Sawbridgeworth pickleball player and coach Mollie Knaggs wins women’s singles at English Open in Telford
Winning the gold medal in the women’s singles at pickleball’s English Open came as a huge surprise to Sawbridgeworth’s Mollie Knaggs after she came out on top in what was meant to be her bonus event.
Knaggs, 27, is playing a big role in aiding the development of what is a rapidly growing sport as she is the founder of Sawbridgeworth-based Spicy Pickleball Academy, the UK’s first performance academy.
In pickleball, aspects of which resemble tennis and table tennis, two players (singles) or four (doubles) use a smooth-faced paddle to hit a perforated, hollow plastic ball over a 34in (0.86m) high net
Coaching is a real passion of Knaggs and to say she leads by example would be an understatement after she stunned American professional Alexa Schull 11-1, 11-4 in the English Open final at the Telford International Centre.
It has not taken her long to reach the top of pickleball, having taken it up just over a year ago, but even she is shocked by the heights she scaled in Shropshire.
“This is huge. I’ve just beaten an American pro and I’ve only been playing for a year,” said Knaggs.
“Honestly, this is wild to me, I didn’t expect this. I just thought I’d play some singles and see how it goes. I honestly didn’t expect this at all.”
The 2024 English Open is the largest pickleball event taking place outside of North America, with a record number of almost 2,000 players from 42 countries participating.
Pickleball has seen exponential growth in recent years, not least in the UK where more than 30,000 people play the sport, with over 700 places to play around the country being available.
Facing players from the USA, the birthplace of pickleball, may soon become a more regular occurrence for Knaggs as she continues to develop her game.
She said: “I’m about to head out to America at the end of the month to see what it’s like, so I guess I’ll see what happens there.”
Having shone during what was seven days of high-level competition in Telford, Knaggs is now aiming to continue the growth of her Spicy Pickleball Academy.
“Honestly, my biggest joy is coaching other players,” she said. “At the moment, I have about 85 players at Spicy Pickleball, including quite a few youngsters.
“I have a team in the Premier Pickleball League, so it’s going quite well.”
Pickleball England has announced a record number of players competing at this year’s English Open from August 8-14 at the Telford International Centre in the largest pickleball event to take place outside of the USA. Visit pickleballengland.org.
