Two years ago, Nozer Amalsadiwala captained India’s senior side at the Pickleball World Cup in Peru, chasing the dream at the age of 50. This September, in Vietnam, the family is back on the world stage. Only this time, the name on the tricolour belongs not to the father but to his daughters.
Article by Gaurav Sarkar “| Mumbai Mirror
Pearl, 19, and Naomi, 16, the Mumbai sisters known within the Parsi community as the “Sisters of Destruction,” have been selected for the Pickleball World Cup 2026 in Da Nang. It is the third edition of the tournament and the first ever in Asia, drawing thousands of players from over 80 countries.
At the Indian team selection trials, the sisters took over the Open category, clinching Gold together in the Pro Women’s Doubles. In the mixed doubles, lined up on opposite sides of the net with different partners, Naomi took Gold with Arjun and Pearl Silver with Divyanshu. “It was the most intense match of the tournament, because we were on opposite sides,” they recall. “It went down to the last point.” Naomi, still 16, will pull double duty in Da Nang, turning out for the Under-18 team as well.
“We were in Vietnam, so we celebrated with our fellow athletes over a few pizzas,” they say. “Before we could even call our parents, they had already seen the announcement and called us. In our family, when one of us wins, the whole family wins.”
From table-tennis to a world stage
Pearl’s road to pickleball began at a different table. She spent nearly eight years in table tennis, representing Maharashtra, before the sport stopped giving back what she put in. “There came a point where I felt completely burnt out,” she says. It was the Covid period, and she was preparing for her Class 10 boards. “Walking away wasn’t easy, especially since my career was progressing well, but mentally I knew it was the right choice.”
Pickleball arrived three years later, in 2023, as a suggestion from her parents, picked up just to enjoy a sport again. “Very quickly I started loving it, the pace, the strategy, the atmosphere,” she says. “Ironically, the break I took from one sport led me to discover another that has given me the honour of representing India.”
The reset queen and the attacker
Naomi, three years younger, came to the court from gymnastics and has climbed just as fast, already beating experienced players. Now she arrives at a World Cup in two categories at once and is clear-eyed about it. “In the Open category I’ll be up against very experienced, ranked players, so the focus is on staying composed and learning. In the Under-18 category the intensity is different, but the goal is the same. My preparation doesn’t change. I’m competing on a world stage for my country.”
On court together, the sisters are a study in contrast. “We have a lefty-righty combination, which opens up the court,” Pearl says. “I have the aggressive, attacking game, while Nano is our reset queen. She can absorb pressure and turn difficult rallies around.”
Having taken up the game within a month of each other, they read each other without speaking. They also clash. “We’re both competitive, and we’ve lost matches because of our own mistakes, not the opponent. We take those as lessons and move on.” The nickname, they will happily own: “Sisters of Destruction is scary but fun.”
A mother’s view of the road behind the medals
For their mother, Meher, the past two years have been a slow accumulation of pride. “Every athlete dreams of representing their country, but to earn it is an honour beyond words,” she says.
Filing from Da Nang’s doorstep
The sisters are already on Vietnamese soil, sharpening up at the Asia Open in the weeks before the World Cup. “The mood is positive. Every match here is helping us prepare for Da Nang,” they say. Asked what they want to prove, they turn it inward. “More than to others, we want to prove to ourselves that the hard work and the failures have prepared us to compete with the best. Victories are never assured, but effort and confidence are in our control.”