Padel is often described as a combination of tennis and squash. The court is one-third the size of a tennis court, but is enclosed with a wire mesh on the sides and glass walls at either end, which one can play off when the need arises.
A match is normally a best-of-three sets using balls that are similar to those used in tennis. The scoring too is the same as that in tennis, and most of the rules governing the sport are similar to those followed in tennis.
Padel is always played in pairs and players can use the walls surrounding the court to return the ball, which makes the game more exciting and tactical. The main reason for its surge in popularity is that players of any level/ability can pick it up and the format lends itself perfectly for a social game.
In Spain padel has overtaken tennis with approximately 2.5 million regular players and in Argentina there are over 4 million padel players. There are 27 countries now that have internationally recognized federations, including the UAE.