Padel Injuries: Elbow, Calf, Ankle, Shoulder and Wrist

Every padel injury, by body part

Start from where it hurts. Each row links to the page that covers that injury in full.

The common ones, in more depth

Padel elbow

Padel elbow is tennis elbow by another name: pain at the bony point on the outside of the elbow, where the tendons that lift the wrist attach. In one of the studies in a 2023 review, it was the single most common diagnosis, at about one injury in five.¹ The racket is solid with no strings, and many players grip it hard at the net. The reviewers of the padel research suggest that may be part of why tendon injuries are so common, though it has not been tested.¹

It hurts lifting the kettle, turning a door handle, shaking hands. It often eases while you play and comes back that night. We measure grip strength on both hands, and test the tendon with the elbow straight and the wrist lifting against resistance. Tendons rarely settle on rest alone. They settle on load they can tolerate, built up in steps, with the volume of play cut back first.

The calf that goes on a push-off

A sudden sharp pain in the middle of the calf as you push off, often described as being hit or kicked from behind, is usually a strain of the inner calf muscle. It is common enough in racquet sports to be called tennis leg. If you cannot push up onto your toes on that side, or there is a gap you can feel above the heel, that needs a doctor the same day, because an Achilles tendon rupture can feel similar. Single-leg heel raises, counted on both sides, tell us when the calf is ready for court again.

Ankle sprains near the glass and under the net

Doubles on a small court means feet close together, and a lot of padel ankle sprains are a foot landing on a partner’s. The ligaments on the outside of the ankle stretch or tear, and the ankle loses strength and its sense of position. That second part is why the same ankle goes again. It is trained back with balance and hop work, and measured against the other side.

The overhead shoulder

The bandeja, the vibora and the smash all load the rotator cuff with the arm overhead. The pattern is an ache at the side of the shoulder, worse reaching up or lying on that side at night, and a warm-up that keeps getting longer. We test rotation strength against the other shoulder and look at how the shoulder blade moves with the arm overhead.

The wrist and the fall

The wrist gets hurt two ways. Slowly, from wristy volleys and late flicks, which irritates the tendon and the cartilage on the little-finger side. Suddenly, from a fall onto the hand chasing a ball off the glass. A wrist that is swollen, out of shape or too painful to grip after a fall needs an X-ray first. After that, a hand therapist manages the splint, the stiffness and the grip.

The lower back

Low volleys, a lot of rotation, and bending for balls that die off the back glass. Low back strain in padel is usually a load problem: how much play, how quickly it was built up, and how much the hips are doing. It is worth knowing the signs that send you to a doctor first, listed below.

Return on tests, not dates

Pain going away is the first sign, not the last. These are the checks we use before full matches:

• Elbow and wrist: grip strength on the injured side close to the other hand, without pain at the outer elbow.
• Calf and Achilles: single-leg heel raises counted on both sides and close to each other, then hopping without pain.
• Ankle and knee: single-leg balance and hop tests compared with the other leg.
• Shoulder: rotation strength against the other side, and overheads without pain the next morning.

Then volume comes back in steps: a shorter game, then a full one, then back-to-back evenings.

Is this normal?

Some soreness the day after a long game, in muscles that have not played much, is usual and settles in a day or two. A tendon that is stiff first thing and loosens as you move is common with overuse, and is a reason to adjust the load, not to panic. Pain that is getting worse week by week, that wakes you at night, or that stops you gripping or pushing off is not something to keep playing through.

When to see a doctor first

• Call 995 for chest pain, collapse or severe breathlessness on court.
• Emergency department now if a ball hits your eye and your vision changes, you see blood in the front of the eye, or the eye is very painful; a wrist or finger that is visibly out of shape after a fall; or a calf or leg that is cold, white or numb.
• Doctor the same day if you felt a kick or pop at the back of the heel and cannot push up onto your toes on that side; a knee that popped and swelled within a few hours; or a hot, red, swollen joint with fever.
• Doctor soon if a wrist stays painful at the base of the thumb after a fall, even if it looked normal; or back pain comes with pain, numbness or weakness down the leg.

Numbness around the groin or saddle area, or a change in bladder or bowel control, is an emergency department today.

Questions people ask

What is the most common padel injury?

The elbow is the most commonly injured area in padel, and most of those injuries are tennis elbow: tendon pain on the outside of the elbow. Calf strains, ankle sprains, shoulder tendon pain and low back strain are also common. Most are overuse injuries, built up over weeks of play.

Is padel elbow the same as tennis elbow?

Yes. Padel elbow is the same condition as tennis elbow, pain where the tendons that lift the wrist attach on the outside of the elbow. It usually hurts when gripping or lifting with the palm down. It is managed by reducing the load on the tendon and then building it back in steps.

Why did my calf suddenly hurt during padel?

A sudden sharp pain in the middle of the calf on a push-off is usually a calf muscle strain, often called tennis leg. If you cannot rise onto your toes on that side, or feel a gap above the heel, see a doctor the same day, because an Achilles tendon rupture can feel similar.

When can I play padel again after an injury?

Return depends on tests rather than a date. Grip strength, single-leg heel raises, hop tests and shoulder rotation strength are compared with the uninjured side. When they are close and play does not cause pain the next morning, game time is built back up in steps.