Sharapova and Graf join Pickleball Slam 2 in a move that disappoints tennis fans: "Lost the two greatest women of our sport to pickleball"

Former world number ones Russia’s Maria Sharapova and Germany’s Stephanie Graf have joined The Pickleball Slam.

The tournament started last year and gathered immense success as the likes of Andre Aggasi participated in it.

This year, the tournament is set to return with its second edition where Aggasi will be joined by Sharapova, his wife Graf and the former world number one America’s John McEnroe.

The four will clash in a mixed doubles event where Aggasi and Graf will go up against McEnroe and Sharapova. The prize money for the competition is a whopping $1 million.

The move by the five-time Grand Slam winner Sharapova and Graf did not please some fans on social media.

One of the fans also highlighted that it was disappointing to see the likes of Graf not getting involved in tennis but instead opting to join an event like pickleball.

Graf remains one of the most successful players in the history of women’s singles tennis after winning 22 Grand Slams in her career, including four Australian Open, six French Open, seven Wimbledon and five US Open titles.