The days of old-style tennis are gone and that’s a shame. Tennis used to be about skill, not thwacking aces, Hawkeye machines, and women who look like men! And it still remains elite sport, with only those of a certain income being able to afford lessons. So make use of public tennis courts, if you have them. Choose rackets made from sustainable materials and you can find Microfiber vegan tennis shoes everywhere these days.
Are Wimbledon strawberries organic? It does not appear so, though the Kent farm that supplies them has sustainability practices in place, though they use plastic punnets, which are unnecessary these days, even if plastic is recycled. Buy organic strawberries and serve with vegan double cream.
Many of the world’s top tennis players are vegan including Novak Djovokic, Venus & Serena Williams, Hubert Hurkacz, Nick Kyrgios (who went vegan after being upset at the bushfires in his native Australia) and (ex-top professional) Martina Navratilova.
Immaculate Vegan offers nice cotton sneakers (made from recycled materials or fruit leathers) that are suitable for tennis. Easy to wipe clean too.
Look in sports shops for Wilson Naked Tennis Racquet, which is made from castor beans (bioplastic) and sold in cardboard packaging. It has a biodegradable grip, needs far less water to make, and 2500 trees are planted, for each one sold.
Sheeps is a company that campaigns to make tennis vegan, by removing wool used for tennis balls and leather used for grips and shoes etc. It’s also worth noting that although some vets now say you shouldn’t over-throw balls for dogs (best to let them sniff and explore to save leg problems later on), the wool on most tennis balls is abrasive and not good for dogs anyway.
Earn money back by sending in used tennis balls. Nominate a local cause, to avoid money going to big animal-testing charities.
TerraCycle offers a community recycling box, where for one set fee, everyone can drop of used sports equipment at a local point, to be sent off to be made into other things. You can also recycle yoga mats, skateboards, sports water bottles, cycling accessories, protective sports equipment, skipping ropes, boomerangs and frisbees (never use these on the beach, they can decapitate seals).
If your court has issues with rabbits and other creatures munching through pristine grass, Grazers is a Yorkshire-made non-toxic alternative to lethal control or pesticides, which makes grass unpalatable (also for bowling greens and golf courses). Don’t use where pet rabbits roam, as they won’t be able eat it). And ensure wild rabbits have ‘edible grass’ nearby.
