Your Questions Answered

When you run a community, one of the first things you will encounter are a series of questions from enthusiastic new players. At times they do catch me off guard as I am often in the zone of 'doing' rather than 'thinking'. I think it is worthwhile to answer them here.

Why do this? Why host games?

The answer is The Origin Story, as published in The Founder's Journal. There is a whole set of reasons and circumstances that led me to this point. You could say my 'Why' is complicated, but then again if it wasn't so, would it be authentic? I am someone who believes that we must make the most of this life as it is the only one we are given.

Are you a coach or a pro player?

This is probably where folks confuse a community with 'coaching programs'. Anyone can run a community - even a 15-year old high-school kid. Coaching work is reserved for the pros for sure. What the Bangalore Pickleball Community does is offer you a platform to play and connect with likeminded players and form your own associations with them. Your skills will definitely develop over time, especially if you battle with and against advanced players. We cannot however promise that you will play the national level games - our games are designed for recreation, movement and stress relief.

Who is this community designed for? Who is the target audience?

For everyone who wants some movement in their daily routine. This community is designed for working professionals and adults who need exercise daily. As a young adult in college, you have more strenuous sports like Cricket, Soccer, Tennis and Hockey to help you build strength and endurance. As we age over the years, it becomes difficult to sustain these sports without suffering injuries on the fly. Pickleball also has its set of injuries but those are more mild and can be handled with the right sports accessories and care.

Why Pickleball? Do you have a background in Tennis?

The simple answer is because Pickleball is a universal sport that serves everyone from the ages of 6 to the ages of 80 and beyond. It is also the easiest game to organise and manage, unlike Cricket, where you need to find an empty ground to play (a huge challenge in Bangalore). Pickleball has now become a lifestyle sport in India, on the lines of how it went in the US.

I don't have a background in Tennis, although I was once gifted a tennis racquet by my friends. I grew up playing Cricket, Badminton, Volleyball and Table Tennis a little later in life. My wristy Badminton techniques, my Volleyball net dominance and my Table Tennis chops and slices have all come to play. Every sport gives you skills that are easily transferable. Cricket helped me ace Baseball and Softball and now Badminton and TT helped me pick up Pickleball. But yes, Tennis players have a major advantage on court because of their ability to drive with strength.

Did you envision starting a Pickleball community while you were in Sydney?

Not really, no. For the most part, I was only looking to get some movement outside the gym, de-stress and connect with new people in Sydney. My pickleball game in Sydney was a lot more untethered, you could say. Something about the Australian protein food that I was consuming - I could jump really high and hit some badminton-style smashes near the net, scaring my older opponents in the process. I wish I could elevate myself now like that but that jet engine seems to have turned off, unfortunately. I would never have seen all of this coming - it was not directly in the works.

Why do you not host games for beginners?

The simple answer is because beginners are not suited for DUPR games. Sure, some of them hurry up and register for tournaments right when they are still learning the basics, and they even get a starting DUPR rating. However, over time, they may find DUPR games to be really hard. They will be under constant pressure to perform without completing their journey of learning.

The second and more complicated answer is because in DUPR-rated games, it is no longer a win-loss formula. You have to win well to elevate your DUPR rating. This is a better way to assess performance indeed, but this places unnecessary pressure on players who are just starting out. I played my first DUPR game in Bangalore after 8-10 months of Pickleball games in Sydney. Bangalore has tons of tournaments every weekend unlike Sydney, so all the players here are now keen to get onto the DUPR Leaderboard. I believe that newbies need to practice for at least 2-4 months before they venture into DUPR land. I restrict newbies who have played less than 50 hours for their sake and for the sake of other players on court. Our DUPR games should work for everyone on court.

Why do you only host DUPR games?

I hosted non-competitive games until April 2025 and then suddenly realised that something was missing. People turned up to play but there was nothing to 'aspire for'. DUPR gave them something to aspire for - a goal to get to a certain level. Most of us working in various industries had sporting dreams that never took off. I would have loved to play women's cricket for my country and bet that I would have been a great player too back in the day. There are so many others who wanted a career in a different sport but never followed through. Pickleball, and DUPR in particular gives us a 'second chance' to redeem ourselves on court. Of course, I think my chances were better in Cricket, but other players today can develop a much stronger skillset on a Pickleball court and accomplish what they couldn't earlier. DUPR Pickleball is the gateway to broken sports dreams.

What are your thoughts on the Pickleball scene in Bangalore and Sydney? How do you compare them?

There wasn't much of a Pickleball scene in Sydney to be honest. We played on indoor Basketball courts and everything was run on a self-serve mechanism. The organisers would unlock the storage room and we would help them organise the nets and the court boundaries. We learned the art of reading between the lines - distinguishing the Basketball lines from the Pickleball ones. There were no 'official' Pickleball courts or venues. The Pickleball scene in Bangalore is hot at the moment. There is so much action every single day. My community runs limited-hour games every day at multiple venues, but there are so many venues, tournament organisers and hosts like myself. If you are a millionaire who doesn't need to head into the office, you may as well play Pickleball all day and hang at different venues all day. Pickleball 'court crawl' is a thing now - many players in Bangalore do it.

Surprising, because Australia is seen as a sporting country?

Definitely, it is. My sports ambitions were fulfilled in Sydney and I am so glad for the experience, even though I would have loved to stay longer there. But the sort of sports that Australians love are very different. They are very strong people and have unbelievable strength, motivation and endurance for sports. I have seen Australian teenagers and 70-year olds excel at sports. It is in their blood. When you are with them, you also get inspired and start taking up physically exhausting activities.

I have walked 35 kms in a single day on one of their most famous beach walks - The Royal Coast Track and it took me 9 hours from start to finish, including the afternoon post-lunch crash nap. I wouldn't have achieved this if it wasn't considered 'normal' to do that walk in a single day. So many Sydneysiders have done that walk multiple times (once was good enough for me).

Their favourite sports are played out in the open on spacious grounds, fresh air and sunlight. Footie, Rugby, Cricket, Tennis, Soccer, Baseball, Softball, Netball, Volleyball and the list goes on. Indoor Pickleball and Basketball come second to all of these sports.

Explains why I was one of the youngest there on the Pickleball scene, not too long ago. The younger adults and kids are out there getting bruised on fields.

Do you think anything needs to change for Pickleball and other sports in India?

I believe that India is now becoming a leader in Pickleball, next only to the US (the pioneers of the game). The country is doing very well in terms of building beautiful new courts all over. I see that the future for Pickleball is very bright in India.

In general though, I believe we have a challenge here when it comes to growing other sports. Space is a constraint as most grounds are filled with many players all competing for space. 'Box Cricket' that was born when I was away in Sydney is now a thing and I find it fascinating, but a far cry from playing real Cricket on a sizeable ground. Starting sports like Baseball and Softball seem out of the question right now, but I hope this will change with the upcoming generations of young Indians.

Secondly, nutrition is a big concern. A lot of Indians are meat-averse and thus find it difficult to match up to their physically stronger International opponents. The quality of protein we consume does impact our performance on the field/court - I speak from my experience and that of my meat-loving mates in Sydney. Supplements can only take you so far. We may have to choose between eating quality food and gaining a little weight to dieting and being out of steam too soon. There is certainly a shift happening in the country with fitness becoming a prime past-time of many Indians now, but we have some way to go before we completely outperform foreign athletes in all sports. Why Bangalore? Are you from this city?

Bangalore is where I first flourished as a corporate professional. I was born and brought up in Mangalore, not too far from here, but decided to make Bangalore my home in 2006. I have a lot of bittersweet memories in this city. I have worked for 8 corporate organisations in this city and have met so many people prior to starting BPC. I thought my Bangalore chapter ended when I left for Sydney - looks like my second chapter here has just begun.