The inaugural Baltic Racket Sports Padel Event was held on Friday 17 November at Stratford Padel Club.

You can check out a selection of photos from the event here.

For those of you that don’t know, Padel is a combination of both tennis and squash. It is usually played in doubles on an enclosed court, roughly 25% smaller than a normal tennis court. As in squash, the ball can be played off the glass walls, creating longer and more exciting rallies and some extraordinary shots.

The players gathered at the venue with optimism and excitement – some had played many times before, whereas for others, it was their very first time. We had a sold-out event with 32 participants of all ages and abilities.

The teams consisted of Fulmar, MOL, Baltic Exchange, Howe Robinson, Shell, Unipec, Arrow, Thurlestone, Rigel Shipping and Lightship.

The first rounds were round-robin matches played in four separate groups. Matches were of varying standards but always competitive.

The top team from each group then proceeded into a semi-final. Rigel Shipping beat Howe Rob in one semi-final and were our first finalists. A mixed pairing from Thurlestone and Baltic Exchange then knocked out MOL in the other semi-final.

The final was therefore between Rigel Shipping and a partnership of Baltic/Thurlestone Shipping. After a very tightly contested hard fought match, which saw Rigel Shipping come from behind saving match points at 3-5 down, to win and take the title 6-5. 

The How Rob pairing won the third-place playoff in another closely fought set – the result being decided by only one break of serve. Lots of exciting points with players scrambling all over the court.

The day finished with some networking and drinks at the bar.

We would like to thank Fulmar for sponsoring the first-place prize and MOL for sponsoring the second and third place prizes. We also want to thank all the players who turned up and made this event the success that it was.

We would also like to remind everyone that the Baltic Racket Sports Club has been officially launched, run by Matthew Cannon from MOL. The club is looking to run a few more tennis, padel and table tennis events in the coming months so if this is something you are interested in, please contact him for more details.

Likewise, if you have any ideas of would like to join the committee to run and grow the club, please feel free to contact him directly. You can contact Matthew here.

The committee are looking into a table tennis competition or another padel event in the Spring before the annual Fehr Cup in the summer.