Pickleball has overtaken tennis as the most popular racket sport for the month of July 2023. This is according to data gathered from a team of Apple researchers.

Pickleball has soared in popularity over recent years, with the former tennis players Andre Agassi, John McEnroe, and Maria Sharapova playing the sport on a competitive level.

This recent study was carried out under the Apple Heart and Movement Study in collaboration with Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the conclusion was drawn from the smartwatch data of 250,000 anonymous exercises.

In the study, researchers found that people were taking up pickleball exercises more consistently than tennis exercises and that the former tended to last longer than the latter.

USA Pickleball's chief executive Mike Nealy expressed his delight over the study's findings.

"We are pleased to see pickleball-related findings included in the Apple Heart and Movement Study, in collaboration with Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the American Heart Association. There are numerous benefits for individuals of all ages and backgrounds on the pickleball courts as part of a healthy, social, and active lifestyle.

"As the sport’s national governing body in the United States, it’s increasingly meaningful to see the science behind pickleball using real-world data from Apple Watch. The relatively low-impact, informal, and social nature of pickleball can offer a useful and enjoyable outlet for those looking to increase movement and add to their workouts," he said.

Nevertheless, the study also found that those playing tennis had a higher average peak heart rate and spent more time on average in higher-intensity heart rate zones.

The results also revealed that both sports were favored more by men than women and that those who completed at least ten exercises in pickleball had an average age of 51 while those who did the same in tennis had an average age of 45.