I’m in My 20s, and I Took Up Pickleball. I Found the Perfect Skirt to Wear on the Court.

This is One Thing, a column with tips on how to live.

This year brought a lot of changes: I moved to Austin, just me and my German shepherd. I’m in my 20s, and it was part of an effort to reinvent myself. New city, new activities. One of those activities is one you might associate more with retirees, but I assure you, it’s a lot of fun: it’s pickleball!

But what’s my favorite part of this new hobby? The outdoors time? The potential to make new friends? The moderate physical activity? The silly, goofy name?

No. My favorite part of pickleball is the fits. Obviously.

That brings me to the thesis of this article: The one thing I can’t live without right now is these $25 micro-pleated Target skorts that come in four colors. They’re moisture-wicking, an essential for Texas’ hot weather. Yes, we’re already hitting 80 degrees. The built-in shorts are essential for staying modest while hopping around on the court. They feature a retro silhouette, and pockets (!!!) big enough to stow my cell phone, and a tinier pocket perfect for my lip balm. All the essentials.

I bought this skort first in black, but soon I purchased the three other colors. (Here’s to looking cute without having to stress out about what you’re going to wear.) It was my best friend’s idea for us to start playing this sport, and we’ve slowly increased the number of times we play per week. Thanks to all my skorts, I can play up to four times a week without having to repeat a fit. It also means we have plenty of #content of all our coordinating fits. He doesn’t have the skorts, but we match our colors.

Pickleball is basically tennis on easy mode. It’s apparently the fastest-growing sport in America, with participation up 223.5 percent since 2020. But while tennis has a rich canon of stylish fits associated with the sport, I fear that Pickleball has been slow to adopt such couture. So, dear reader, this is my invitation to you. Let us serve (looks), when we serve (pickleballs).

Others love this skort, too. There are currently 70 reviews with a 4.7 average star rating proclaiming the merits of this unofficial pickleball uniform.

“This skirt is sooooo CUTE! I know that I will get a good amount of wears out of it this spring/summer!” one reviewer exclaimed. “It has shorts built in, which makes it comfortable … please get it. Also, it runs pretty true to size, and has a great amount of strength!” Amen, sister. Amen.