Now Reading: India can cause damage at Pickleball World Cup, says Anish Froilan
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India can cause damage at Pickleball World Cup, says Anish Froilan
The Story in Brief
The Story in Brief
Anish Froilan and Aman Patel will represent India at the 2026 Pickleball World Cup, and both believe the team is competitive. Froilan, who plays in the Open category, told Times Now the squad has a balanced lineup and can 'cause some damage' after players have beaten top international talent. Patel, a former ITF tennis player, said India's biggest challenge is consistent exposure to higher-level opposition but added that the gap with leading nations is narrowing.
He has been training for singles to balance a doubles-heavy team. Both players credited the Indian Pickleball Association's selection camps for raising standards. Froilan said rising investment has improved infrastructure and drawn athletes from other sports. The World Cup, where India is not among the favourites, will test whether the sport can break into the mainstream.
The Indian Opinion
The 'rise of pickleball in India' story risks becoming a self-congratulatory loop: every player calls the sport 'rapidly growing' and every camp a 'balanced squad.' No one names the gap in prize money, rankings, or global broadcast time that separates India from the US or Taiwan. The World Cup will answer one question: can India beat a top-ten nation in a knockout match? Until then, cheers without data are just noise.
Sources (2): timesnownews.com, timesnownews.com (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above. Methodology and corrections.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
Ashin Xavier: interesting
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