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EASTBOPURNE, UK: Barbora Krejcikova faces a race to prove her fitness in time to defend the Wimbledon title after the Czech pulled out of the Eastbourne Open with a thigh injury on Thursday.

Krejcikova was due to face France’s Varvara Gracheva in the quarter-finals at Devonshire Park, but announced her withdrawal just hours before the match.

The world number 17 suffered the problem on Wednesday during her second-round victory over Britain’s Jodie Burrage.

The injury worsened overnight and, with her Wimbledon first-round tie scheduled for Tuesday, the 29-year-old opted not to risk aggravating it.

Krejcikova is awaiting the outcome of a scan before deciding if she will be fit to chase a second successive title at the All England Club.

“I’m very sorry to have to withdraw from my quarter-final today in Eastbourne as I’m having some soreness in my right thigh,” Krejcikova said.

“Overnight it just didn’t get any better, it actually got worse. I think it’s better with Wimbledon in the next couple of days just to rest it and to see what’s going on and to resolve that.”

Krejcikova has endured a difficult time since defeating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the women’s singles final at Wimbledon last year.

She lost in the second round of the recent French Open and also missed January’s Australian Open with a back injury, which kept her sidelined until May.

Krejcikova made a poor start to the grass-court season with a shock loss against Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova in the first round at Queen’s Club earlier this month.

The two-time Grand Slam champion had to save two match points before beating Britain’s Harriet Dart in the Eastbourne first round.

The second seed saved three more match points against Burrage.

MADRID: Playtomic, the world’s largest community of racquet sport players and clubs, and PwC’s Business Strategy Consulting arm, Strategy&, have released the Playtomic 2025 Global Padel Report, widely referred to as the “Bible of Padel.”

The report offers the most comprehensive look at the continued international rise and impact of padel, the world’s fastest-growing sport.

In 2024 alone, 3,282 new clubs opened worldwide, averaging nearly nine new clubs per day (a 22% increase from 2023), and 7,187 new courts were built pushing the global total past 50,000.

This 26% year-over-year growth in clubs and 17% growth in courts reflects a sport that is not only scaling rapidly but maturing sustainably and entering mainstream society.

The sport’s growth is not expected to slow down anytime soon either as more than 81,000 padel courts are expected to be built by 2027.

Playtomic Co-Founder and CCO Pablo Carro said: “With a new court opening every two and a half hours worldwide, padel has finally joined the top table of the world’s sporting elite.”

Key Findings from the 2025 Report

Global Growth Surge: Padel is now established in over 90 countries, with high-growth markets including Portugal, the Netherlands, U.S., UK, UAE, Mexico, India and Indonesia.

Tech-Driven Success: Padel clubs using digital tools like Playtomic’s platform are outperforming competitors by 3-5x, showing how data and smart booking are supercharging padel’s global ecosystem.

The “Sticky Sport”: Once people try padel, they’re hooked. With a 92% return rate, padel boasts an incredibly high return rate after just one session, driven by its accessibility, social nature and addictive gameplay.

Pickleball Parallels: While often compared, the two sports are increasingly coexisting with 30% of U.S. pickleball venues now offering padel courts - a significant shift from 12 months ago.

Olympic Ambitions: With backing from the International Padel Federation (FIP), 2025 is a pivotal year for padel’s push toward inclusion in the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games.

Playtomic Managing Director Antonio Robert Aragones said: “Padel isn’t just gaining popularity, it’s driving a global movement. This report doesn’t just reflect the sport’s growth; it helps guide it. Positioned at the heart of padel’s global ecosystem, we offer an unmatched perspective through our data, technology and deep connection to the community.”

PwC’s Head of the Global Padel Report, Elena Martin mentioned: “We are delighted to see that the sector has returned to a path of organic and sustainable growth, following the post-COVID activity surge and the adjustments made in 2023. With over 50,000 leads currently, development remains strong, particularly in key markets such as France and the United Kingdom. Our projections suggest that this growth momentum will continue in the years ahead.”