The U.S. Tennis Association President Dr. Brian Hainline expressed concern over the rapid rise of pickleball, noting its growth has often come at the expense of tennis. He remarked, "When you see an explosion of a sport and it starts potentially eroding into your sport, then, yes, you're concerned. That erosion has come in our infrastructure." His comments illustrate tennis officials' worry about losing court spaces and recognition to the increasingly popular sport.
As participation in pickleball soared by 223% in three years, bringing the total to 13.6 million players, tennis leaders worry this could lead to a competitive imbalance. Hainline acknowledged this shift, emphasizing, "It was a great, organic grassroots movement but it was a little bit of a disappointment to us... that such growth in pickleball is often displacing tennis infrastructure and causing turf conflicts between the two communities."
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