Alshon takes to Twitter, says 'Pickleball has made me a much better athlete than tennis ever did’
CARY, NC – In the middle of all the action at the North Carolina Cup, Christian Alshon tweeted an especially hot take.
Pickleball has made me a much better athlete than Tennis ever did. Faster reaction time and speed are needed since the ball is only coming from 10 feet away. Point for point, pickleball requires more skill than tennis.
— Christian Alshon (@TweenerKing) April 2, 2024
This tweet certainly got people's attention, since pickleball is regularly teased and criticized for being a sport primarily for the elderly.
At the pro level, however, athleticism and skill are always on display. These players even have training programs that rival any pro athlete.
The comment section blew up with opinions from fellow pickleball pros, amateurs, and tennis pro, Nick Kyrgios.
We’ve barely scratched the surface of pickleball’s potential. Imagine if pickleball had more athletes like Federer, Djokovic, and Alcaraz. Then we could compare. Come to pickleball, you might be able to break the top 10 https://t.co/ph6YVVcQ9S
— Christian Alshon (@TweenerKing) April 3, 2024
“If I made that tweet a year ago, no one would’ve cared, nobody important would’ve cared, and now I make it and everybody loses their minds. To me, that says something about where pickleball is at right now and where it’s going. The competition is scary,” said Alshon.
He stands by his tweet that pickleball takes a more challenging skill set compared to tennis.
“It could be a five-hour long debate over which sport is harder, as far as endurance,” shared Alshon. “Just look at me, I’m going through four shirts in one match. I’m drenched in sweat from singles playing for 45 minutes.”
Another former tennis pro turned author added his opinion to this as well: “That might be because you were playing a pretty low level of tennis. Maybe if you were familiar with the athleticism it takes to excel at the sport you would realize how ridiculous this statement is.”
Alshon, couldn't help but respond.
I don’t believe you trained MLB for years before that batting practice. At the end of the day, what makes a sport great is the players who make them great: Michael Jordan, Roger Federer, Connor McGregor, Simone Biles, Messi… pickleball needs more of that https://t.co/yp5oi7b2Bp
— Christian Alshon (@TweenerKing) April 3, 2024
No matter who gets up in arms about this claim, from tennis legends to Alshon’s opponents and teammates on the professional pickleball court, Alshon maintains his stance.
And as far as all the uproar and publicity this tweet is receiving, Alshon said with a smile: “It’s nothing new. I’m used to it.”
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