Racquet kit for children: what each sport's rules say about young players.

Lessons and safeguarding first

We suggest children start with lessons from a qualified coach, who will also deal with racket length and grip size in person; this guide describes neither and recommends no club, academy, coach or shop. Bodies publish safeguarding rules for the adults around young players. The ITF's Safeguarding Policy, in effect from January 2026, covers players' parents, guardians, chaperones and coaches at ITF-sanctioned events, and the USTA's Safe Play programme requires approved people to complete annual U.S. Center for SafeSport training and pass a criminal background screen renewed every two years. The policies by sport are on safeguarding.

Tennis: balls and courts for 10 and under

The ITF Rules of Tennis 2026 have their own appendix for 10-and-under competition, Appendix VIII. Only four ball types may be used in that competition: Stage 3 (Red) foam, Stage 3 (Red) standard, Stage 2 (Orange) and Stage 1 (Green). Appendix VIII recommends red for players up to 8 on red courts, orange for 8 to 10 year olds on orange courts, and green for advanced 9 to 10 year olds on full courts, each with a racket length band; those length figures were not recorded for this site and are not given.

Stage balls go through the ITF's approval scheme too: the 2026 procedures set sample sizes for Red and Orange balls (36 submitted, 12 tested) as well as for Green and adult balls. The Green ball may be used at all levels of competitive play except world-ranking professional events, the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup, Olympic and Paralympic tennis, and ITF World Tennis Tour, Masters Tour and Wheelchair Tennis Tour events; national associations decide its use in national events.

Appendix VIII also allows smaller courts with lower nets. A Red court is 36 to 42 ft long and 14 to 20 ft wide with a net 31.5 to 33 in high at the centre; an Orange court is 58 to 60 ft long and 20 to 27 ft wide with a net 31.5 to 36 in high at the centre. The full ball rules are on tennis balls and approval.

A junior racquet recall

Health Canada recalled one maker's junior aluminium tennis racquets on 5 November 2025 because the butt cap contained phthalates. It said studies suggest certain phthalates may cause reproductive and developmental abnormalities in young children when soft vinyl containing them is sucked or chewed for long periods, and told owners to stop using the racquets. The models are listed on recalls; a recall says nothing about other models.

Squash: junior eye protection

Squash is where the rules on children's eyewear are firmest, though they differ by body and are partly disputed:

• World Squash (Singles Rules 2025, Appendix 4): mandatory at all junior and doubles events it sanctions.
• England Squash (14 July 2025): compulsory for under-19s in any competition, including adult age groups, and strongly recommended in training and non-competitive play. A search extract of its equipment page says "competitions and activities", which is wider.
• Scottish Squash (16 January 2023): all under-19s at sanctioned events, coaching courses and endorsed activities on court.
• Squash Canada (13 November 2018): junior members in sanctioned events and funded activities.

World Squash's April 2014 guidance tied the junior rule (under 19 on the last scheduled day) to its own championships; a Khel Now report of 29 September 2026 describes it as applying to juniors at all times in play, which is unconfirmed. The standards, given both ways, are in the eye protection guide. No eyewear is presented here as preventing injury.

Pickleball, padel and badminton

• Pickleball. USA Pickleball junior events are for players 18 and under (2026 Official Rulebook, 15.A.4), and sanctioned play uses the same approved paddle list as adults. Pickleball.com, a UPA-affiliated outlet, reported that junior pro division players must use paddles from the separate UPA-A list from 30 August 2026. The rulebook has no eyewear requirement.
• Padel. The FIP's junior tour, FIP Promises, is among the official-calendar events that use only FIP-certified balls, and the compulsory wrist cord applies to every player. The Padel Paper (5 July 2023) named a Coaching Kids Padel short course among the LTA's padel courses.
• Badminton. No junior equipment rule was found in the BWF Laws read. On 8 April 2026 the BWF approved two synthetic shuttles for a trial at Grade 3 and Junior International tournaments, according to a search extract of its news page and a news report.

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