A particular racket sport played on asphalt courts has been booming in popularity across the city of Bloomington, Indiana and afar as of late, but it’s not what you might expect.

The sport of pickleball has enjoyed fast-growing popularity and has attracted a large demographic of players, from children to elders as well as players of all levels. One of the most prominent figures in Bloomington’s pickleball community is the Bloomington Pickleball Club’s Chair of the Board, Dave Martin. Martin began his pickleball journey in 2015, and has never looked back. Eventually, more and more people began to discover their passion for pickleball like Martin did, leading to the establishment of the Club.

“You never know who you’re playing with,” he said. “You could be playing with IU professors, business people, doctors, lawyers, it’s so great.”

The great increase in not only members of the club but also pickleball players across Bloomington led to the installation of several new pickleball courts around the city. Some of these courts are repurposed tennis courts, with pickleball courts painted or taped over the lines of the tennis courts. According to Bloomington Sports Service Director Satoshi Kido, there are now overwhelmingly more pickleball courts than tennis courts, which has led to the dismay of some tennis players in Bloomington. 

“We get a lot of pushback from tennis players (when we convert the courts). ‘This is a tennis community,’” Kido said. “They want to keep tennis courts only. I try to find a win-win situation for both parties.”

Despite the seemingly bitter relationship between pickleball and tennis players, Martin says that he has had positive experiences with tennis players, even playing multiple games of both pickleball and tennis with them.

“It was so hard,” Martin said when talking about one of his experiences playing tennis with a tennis player. “I couldn’t keep the ball on the court… I was just awful at it. It was so much fun.”

Although the painted pickleball lines on the tennis courts don’t overlap exactly, it symbolizes how the relationship between pickleball and tennis players might not ever be perfect, it doesn’t stop the players from attempting to form connections together and, of course, play their favorite racket sports in the world. 

“I hope they grow together. I don’t want to see the picture between tennis players against pickleball players,” Kido said. “That’s not what we need in Bloomington. We want to grow together.”