Sports
Racket & bat sports
Games played by striking a ball or shuttle with an implement.
David Hawgood / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Padel
A doubles racket sport played in a glass-walled court where the walls are part of the game.
£100–£300 to start · indoors or out · demanding
Picklerpeej / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Pickleball
A paddle sport on a badminton-sized court with a perforated plastic ball and a non-volley zone.
£25–£100 to start · indoors or out · moderate effort
Sport the library / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Table tennis
Bat and ball across a net on a table — the most accessible racket sport, and at club level a genuinely brutal one.
£25–£100 to start · indoors · moderate effort
Also in this category
Classified but not yet written up.
24 activities in the catalogue, 3 written up so far.
Badminton
SportThe fastest racket sport, played indoors with a shuttlecock.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Beach tennis
SportVolley-only racket sport played over a high net on sand.
£100–£300 to startOutdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Cricket
SportBat and ball between two teams, over an afternoon or five days.
£100–£300 to startOutdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Doubles squash
SportSquash played four to a court, on a wider court where positioning replaces retrieving.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Frontenis
SportTwo players striking a ball against a front wall with strung rackets, from the Basque court tradition.
£100–£300 to startIndoors or outdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Hardbat table tennis
SportTable tennis with pimpled rubber and no sponge, producing longer rallies and a different game entirely.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
One-wall handball
SportStriking a small ball against a single wall with a gloved hand, from an urban street tradition.
Under £25 to startOutdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pelota vasca
SportThe Basque family of court games played with hand, basket or racket against a fronton wall.
£100–£300 to startIndoors or outdoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Platform tennis
SportA cold-weather racket game on a heated raised court with screens the ball may be played off.
£25–£100 to startOutdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Pop tennis
SportSolid paddles on a shortened tennis court, with the net and scoring largely unchanged.
£25–£100 to startOutdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Racket stringing
CraftHobbyStringing tennis, squash and badminton rackets — a paid skill most club players never learn.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsGentle
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Racketball
SportPlayed on a squash court with a shorter racket and a bouncier ball.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Racquetball
SportFast indoor court game with a hollow rubber ball and no tin, played off every wall.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Real tennis
SportThe medieval ancestor of tennis, played indoors off sloping roofs and buttresses.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Short tennis
SportTennis on a reduced court with soft balls, used as a junior route in and as an adult social game.
£25–£100 to startIndoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Soft tennis
SportTennis with a soft rubber ball and light rackets, played competitively across East Asia.
£25–£100 to startIndoors or outdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Speed badminton
SportBadminton without a net, played outdoors with a heavier shuttle that ignores wind.
£25–£100 to startOutdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Squash
SportA punishing enclosed-court game where both players share the whole space.
£100–£300 to startIndoorsVery demanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Tennis
SportThe full-size racket game, played on hard, clay or grass courts.
£100–£300 to startIndoors or outdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet
TouchTennis
SportA codified short-court tennis format with foam balls, its own ranking system and adult tournaments.
£25–£100 to startIndoors or outdoorsModerate effort
In the catalogue, not written up yet
Wheelchair tennis
SportTennis with a two-bounce rule, on a full court and integrated into mainstream competition.
£300–£1,000 to startIndoors or outdoorsDemanding
In the catalogue, not written up yet