center of Barcelona. Group and individual training are available at economical prices. I train here regularly.

Artós Sports Club – Sarrià

They offer private coaching as well as group lessons. Padel courts can be reserved online.

MB Padel – Zona Franca

A very nice outdoor padel club, they have daily matches via Whatsapp, and the courts are well maintained. I pretty much play here every Sunday with the Barcelona Padel Meetup group.

Valldaura Sport – Nou Barris

Three padel courts await you at Valldaura Sport.

Centro Municipal de Tenis Vall d’Hebrón – Vall d’Hebrón

This club hosted the tennis finals at the Barcelona olympics in 1992. There are 6 padel courts.

Club Natación de Barcelona – Barceloneta

Play padel on the beach (or almost) at Club Natacion de Barcelona.

Club Natacio Catalunya – La Salut

Three padel courts.

Club Tennis de la Salut – La Salut

Ten padel courts.

CEM Espanya Industrial – Sants

This club is located near Sants station and has two padel courts (brick walls) that are quite cheap.

Fairplay Pádel Club – Les Corts

A very good club that also organises regular tournaments. There are 8 padel courts and a nice chillout area.

Club Esportiu Laietà – Les Corts

Eleven padel courts.

Pádel Blau – Sarrià

Four padel courts with a blue surface, which is where the name comes from. Economical prices. You can use their app or online booking system to find matches to join.

Ciutat Esportiva Vall d’Hebrón – Vall d’Hebrón

Two good padel courts and a Whatsapp group to register to matches during the whole week.

Pádel Barcelona El Prat – El Prat

There are 14 padel courts at this big club. What I love is that if you pay 39 euro per month you can play as much as you want in the mornings with no fee per session.

David Lloyd Barcelona – Les Corts

This is a really nice club with top facilities all over. You can check out their tournaments on the Facebook page.

Bonasport – San Gervasi

Bonasport has 8 padel courts, although they’re quite old and have stone walls rather than glass

Sant Just Desvern

Sant Just Padel Club

A very modern club with 15 courts.

Llobregat

Star’s Padel

This is where world champion Fernando Belasteguin trains, so I don’t need to tell you that the facilities are top notch. There are 14 padel courts.

Village Padel Club

Village Padel club has 8 high quality padel courts. They organize regular tournaments and have their own leagues. Check out their Facebook page for the latest news.

Padel Indoor L’Hospitalet

Six indoor padel courts.

Castelldefels

Club de Tennis Andrew Gimeno

They organize internal leagues and have 11 padel courts. They also have loads of tennis courts and a pool and gym.

Viladecans

Red Indoor

Seven professional high quality indoor tennis courts.

Gavá

Padelarium Gavà

An indoor padel club.

Padel Indoor Gavà

Eight indoor padel courts.

Sant Joan Despi

CT El Moli

Two padel courts.

Tennis Sant Joan Despi

Nine courts.

Teià

Club Tennis Barcelona Teià

This club has 6 padel courts.

Badalona

Padel Indoor Badalona

Six indoor padel courts.

Terrassa

Terrassa Club Padel

Ten indoor padel courts, including 1 beach tennis court.

Montgat

Padel Montgat

A very nice club that is situated close to the sea, there are 4 padel courts.

Premià de Dalt

Club de Tenis de Premià de Dalt

This club is located around 20km away from Barcelona. There are 4 padel courts and private classes with Guillermo Casal, a WPT player.

Vilassar de Dalt

Vila Sport Club

A new club that is still under construction.

Vilanova del Valles

Vilanova Indoor Padel

6 indoor padel courts.

Vilanova i la Geltrú

Club Padel Vilanova

8 padel courts.

Have I missed out on any other padel courts/clubs? Let me know and I’ll add them.

An Introduction to Padel (aka Paddle)

Last updated: March 20, 202323 Comments

Meet my favorite sport: Padel (or Paddle, as it is sometimes referred to in the English-speaking community).

My Padel Story

Until 2015, I’d been a football (soccer) fan all my life and I used to enjoy practicing this sport on a weekly basis with my friends back in Malta. It was my favorite sport by far. However, once I started playing padel it immediately replaced football’s place in my life. I became thoroughly addicted to this sport and many years later I still can’t get enough of it.

Before trying padel, I’d played a few racket sports sporadically, mostly tennis and table tennis, and I enjoyed both of them.

In 2015, while holidaying in Seville, I saw some people playing padel and I was captivated. I made a promise to myself to try out this strange sport whenever I had the chance. I had no idea what it was called back then.

I later learned that it was called padel and that it is very popular all around Spain. One of the first things I did upon my arrival in Barcelona was to attend a padel meetup. Thus I fulfilled my earlier promise. I was hooked from the very first match I played. Soon enough I was trying out different rackets and reading all the material I could get my hands onto.

Padel is a very social sport, here’s a photo with some friends from the Barcelona meetup.

I took the sport very seriously and continue to enjoy watching and playing it. You can read about my full padel journey here.

So What is Padel?

Padel is a very social sport. It is always played in doubles format, unlike tennis where the main focus is on the singles matches. It is also very easy to learn compared to tennis, so you don’t even need lessons to start playing with your friends. This is especially true if you have played other racket sports in the past. Here in Barcelona, one can find various tournaments called Americanas which mean that everyone plays against everyone, changing partners for every match. As you can imagine you can get to know a lot of people during such tournaments. They’re the perfect place for expats to make new friends especially if you want to make some local friends.

The sport is essentially a combination of tennis and squash and is great for players of all ages and skills. The court is one-third the size of a tennis court and is enclosed with wire mesh and glass walls which you can play off when you need to. Rules are a mixture of squash and tennis, and use the same scoring system as tennis. Compared to tennis it is less focused on strength and more on tactics and psychology.

Padel in its current form was invented by Mexican millionaire Enrique Corcuera in the 1960s, although we can trace back its origins to 1890 when it was played by British sailors in the lower levels of their navy ships. The first padel courts in Spain were built in 1974, in Marbella. Spain counts with nearly 10,000 padel courts (about the same number as Argentina where the game was developed earlier), approximately 4 million regular players, and the number of registered players is continuously increasing. Sales of paddle rackets in Spain are nearly four times that of tennis rackets.

Padel is very popular in Spain and Argentina as it’s been played in these countries for decades, however, many other countries are experiencing a padel boom and are catching up. We might in fact be entering the golden age of Padel as it is currently the fastest-growing racket sport in the world.

With Spain being a very popular tourist destination, many tourists are getting introduced to Padel there and then taking their new-found hobby back to their countries. This is currently one of the main drivers behind Padel’s growth in Europe. World Padel Tour and Premier Padel, the biggest worldwide competitions, also help create interest outside of Spain.

Building padel courts is also a great investment opportunity since courts are smaller than tennis and the rental is paid by four people, therefore maximizing revenues. It is, therefore, more feasible to build padel courts versus tennis courts, especially in densely populated areas where the cost of land is very high.

Essential Padel Equipment

If you’re interested in trying padel, you’ll need the following equipment:

Padel racket: Padel rackets are solid, perforated, and stringless. They are usually made of composite materials, such as carbon fiber or fiberglass, and are lighter than tennis rackets. When choosing a padel racket, consider factors such as weight, balance, and shape to find the one that best suits your playing style and skill level.
Padel balls: Padel balls are similar to tennis balls but with slightly less pressure. Make sure to purchase balls specifically designed for padel, as using tennis balls can affect the gameplay and damage your racket.
Court shoes: Proper footwear is crucial for playing padel, as it provides the necessary grip and support for the quick movements and changes of direction typical of the sport. Look for court shoes with padel-specific soles, good cushioning, and lateral support.
Comfortable sportswear: Wear comfortable, breathable sportswear that allows for freedom of movement during the game. Padel-specific clothing is available, but any sportswear suitable for tennis or other racket sports will work just as well.

My racket

Watching Padel

At a professional level, both men’s and women’s matches are very exciting to watch. However, I’d say the women’s matches are better if you are watching to learn new techniques.

The men’s matches are more exciting as the points tend to be longer and crowd-pleasers such as smashes and out-of-court play are more common. However, since they are played at breakneck speed it’s hard to follow the particular movements of the players and hence harder to learn from. Of course you can always grab a recording and play it in slow motion to learn how your favorite player hits the ball. It’s just very hard to do so when you’re watching live games.

Padel tournaments are not only for the pros. Any padel player can also join amateur tournaments that are held in many cities in Spain. We are now seeing international amateur padel tournaments start to take place, as it’s becoming a profitable niche in the sports tourism sector.

If you’re in Barcelona you can join our Barcelona padel community on Facebook.

Have you ever played padel or seen it being played? I’d love to hear from padel players from all around the world!