Tennis is still the world's premier racquet sport, but three related disciplines have been growing in popularity over the last few years: pickleball, padel and POP tennis.
All three are played on a smaller court with a shorter racquet and a slower ball, making them accessible to a wide range of participants.
Recognising their recent rapid growth, pickleball, padel and POP tennis have been showcased for the first time at Australian Open 2025.
Pickleball
Played both indoors and outdoors on a badminton-sized hard-court with a perforated, hollow polymer ball and
featuring a simplified scoring system, pickleball is easy to pick up, entertaining to watch and, most importantly, fun to play.
With the inaugural AO Pickleball Slam running from 24-26 January, it marks the first professional pickleball tournament conducted during a Grand Slam event, including a $100,000 prize pool, transforming Court 3 into a hub of high-energy action.
The AO Pickleball Slam will showcase an elite roster of international and domestic talent, including Emilia Schmidt, Australia's highest-ranked female pickleball player, as well as India's Armaan Bhatia and Harsh Mehta , Cyril Peltier and Caroline Dhenin from France and the USA's Zack Taylor.
Schmidt spoke to tennis.com.au about the positive impact Pickleball Slam will have.
"It means the world to me," she said. "I grew up in Australia, playing tennis my entire life. The Australian Open is such a special event for so many reasons. The fact that pickleball is being included in it is amazing. I really appreciate the recognition from Tennis Australia."
Now based on the east coast of the United States, Schmidt explained how a tennis-related injury led to her becoming a professional pickleball player.
"I played tennis at a pretty high level. I played all the junior ITFs. Once I graduated from high school, I took a gap year from university trying to go pro in tennis. Around June of 2023 I got bone stress in my elbow just from overtraining," she said.
"It was actually my friend Andrew Horridge, who I went to school with [who introduced me to pickleball]. He lives in Perth where pickleball is pretty prominent and he asked me to play a tournament there. So, I said, 'sure, why not? I'm injured from tennis.'
"Once I started playing, I fell in love with it and the rest is history."
Schmidt says pickleball is not only easy to pick up but easy on the body, although she notes there is still a fair amount of skill required.
"It's definitely better [than tennis] in terms of injury prevention," she said. "Any person can step on the pickleball court and play. Pickleball is like mini, fun tennis. It definitely requires athleticism but [it's] just not as brutal on the body as tennis."
Within two months of taking up the sport, Schmidt was No.1 in Australia. Now making a full-time salary and travelling to tournaments all over the world, she believes pickleball has wide appeal.
"Anyone can get into the qualifying and make their way to championship Sunday at a Professional Pickleball Association event, whether it's in the United States or here, or anyone can sign up for the National Pickleball League," she said. "There are so many great opportunities that anybody can give it a go."
While pickleball is well suited for social play, the pathway to elite level is gaining momentum. The establishment of the AO Pickleball Slam is cementing Australia as a destination for global touring players.
Schmidt believes Australia is "doing all the right things" for the sport to continue growing domestically on the professional circuit, comparatively faster than the US.
"I think Australia is definitely No.2 in the world in terms of pickleball. We're starting to get that depth. We're starting to have players come over from Asia and start competing," she says.
"We're taking that step pretty early on, compared to the United States. It took the US nearly 10 years to really get professional pickleball going. In Australia it only took us four or five years. Now we have players on a full-time salary, including myself."
Padel
A fusion of tennis and squash, padel is a dynamic racquet sport played on an enclosed court with glass walls, which players can use to strike rebounding shots, adding an extra layer of complexity and excitement.
With a similar scoring system to tennis and primarily a doubles sport, padel emphasises strategy, precision, and teamwork.
Proof of its growing popularity, the number of padel courts, clubs and players is on the rise in Australia and associated development pathways have been established.
The pinnacle in Australia is the Australian Padel Open, which finished in Sydney earlier in January. On a global stage, Premier Padel is the tour for the elite level.
Showcasing top padel players from around the world, the Red Bull Rally Pro was held from January 17-19 at the Red Bull Rally Padel Arena at TOPCOURT in the AO's newest precinct.
British padel stars Aimee Gibson and Catherine Rose claimed the championship, achieving an extraordinary milestone by securing their third consecutive padel title in Australia with a commanding victory over the Australia-Chile pairing of Jessica Brycki and Pascalle Thenoux.
Their hat-trick cements the pair's status as one of the sport's most exciting partnerships, and one that has propelled Gibson into the world top 100, a significant rankings milestone making her the first British woman to reach that level.
Having recently won padel events in Sydney and Melbourne, Rose was ecstatic with the pair's recent success.
"Winning Sydney was unexpected, and we were absolutely buzzing," she said.
"Then in Melbourne, we played freely with nothing to lose and surprised ourselves again. To win here at the Red Bull Rally Pro is the perfect ending to an unbelievable trip."
Having made the swap from tennis to padel only a few years ago, Rose is passionate about the sport, advocating for players of all levels to give it a go.
"Padel is so sociable and beginner friendly," she said. The community is welcoming, and it's easy to pick up. You can have a great game with players of all levels. Just find a local club, start playing, and you'll love it."
POP Tennis
As the oldest complementary discipline of the three (invented in 1898 as paddle tennis), POP Tennis is famous for its presence along Venice Beach, California, although it can be played indoors and outdoors and on a variety of surfaces.
POP Tennis, a relative newcomer in Australia compared to pickleball and padel, offers the same social thrill as tennis and is a light alternative for people looking to get moving.
Although there isn't yet an established pathway, POP Tennis is a popular social game at tennis clubs across the country.
Its ability to be played on multiple surfaces and be set up anywhere, any time, for anyone is driving interest from coaches, clubs and councils around Australia.
Adding exposure to the sport, a POP Tennis court has been featured at the AO 2025's TOPCOURT precinct, located at Birrarung Marr Middle Terrace.