It's like tennis, but softer — and Korea is really good at it

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It's like tennis, but softer — and Korea is really good at it

Published: 03 Oct. 2023, 14:58 Updated: 03 Oct. 2023, 22:23

Korea's Lee Min-seon wins the women's singles final of the 101st Dong-A Ilbo National Soft Tennis Tournament in May. [KOREAN SOFT TENNIS ASSOCIATION/YONHAP]

Korea has historically dominated the soft tennis court, taking home the most medals from the sport at every Asian Games since its debut in 1994.

The soft tennis schedule in Hangzhou, China kicked off Tuesday with preliminary matches in the men's and women's team tournaments.

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Soft tennis is like tennis, but the game is played with a different ball and on a smaller court. It shares the same rules as regular tennis — a player scores when the opposing side fails to return the ball before it bounces twice — and matches are also played with singles or doubles.

Soft tennis balls are hollow and made of rubber. Players use lighter rackets and the rallies are slower than in regular tennis, due to the makeup of the ball.

The courts are smaller, too. For singles games, the court is 8.23 meters wide and 23.77 meters long and for doubles games, the court gets slightly wider, with a 10.97-meter baseline.

Games can get intense, particularly in doubles matches where each team has more opportunities to make creative plays, and against national teams like Japan and Chinese Taipei, also podium regulars alongside Korea.

Korea will have several opportunities to take medals at this year’s Asian Games. There are men’s and women’s singles and doubles competitions, a mixed doubles tournament and both men’s and women’s team contests.

Although Korea is the most successful country in Asiad soft tennis, the national team hit a slight slump at the last Games in 2018, losing the women’s team contest to Japan — the second time Korea gave up gold, also to Japan in 2010, and the mixed doubles tournament to Chinese Taipei despite being the reigning champions since 2002 in Busan.

Still, Korea took six medals at the last Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, winning two gold, two silver and two bronze. Japan was the second-best team in the sport, taking four medals —two gold, one silver and one bronze.

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]