A Sunshine Coast former tennis pro who teamed up with a young Roger Federer in two Grand Slams is now turning heads in pickleball.
Andrew Kratzmann, 54, was selected in the Australian squad for the Pickleball World Cup at Da Nang in Vietnam.
The Nambour local is set to compete in doubles in the senior 50+ division, from Thursday.
Fellow Sunshine Coast residents Graeme Clemett and Karen Denman were also included in the national squad, in the senior 60+ division.
Kratzmann started playing pickleball just 18 months ago and has proved to be a natural, earning several titles with his regular doubles partner Daret Gooch, of Brisbane.
He was a top tennis player, particularly in doubles, during the 1990s and 2000s, and said some of his skills transferred to pickleball.
“Hands and anticipation, mostly,” he said.
“Pickleball is a hands battle at about 3m: that’s a doubles player’s world. Volleys, reading your opponent’s body shape, knowing which ball to take out of the air and which to let go: all of that comes straight across.
“(But) what doesn’t come across is the swing. Tennis players hit too hard and have a big a backswing.
“The soft game – the dinks and the resets – is where tennis players get exposed and it’s the last thing they learn. I’ve had to unlearn about 30 years of habits.”
Kratzmann, who hails from Murgon but moved to the Sunshine Coast almost 20 years ago, reached a final with Wayne Black at the Australian Open in 2000 and played alongside a young Roger Federer at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2000, reaching the quarter finals in the former.
He reflected on his time with Swiss star, who was at 18 at the time.
“What stood out the most was that he kept trying and didn’t give up, especially in that first match together (when down two sets to one),” he said.
“Roger worked hard and chased down every ball.
“From the very beginning he was a determined player, and obviously he grew into that to become and achieve what he did.
“His singles career then took off, so he didn’t really play much doubles after that, apart from with his fellow countrymen.”
Kratzmann, who has also represented Australia in masters cricket, was optimistic of a strong showing with his 50+ team in Vietnam.
“We won’t be favourites, but I don’t think anyone will enjoy playing us and we are, of course, aiming for gold.”
The Australian pickleball squad consists of three men and women per division (in open, 50+, 60+, 18-and-under and 14-and-under) and a coach. The 50+ team will play doubles and mixed doubles, and singles if the games are tied.
Kratzmann expected the Australian squad to be in the thick of the action and said fellow Sunshine Coasters Clemett and Denman were “excellent players” who are “well worthy of their selection” in the team.
Pickleball is one of the most increasingly popular sports in Australia, and Kratzmann outlined why.
“You can be competitive quickly, and the court’s small enough that you’re talking to the player at the other end the whole game, which creates social connection,” he said.
“The sport doesn’t care how old you are or how fit you are when you walk on to the court.
“It’s easy to learn and get success, and the layers of strategy are deep for mastering the game.
“The sport allows people to connect and thrive and most importantly have fun. There are new communities being built around this sport.”
Help us deliver more news by registering for our FREE daily news feed. All it requires is your email at the bottom of this article.
He and his wife Louise created a hub for players: The Pickleball Hive, on the Sunshine Coast.
“When we started three years ago it was generally older adults coming to play but now we have players of all ages, including those in their 20s, joining in,” he said.
The Pickleball Hive is one of two brands under Hive Sports Co, alongside The Tennis Hive, which has run junior tennis at Matthew Flinders Anglican College in Buderim since 2007.
The Pickleball Hive started at the same Buderim courts in October 2023, initially on taped temporary lines, and became a permanent fixture when the courts were resurfaced with pickleball lines in mid-2024.
It now has about 350 regular players and offers sessions for all levels, social play, leagues, coaching and team building.
“The Hive started as a handful of people on a couple of courts and it’s grown faster than anything we’ve been involved in,” he said.
“What we’re pushing hardest for now is a dedicated indoor pickleball facility on the Coast. The demand is there, the courts aren’t.
“The big one for us is working with local tennis clubs.
“We’ve come out of tennis ourselves, so we understand the concerns, but we know how to integrate the two sports so they support each other, rather than compete for space.
“There are tennis courts all over this region sitting empty for large parts of the week, and pickleball fills those hours, brings new people through the gate and gets them into the club.
“We’d like to help clubs do that and do it properly… grow the sport and grow their community at the same time.”
Kratzmann said pickleball had plenty of potential in Australia.
“I think we’re still at the beginning. The next step is indoor courts and proper facilities because, at the moment, demand is well ahead of the courts available,” he said.
