Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans Pickleball Journey: Australian pickleball players Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans signed contracts with the United Pickleball Association in early 2025. Since then, they have taken on a new challenge by competing with and against top American professionals in the fast-growing sport.
Facing tougher competition in the U.S.
After finding success in Australia, Helena Spiridis admitted that competing in the United States has been eye-opening.
“Because not many people play in Australia, we do really well there,” shared Helena Spiridis with a laugh. “Then we come over here to America and we kind of get our butts kicked.”
She has embraced the challenge by training closely with her Major League Pickleball team, the New York Hustlers.
“Everyone has been amazing in helping me build confidence with my shots and not being afraid to go big and miss,” she explained. “Training with American pros has been great because of the quality of the ball. We get to improve quickly because we see our strategies don’t work here. We can get away with a lot more in Australia, whereas here you can’t, so it makes you be a lot more disciplined and focused. What’s so cool about America is that everyone is so passionate about the sport. Australia has that too, but not to the extent of America.”
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A shared path with her partner
Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans are also a couple off the court, which has helped them both stay motivated and connected to the game.
“His serves are deadly, and he has great athleticism. He’s inspiring to me because he’s always playing with full 100% energy. He throws his whole body into every point,” she said. “I also think mentally, he’s really tough. That’s an area of improvement for me, and he’s really encouraging with me.”
The two players started out in junior tennis and later explored other sports together. Pickleball quickly stood out.
“We traveled a lot for his tennis career, but after he was mentally done with tennis, we tried a bunch of sports for fun like pickleball, paddle, and badminton,” recalled Helena Spiridis. “We were playing in 2023 and some people saw us hitting a pickleball and they said, ‘Whoa! You guys are really good, you should come here with the best in Australia tomorrow.’ We played really well against them and Tom actually beat a couple of them.”
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Living and playing as a team
Their relationship has always been close, and pickleball has only brought them closer.
“We’ve lived together since we were 17, so everything for us has been so combined. It’s like you’re essentially married. It’s so fun to do this together because you’ve got company everywhere. We’ve been together every single day since we’ve met. I think maybe we’ve had two days apart,” said Helena Spiridis. “Pickleball has been amazing because I haven’t played a sport in so many years and this has got me competitive again. And it’s even better that I get to play and have this life alongside my partner.”
Growing their game and their future
Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans are learning quickly by playing with top-level opponents. With more time and training in the United States, they hope to improve and compete at an even higher level. Their journey shows how international players can find new paths and purpose through pickleball.
News in Brief: Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans Pickleball Journey
Australian pros Helena Spiridis and Tom Evans are building pickleball careers in the U.S. after signing with the United Pickleball Association in 2025. From tennis backgrounds to training with American pros, the duo is growing fast—on and off the court—through shared challenges, stronger skills, and a deep love for the game.
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