Speaking to SportMonitor during the grand opening, the Director of 10by20 Botswana, Ali Mahomed, said the aim is to showcase the country's sporting prowess beyond traditional disciplines like athletics, football and swimming. He also said the emergence of talented Padel players from Botswana highlights the nation's potential in the sport. Mahomed said by nurturing these talents, Botswana can produce players capable of competing on a global scale. “We want to grow with the sport, soon it will be an Olympic sport. This facility will assist to grow the sport and we already have local coaches that we took to South Africa a month ago to compete there, they won in the lower bracket and lost in the upper bracket final. But it shows the level that our players are getting to. We are transforming players who used to play tennis or still play tennis to join Padel,” he said.
The difference between padel and tennis is that in padel, the rule is that the surrounding walls, including the back and the side wall can be used, unlike in tennis, where the ball must stay within the markings of the court. Mahomed said padel in growing in Botswana because it is a social sport like golf, people are together, play together, network and there is no need to play with friends. He explained that they have a platform where people book spaces to play and end up playing someone they did not know. “We decided to open the Avani centre because First Capital Bank Sports Village was always fully booked and we had waiting list of up to four weeks. We realised that two courts were not enough; we wanted to give more people a chance to play. Anybody is allowed to come and play, there is no membership, you come, you pay and you play. We have discounted rates for students and cheaper rates for during the day slot and we also have peak time slots. We are trying to make it accessible to everyone,” Mahomed said. He said they rent out rackets to players who do not have it and it is free for first time players. They also have coaches for beginners. Mahomed said the plan is to open another venue in Francistown.
Meanwhile, a Motswana based in Germany, Kaone Mabina said she discovered padel in Germany and started playing it. “I used to play tennis, in Germany we could compete even if you a senior citizen like myself at 40 years. Padel is the fastest growing sport in the world. So one day I saw two girls being coached. What were more interesting were the techniques used, such as volleying. Even in tennis I used to enjoy that. I started padel four years ago and right now I am a certified padel coach. I have even travelled to a training camp in Málaga, Spain. When I came to Botswana last year, I was excited that they have a padel court in Gaborone,” she said. Mabina said in Germany she is a professional player in the padel tennis Bundesliga second division league. She said in Botswana she has been coaching and the sport has really grown and her dream is to develop players.
