Tennis Channel welcomes Pro Pickleball to its airwaves

The people have spoken, and they want pickleball. The relatively new racquet sport continues to sweep the nation, with pro tournaments packing stands and pickleball courts popping up around the country like daisies.

Last Sunday, Tennis Channel aired its first ever live pickleball tournament, the Orlando Cup, in Orlando, Florida.

“Pickleball’s unprecedented growth in recent years has been on Tennis Channel’s radar for a while,” said John MacDonald, senior vice president, content programming, Tennis Channel. “It’s an exciting sport that we think will greatly appeal to our viewers, 70% of whom play tennis recreationally, with a good number of them playing pickleball as well. We’re pleased to welcome the PPA Tour to our network and look forward to cooperating in the future.”

The tournament featured No. 1 pickleball player Ben Johns, who is the top ranked pickleballer in the world by a significant margin.

“We are thrilled to bring fans the best professional pickleball in the world and set the standard for tournaments and players everywhere,” said Connor Pardoe, commissioner of the PPA. “Our new partnership with Tennis Channel only furthers that goal and ushers our rapidly exploding sport to the forefront of professional racquet and paddle sports.”

Expect to see plenty more pickleball on the network in the future.