Hannah Blatt is one of many players on tour with a high-level racket sports background.

While most pros come from tennis, Blatt, played pro squash before pursuing pickleball at the elite level. 

“I started playing squash when I was 12, and by the time I was 15, I was top in Canada. I made the junior Canadian team, and then I played in the Commonwealth Pan Am Games for Team Canada. Then, I went to university and I played pro squash, and after I graduated, I eventually found pickleball,” explained Blatt. “My squash coach actually made fun of me for playing pickleball, which made me feel horrible. But I found some friends who were playing and going pro in a new sport. It felt like an incredible opportunity I couldn’t miss.”

The Winnipeg, MB native went “full force” into the game to make the transition work.

She was fully committed to the experience.

“I took a big risk, but I’m so glad I did,” said Blatt, whose pickleball career even led to  her relationship with fellow UPA pro, Grayson Goldin. 

Admittedly, Blatt found a lot of cross-over between squash and pickleball.

But, it was a tougher transition than she expected.

“Of course the hand-eye coordination came easily going from one racket sport to another, but it was a tough switch. I learned pickleball easily, but there were lots of things I carried from squash that I’m still working on,” confided Blatt. “Mainly, I had to learn not to move and hold my ground at the net. I also had to learn to use more reach in my arms to hit certain shots. It took a couple of months to master the basics.” 

The 26-year-old further expanded on the toughest habits she had to break going from squash to pickleball.

“Squash is very whippy and uses a lot of wrist. In tennis, it’s more of a stroke, so I’m figuring out how to change the way I swing,” mentioned Blatt. “When it comes to my movements, sometimes I get stuck in lunges because that’s a squash thing, so I’m trying to work on my pickleball movement more where I take one more step, instead of taking one big step and lunging. When I do that on the pickleball court, I’m practically doing the splits.”

But given how much Blatt has learned about pickleball, there’s a lot about squash that gives her a natural feel and competitive edge for the game. 

“I really like my one-handed backhand at the net, so whether that’s a flick or catching a backhand overhead with just one hand, I picked up those shots from my squash background,” she said. “And squash gave me an advantage in quick movements.”

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