Matthew Brindle played a starring role in an historic week for pickleball at a record-breaking Skechers English OPEN.
Brindle, 25, who works as a banker, featured in the English Open at the Telford International Centre – the largest pickleball event taking place outside of North America.
With ages from 7 to 70+ competing, the event is reflective of the incredible growth in pickleball over recent years, with a record number of almost 2,000 players from 42 countries participating in a sport which has aspirations of making the Olympic programme.
“I had a taster session at my local club and, me being a tennis player, I thought ‘I’ll maybe not give it a try’, but as the winter months come it rains, you can’t tennis, so I gave it a shot,” said Bolton's Brindle.
Our Battle of the Paddles winners 🏆
— Pickleball England (@PickleballEng) August 8, 2024
Congratulations to team @FranklinSports 🥳#SkechersEnglishOPEN | #EnglishOPEN2024 pic.twitter.com/ibrsr574oh
“I’ve been playing ever since and that was a year ago now. I’m still enjoying it.
“I didn’t think it would take up that well, especially because tennis is quite popular in the UK, but it’s a good sport for everyone, so I can see why it’s growing so much.”
This year’s English OPEN comprised seven days of high-level competition, with the world’s top professionals from America, Europe and Asia taking to the court in singles, doubles, mixed, wheelchair and junior events.
A hybrid of tennis, badminton & table tennis, the sport’s popularity has been attributed to its accessibility. Easy to pick up and fun to play, the sport’s accessibility transcends demographics, providing it with universal appeal.
“I played in the English Open last year with no experience and got a few medals, so I came back having gone up to a higher level,” added Brindle.
“The venue has stayed the same, but there’s a lot more people and because of that they had to drag the schedule out a few more days, so it has been much bigger than last year.”
Pickleball England has announced a record number of players competing at this year’s English OPEN from the 8th-14th August at the Telford International Centre in the largest pickleball event taking place outside of the USA EVER – visit pickleballengland.org
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