Humans of Padel
Join your host Max Marsh Pickard, General Manager of Padel Art & Co founder of The Padel Outlet in a weekly entertaining dive into the world of Padel and the people involved in the industry
Humans of Padel
A Passionate Leap into the World of Padel | Hernan Alessi
Hernan Alessi shares his journey from Argentina to Dubai, offering insights into the evolution of padel, coaching relationships, and the sport's future. With a focus on community and personal growth, this episode explores the shared passion that enhances the padel experience for all involved.
• Hernan's introduction to padel at age 14 in Argentina
• Evolution of padel rackets and court design over the decades
• The art of defense as a key element of successful gameplay
• Coaching as a relationship-building practice for player retention
• The rapid growth of padel in Dubai and its opportunities
• The potential for youth academies to enhance padel's future
• Discussions on innovative changes to padel rules and structures
• Hernan's aspirations for opening a padel club in Mallorca
Hello and welcome back to another episode of the Humans of Paddle podcast. In this episode, I'm joined by Hernan Alesi, one of our coaches at Paddle Art, from Argentina. We talked about when he started playing paddle in the 1990s, the evolution of the sport since then and the growth of paddle in the future. I hope you enjoy the episode and have a great day. So, hernan, it's a pleasure to have you finally sitting with me. We're good friends now. We've been working together for over a year sitting with me. We're good friends now. We've been working together for over a year, yeah, but this is the first time we're actually gonna have the chance to talk about you, talk about paddle, your journey, your experience yeah. So how did it all start for you?
Speaker 2:Well, you know, this is a long, long story, but it's about years. You know it's many years, because it's 1992 sounds close for me, but it was like I don't know. I had to count, you know, like 30, more than 30 years ago. Well, this journey starts in Argentina when I was 14. You know, I came also, I started playing tennis I did a lot of sports in my life but tennis was the key, you know to start playing paddle. And one day I started playing paddle with 14 years old and I really liked it, but then I stopped for some reason. Paddle didn't go well in Argentina, in this, in this time, and and I continued doing some sports. So I play football, did this physical education course for four years of sports and and then when I came back, when I go to europe for for a living because I moved to europe in 2005 I saw that paddle start again. Or I saw padel and said I know how to play this sport. It was very funny and I was playing with some friends.
Speaker 2:Let's gonna play this, you know, yeah, I, I think I know. You know, before it was walls, you know, but now there are glasses, so it was like a funny um situation and you know, for me was like a to ride a bicycle. You know, you never forget. You start playing and you you get back and then this sport become famous, my passion to teach and my passion to teach sport becoming to to more, more, more, more important and and yeah, and then I start coaching. But and I just feel like this sport has given me a lot of opportunities to know the world, to know a lot of people. I think, since I'm in dubai, I made more people in my life in these two years in dubai, or almost three, that you know my life.
Speaker 1:It's an amazing place for sport. It's an amazing place for paddle as well. It's grown like crazy here and we're in a boom of paddle, but when you started playing in 1992, what was paddle?
Speaker 2:Paddle was basically the same. You know it doesn't change. You know the soul of the sport didn't change and one of the things that I said because there's many things to say to your clients or your players is about the consistency just to pass the ball, to make it hard to defend, have a good defense. So what changed? It's not so many things. Of course there's spectacular shots, finishers, people going out of the court, but the basic of padel didn't change, or the soul, I mean the soul of padel for me didn't change. Of course it changed the courts, the speed of the ball. Before, for me it was faster Because the courts in Argentina were cement.
Speaker 2:So the cement, yeah, the ball was flying, the ball was flying. Was it the same ball? Was there was cement? So the cement, the ball was flying, the ball was flying. Was it the same ball? Was it still? Reduced pressure yeah, I think they reduced the pressure. I don't know about that, but when they put a carpet for short, it will reduce the bounce. And when you put a glass, who absorb the power of the shots? For you for sure, reduce the power, the speed of the ball and, of course, if you hit the glasses, your shoulders could be better if you hit a wall, you know. So paddle changed also in the injured way. You know people are not to get injured too much. Before it was knees, it was lower back, now it's knees and lower back Squash.
Speaker 1:I guess before a lot more hard impact on the body, more impact and yeah, the physios are very back now his knees and lower back squash, I guess before a lot more hard impact on the more impact and yeah, the physios are very happy with paddle in the 1990s I can imagine also the equipment's changed a lot. Right, though, you must have seen a huge evolution, especially in rackets. Yeah, rackets are, because what rackets were you playing with in rackets?
Speaker 2:were like uh was wooden rackets at the beginning with, uh, maybe some fiber of carbon fiber on the metal, the frame, some carbon fiber on the frame, but was metal on the frame also. So the face of the racket was maybe a really small layer of carbon, then wood. So you have to destroy the wall. That's why old school paddle is about consistency, because it's the art of defense. You know paddle is an art and if you art of defense, you know paddle is an art. And if you defend well, you can play paddle. You can win a match with loves. Basically, no, true it's very true.
Speaker 1:So if you are a good playing loves, yeah, when you watch the the old paddle, let's say when you see the videos of 80s, 90s yeah it does seem very slow and it's a lot more controlled and there's a lot less smashes. Yeah, completely. I mean the bandeja was used a lot more. Some say that the bandeja now is dying. It's a shot that less and less people are using.
Speaker 2:Do you think that's true? Yeah, it could be. It could be because the materials change, the aggressive of the player, the physical also. So everything is faster, everything is more, more spectacular. But I think there is always the the option to bandeja stay there, because it's not about to increase the speed of the point, it's about also to place the ball in the right timing, you know. So you can do a soft bandeja, you can do with that, but they have it angled. So bandeja will be there always, because for me it's make paddle as a paddle. Lob and Bandeja are the shots who are different?
Speaker 1:Yeah, and what made you decide to take your career? Your paddle journey to Dubai.
Speaker 2:Wow the options to know more world and to the opportunity to live from this sport and to improve my skills, my personal skills, trying to coach in a different language, try to get different people from all around the world and experiment. Another world, another city is part of my, my goal. So this is amazing city. Of course, for me it's not my last city. I think I will move around the world, maybe with paddle, maybe not, but I'm happy to come to dubai to coach also in paddle art. I think it's amazing place and, and yeah, to live from padel is amazing. At the end it's leisure. We are coaching recreational people, so people come here for fun, you know, except some of the players who take it really serious. Okay, we go for serious things, but this sport is social, this sport is fun, this sport is recreational and I love to coach and to have this experience with my players.
Speaker 1:And before moving to Dubai, where were you coaching before that?
Speaker 2:I was living for more than 17 years in Spain, in Mallorca, which is an island, and it's an amazing place. Mallorca was the place that I started playing paddle and I was living there. Beautiful place to live.
Speaker 1:There are definitely worse places to be. How do you maintain that relationship Because, for example, even here at Paddle Art, a lot of your players are regular students of yours. They will train with you every week, every week, for a year, two years. How do you maintain that longevity and that relationship with them? I will tell you At the same time how do you manage that longevity and that relationship with them?
Speaker 1:I will tell you at the same time, how do you manage to keep them interested in paddle? Because you need to create different lessons for these people to keep it interesting so they don't move on or get bored yeah.
Speaker 2:Well, I will tell you with these three words I don't know. You know, you know is this is they come for sure to play paddle, but I feel like most of the people come also to see me and to talk with me, to have a moment to. You know, of course there is an obsession to improve your skills, but you can improve more than your skills. You can improve your tolerance, you can improve your frustration. You can improve many things that paddles give you, because if you react because you miss a bandeja, okay, you know that it's not the end of the world.
Speaker 2:You know you are not really happy when you make an amazing shot, but this is the thing you know when someone is happy when you make an amazing shot. That's why I'm here, you know, because if you are happy when you do an amazing shot, if you are frustrated when you're doing a bad shot, no problem. And, of course, to to take people and to prepare lessons. That's the hardest thing because the client they come and they know what they want. So I give what they want and then I just offer what I think they need. Yeah, and this is the way. This is like a. It's not a battle, but I think it's like okay, I give you something, you tell me something, so the lesson is made by by these two like decisions yeah, it's a given take.
Speaker 2:It's a given take and of course you can get deeper in the physics, you can work more in the strategic and the tactics. But at the end, you know, in a lesson, one-on-one is quite difficult because padel is a sport who play two against two. So you can do exercise with decisions, you can do exercise with some tactical or physical points, that's that you cannot do it. Or you can do it one-on-one or you cannot do it, sorry, one-on-one when. When you can do it two and two, so it's yeah, I don't know what I'm doing. Really, that's the, that's the main thing. I Ask them no, I say yeah.
Speaker 1:There's a psychological side to it, right, yeah, you have. You get along well with your with your clients, and people come to play with you. You have a good relationship, so it's not about just about teaching them paddle. You get along well with your clients and people come to play with you. You have a good relationship, so it's not just about teaching them paddle. There's a relationship there. People come, they've had a bad day at work, they just want to play, they want to have fun, they want to work out, they want to sweat, and you're able to listen to what they want and build that into a lesson that is driven towards paddle. So the soft skill that you have of building that relationship with the players is very important, right, and that creates the retention and they come back and they grow and you build friendships.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yes, definitely. For me it's like why I should be obsessed to teach something to someone who doesn't need that. When people come and say I want to see these three meters shots, okay, let's do it. Why I shouldn't? No, because I just start playing private. Okay, you know, try.
Speaker 2:The only thing that I just take care of this is just about injuries. I touch my, I touch wood because you know, like I didn't have many injuries as a player doing coaching, because I think that warm-up is very important. I think that warm-up is very important. I think that stretching after is very important which we don't have time to do that, but it's very important and, of course, technique and decision making. You know like it's very important. So if I don't have injuries, the thing is it's okay. You know, for me, it's one of the worried things that, okay, someone drop in the ball and twist the ankle is something is okay. For me, it's one of the worried things that if someone drops in the ball and twists the ankle, it's something that could happen. An injury by a racket in your face or a racket on your knee something that you can avoid, I think is.
Speaker 1:And how do you take care of your own body, because you've been doing this for a while, right?
Speaker 2:Yes, my own body, my own body. You know my mind goes with. I'm 20, but my body is the age that I have. The thing is, I think we need to work more the compensation, you know, because padel is a sport, who you play in front of you, you know like everything is in front pectoral shoulders. So for compensation, I need or I should do which I'm not doing too much is to work your back part. So we are talking about rotation of the shoulder, lower back, glutes, everything at the back. As you mentioned, core, you have to have strong abs but you have to have strong glutes. This is the way to compensate a little bit, because when you make a smash, all the power comes from the front and the muscles at the back should be stronger too. So this is the physical preparation also for padel players. They need to be strong also in the back, because everything is in front of you.
Speaker 2:What I'm doing with my body Pray and stretch a little bit and sleep and eat well. This is important. Are you eating well? I'm eating here in Pajalar, so I'm eating well Every day like that. I try to eat well. I try to sleep the hours that I need to sleep, but I'm struggling with my body because paddling is hard. It's a sport so you need to be fit. But yeah, with some another skills, just about positioning, about experience. You can play with these coaches of 20s, 20 something years old. I mean, you can play with these coaches of 20s, 20 something years old you can too.
Speaker 1:Every time I see you playing matches, playing with people who are half your age.
Speaker 2:Age is a challenge, time is the challenge speaking of time what do you?
Speaker 1:think is next in the life of Hernan Aleti. Oh wow, that's a good one. You know my wish.
Speaker 2:What do you think is next in the life of Hernan Aleti? Oh, wow, that's a good one. You know my wish. Of course, this is more really personal. You know, like, of course, I would love to go back to Spain. I'm designed to open a club in Spain. This is my goal.
Speaker 2:Mallorca is a beautiful area. There is a lot of padel. There is a lot of padel. There is a lot of good vibes there. Same here in Dubai. People from around the world go there for holidays but then they're living there like a fixed residence and I would love to have a club there. I would love to have a club just to manage a club with coaches, with a kids' academy also. I would love to have a kids just to manage a club with uh, with coaches, with a kids academy also. I would love to have a kids academy with everything like a club, like a full, full club, and with uh, like padel art. You know, like padel have an amazing community, which is, I think, the best thing that you can do for a club and the most difficult thing to get to put a soul on the club. You know, make a good team. This is something that you did like work with, just to respect the people and to ask for the best for them. You know, what can you bring as an?
Speaker 1:add, I mean for me from that perspective. I mean a lot of people give me credit for the success of Padelot. Yes, I'm here from the beginning. Yes, I hired the team, but ultimately, I believe the true success of padelard it comes from the team and everyone else other than me. Okay, maybe I hired these people or they hired other people, but it comes from that team, like people like yourself, like the rest of the coaches, the reception team, the cafe team, everyone, the cleaners, everyone, everyone, everyone feels like they're part of something.
Speaker 1:Together, we've created this community that's sold to the club and I think that's like you said, it is the most important thing that we do have in Padla, and that we're trying to maintain and keep people happy, because, at the end of the day, it's a service industry, right? We need to make people happy, keep them coming back, and life is easy if that's the case. So, if anyone is looking to invest in a club in mallorca, let's see, let's see.
Speaker 2:I'll put your phone number. You know it's uh, yeah, it's a, it's an amazing place to go. You know I, I don't know how long it will be my trip in dubai. It's uh, I don't put time, but uh, but yes, you know I, I would love to come back, because it's not about the club, also it's about daughters and family. But I'm happy in Dubai, I'm just happy where I am and maybe sometimes, someday, we can put another Padel Art in Mallorca. What do you think? Everything's possible.
Speaker 1:I like it. It could be worse. There's worse places to go.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't mind if they move me to Mallorca just to coach More work.
Speaker 1:When you moved to Dubai, did it meet your expectations of Dubai, or had you been to Dubai before?
Speaker 2:No, I haven't been to Dubai before, so I came here and it was hard At the beginning. It was summer and you know it was extremely hot, everything. But it's a city who doesn't stop surprising me. You know Like I'm surprised all the time and, yeah, it's an amazing city to live but I really miss, for example, some of nature and the sea and other vibes. And Dubai surprised me from the beginning. You have the beach 10 minutes away.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I know I go to it, I love it, you do yeah.
Speaker 2:I really go. I really do If I know something that I don't know about the future, my future future. So it's about that I'm learning and I go, you know, and I'm flexible with everything.
Speaker 1:I mean, we're always learning right, it doesn't matter what you're doing.
Speaker 1:There's always opportunity to learn and especially now, in this day and age, things can change so fast. Opportunities come, opportunities go on. Yeah, there's a lot of. There's a lot of things out there and you know, I believe, as long as you keep putting in the work and doing what you love with passion and without necessary expectation, always good things. Yeah, this, there's a lot of things out there, I believe, as long as you keep putting in the work and doing what you love with passion and without necessary expectation always good things will come to you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, this is the main reason of everything for me, when you do something, if you do it with passion, no matter what happens, it will be business or not business Sorry about the investors, but if you do it with passion, that's the key of everything. Just put your heart on it. That's the way that I coach. I get angry when the thing doesn't happen with my players because it's like sorry, but it's like why? So it's something that I need to understand. Like, okay, hernan, don't be so passionate. This is something one cook and say, okay, okay, relax, but passion is the key of everything. So if you put this in the club, it will take a bit more of time. You have to put passion, but you have to put the head for sure. You know. If you don't think this is something that I have, naturally, you know, everything that I do I do it like that. Otherwise, that's why I'm too intense, you know.
Speaker 1:That's it. And what do you think is missing in paddling in Dubai Kids?
Speaker 2:Kids Academy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree and I feel paddling in Dubai is maybe it's an excuse, but it's still a little bit too young, it's still not a priority. And all the kids here they do like seven different sports already. They all have like football, judo. You have so many options that you know.
Speaker 2:Sometimes, dubai is like this too many things. Don't let them focus in one.
Speaker 1:I think in about five years in Dubai you will see real kids academies and a lot more kids playing. I think it still needs a little bit more time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, maybe, but you asked me about this missing. So I think there is no, you know facilities. I think the best facilities in the world. You know we're talking about the Y, so everything is like in the sense sometimes, you know, maybe to play a league mixed, we can just do a mixed league. I'm just thinking now out of the box, you know, like why paddle is not fixed as a mixed sport. Do you like playing mixed doubles? I like to play mixed. It comes with a strategic mindset that yeah, of course power is very important and you cannot hit the ball straight to a lady or you can. You know like it's a sport, but for sure, if any professional woman hit the ball harder, to me it will be very painful, or to a man, but I mean it could be, I like it, I like to play mix.
Speaker 1:I find it depends. I find it gets a bit repetitive, where it just ends up being the women playing against each other and then, as a guy, in mixed doubles, in the case where the guy is the stronger player, obviously if the woman's the stronger player, then it flips it, but if you are the stronger player but then again it's the same in normal padel as well you touch less, you play less because all the balls go to you.
Speaker 2:Imagine that there is no mixed sports. You play less because all the balls go to you.
Speaker 1:Imagine that there is no mixed sports. Yeah, you know what I would love to see in padel. What Would be like, you know, in wrestling and they have tag team.
Speaker 2:You could have what.
Speaker 1:Tag team you know, when there's someone waiting outside. So you could have two players Ah, you switch, and a third player outside, so it's like 30-15. You could bring in another player and switch, like substitutes, like ice hockey. I think that would be really cool. Wow, okay, that's completely different of like a sport. Completely changed the sport Completely changed it.
Speaker 1:yeah, but I feel like that would be a really interesting way to approach it, you know. So you'd have a whole different tactical side. So you'd have, like, maybe a great smasher in your team that maybe you would bring in on certain points, but maybe he's not as good at defending, so you'd have a whole dynamic substitution.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it could be. You know. Now I remember something the previous question about the future of Padel. Be ready, because the future of Padel is with one service. I 100% agree with this. I really like it. Actually, we're going to make a tournament with only one service. It will be called one service tournament. It will be half a price or something like that, because you play less, because there is no reason to play two service with a service.
Speaker 1:I agree in pickleball, it's one serve so why we still have two. Even in tennis I would push for one serve just to make it a bit more, but that's a whole different conversation. That's a bit of a different conversation. That's very dramatic, yeah, but that's actually going to happen, you think.
Speaker 2:They start to implement in Argentina. Ah, really, In small tournaments. Yeah, Some guy who is really involved. He's a crazy guy. I don't want to say the name, but this guy is bringing ideas and these ideas are set. You don't like this he's doing.
Speaker 1:So I think it's good. I think one serve is a great idea. When you started playing paddle, did they play advantage or golden?
Speaker 2:point, no advantage. Golden point is part of something about paddle. You know paddle who starts, but we were playing it was also changing rules in paddle that the one who serves doesn't have to go to the net. So now it's like you serve and you go to the net for your first volley. Right, so I serve, you return and I make my first volley. The point starts there after my first volley, for me, or for my players too. So. But if I serve, the initiative of the point is the, the rival, my rival. So you return and you come to the net. I cannot go to the net, but it's pickable, so you can't serve a volley.
Speaker 1:It was before like that.
Speaker 2:I tell you it was before. Like that, that was a rule before, that was a rule in paddle. You couldn't serve a volley, you couldn't make a volley in your second shot, so the ball had to bounce. Yeah, so I serve. And why I should go to the net if I cannot volley? So I stay at the back with my partner. I did not know that existed in padel. This is rule of padel in the 1990s back in time. So Piquet asked these players, you know like, yeah, you cannot go to the net. So the return of the arrivals, it was always down, because if they play high you can make bandeja, you can make smash. So it was down. And then you play a lot. Yeah, yeah, understand Makes sense. Yeah, so, and then the match starts like that yeah, no attacking, no initiative for the servers. That's why, with two services, like what, if you don't want to take the initiative, just put the ball in. Yeah, exactly, wow.
Speaker 1:I learned something today, amazing.
Speaker 2:Wow, I learned something today, amazing. You know, this old man can give you something.
Speaker 1:Good stories, buy the barbecue.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know we should have a barbecue. I won the barbecue in my club. You know my club had to have a barbecue. Actually, max gave me a barbecue and I did some barbecues. They're going to do more barbecues.
Speaker 1:I mean that was part of your signing bonus. Yeah, exactly If Hanan will only join Paddle Arts if we buy a barbecue.
Speaker 2:And we bought a barbecue just for you. Amazing. I like to cook also. This is one of my things that I would love to do also, just to have my restaurant in Mallorca. If you want to invest with the Paddle Club, let's put a restaurant.
Speaker 1:Hernán does everything. Hernán in the kitchen, Hernán on the court it's my hands.
Speaker 2:It's about my hands.
Speaker 1:Well, hopefully you don't get injured. What?
Speaker 2:time is it? I don't know Shit what time Jennifer is waiting for me.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, we'll wrap this up, Hanan. Thank you so much for your time. I know you're a busy man. Enjoy your lessons. We'll do this again another time. Bye.