Georgia Macalle certainly wasn’t expecting to pick up a belting black eye on the pickleball court.
But the social media photos tell their own story.
She revealed to Pickleball 52 that the incident was “friendly fire” after her doubles partner mishit a shot and the ball came off the tip of his paddle at a 45-degree angle into her eye.
She’s not the only one, though. This month, the JAMA Ophthalmology journal published a study that indicates that pickleball-related eye injuries have increased at what they call “an alarming rate” over the last four years.
And not everyone is as lucky as Georgia. There have been plenty of serious eye injuries, ranging from retinal detachment to orbital fracture, caused by direct hit by a ball or paddle or simply falling on court.
The journal authors suggest that the pickleball authorities look at establishing standardised guidelines for eye protection, for both casual and professional players.
‘Get used to it’
Surrey Smash have partnered with Blue Cut Glasses in the Premier Pickleball League, and their player Gail Emms is trying out eye protection for the first time after a lifetime in racket sport.
“In badminton, I’ve seen people get hit with a shuttle in the eye and I’ve been hit very close to the eye, I’ve been hit in the face,” she says.
With pickleball, and players standing close to the net, with opponents often aiming for a headshot, she thinks those sort of incidents happen more frequently. She was recently hit in the face by a shot from a female opponent, but fortunately that did little damage – but she says female players in mixed doubles are particularly at risk from hard shots from their male opponents.
“I’m only five foot three and I get quite low on a pickleball court,” she explains, pointing out that a shot that might hit a reasonably tall man in the chest is going to hit her full in the face.
“You realise when you’re playing club matches – some of these guys hit it so hard,” she says. “I got given these glasses and I was just like, I’ve never worn glasses before. I don’t even wear sunglasses when I’m playing outdoors. I felt really funny.
“I would say now to anyone, ‘Get used to it straight away.'”
This is the first in a series of features exploring the issue of eye injuries in pickleball – check back soon for the next instalment.
