Ivan Lendl may have left professional tennis decades ago, but his competitive streak has not disappeared. The eight-time Grand Slam champion now channels that intensity into pickleball, training regularly and competing against some of the strongest players in his age group. What began as a sport he dismissed has become a serious pursuit built around improvement, competition and friendship.
Key Takeaways
Former tennis champion Ivan Lendl has found a new passion in pickleball, achieving significant success at the U.S. Open through dedicated training and a renewed competitive spirit.
- Ivan Lendl, an eight-time Grand Slam tennis champion, has become a highly accomplished amateur pickleball player, winning multiple gold medals at the U.S. Open in his age group.
- Lendl’s transition to pickleball was initially hesitant but quickly turned into an obsession driven by the enjoyment of improvement and competition, mirroring his tennis career.
- Despite past injuries, Lendl maintains a rigorous training regimen for pickleball, focusing on agility, movement, and strategic play with a dedicated team.
Competition returns
Lendl started playing pickleball four years ago after encouragement from his daughter Isabelle. Despite initially thinking, “this is stupid,” his attitude quickly changed: “I played a few times and I got hooked”. Now splitting his time between Cornwall, Connecticut, and Vero Beach, Florida, Lendl competes at the highest amateur level in the 65-69 age group. His DUPR rating stands at 5.281, and he occasionally enters professional divisions.
Earlier this year, Lendl won two men’s doubles gold medals at the U.S. Open in Naples, plus gold and silver in mixed doubles. He also competes alongside Mikael Pernfors, whom he defeated in the 1986 French Open final. “The enjoyment of getting better is what really drives me,” Lendl said. He trains five days a week with former Division I player Scott Trevethan, who says Lendl “still has a world class forehand” and elite anticipation and timing.
Training stays serious
Pickleball brings different physical demands for Lendl, who retired from tennis in 1994 because of a degenerative spinal condition and later had both hips replaced. He now works on his movement daily with agility drills, short sprints, squats and lunges.
Former professional squash player Shona Kerr regularly trains and plays mixed doubles with him. She values his intensity and their shared focus on improving their game.
Kerr and Trevethan have tried to recruit Lendl to Austin Ignite, but he prefers limited travel and staying close to his family and dogs. Tennis may feel like another lifetime, yet pickleball gives him something familiar to pursue: improvement and victory..