I Retired My Running Shoes From the Court: ASICS Gel-Dedicate 9 Story

For my first two years of pickleball, I played in running shoes. I am Dennis Mercado, 64, a retired electrician in Warwick, Rhode Island. I ran Mercado Electric for 28 years, and after I retired in spring 2024 I needed something to do with my mornings. Pickleball at the town park fit. The running shoes did not. This is the story of why I retired them for the ASICS Gel-Dedicate 9.

Nobody told me that. I saw people at open play in proper court shoes, and I figured they were being fussy. My running shoes were comfortable. They had thick soft heels and a lot of cushion. I wore them from the truck to the court and thought nothing of it. Then I started playing four or five mornings a week, 8:00 to about 10:30, and the shoes started talking to me.

The first thing I noticed was the sliding. Not falling. Just a small drift when I pushed off to the side. Running shoes are built to go forward. Pickleball is a lot of short steps, stops and turns, and the shoe has to hold when you lean. Mine did not hold the way I wanted. I felt like I was playing on a surface that was a half step ahead of me.

The second thing was the toe. I drag my right toe on my serve, not on purpose, just a habit. By midsummer the front of that running shoe looked scuffed and soft. I am not rough on gear. I still have the first socket set I bought in 1981. But those shoes were not made for the way I was using them.

In March 2026 I ordered the ASICS Gel-Dedicate 9. I had been reading about court shoes for a couple of weeks, and the ASICS listing was one of the few that gave me plain facts: lace-up closure, rubber sole, moderate foam cushioning, closed toe. The listing gives the item weight as 2.2 pounds and the product dimensions as 12.44 by 6.3 by 4.75 inches. I liked that. A shoe spec sheet I can read is a shoe I can understand.

I bought the ASICS myself on Amazon. Nobody sent them to me. I did not buy them because I thought they would make me a better player. I bought them because I wanted a shoe that was built for the court I was standing on. That is a smaller claim, and it is the one I can stand behind.

The first morning in the ASICS, I stopped thinking about my feet between points. That was the whole change.

The first morning was a Saturday doubles session with my wife Carol. She started playing a year after I did and is now my regular partner on Saturdays. I laced up the ASICS in the garage, walked to the truck, and drove to the park. I wore them only on the court, the way I do now. That was on purpose. I did not want to wear the rubber sole down on the sidewalk before I ever got to a game.

The difference I could feel was not a lightning bolt. It was smaller and more useful. When I pushed off to my right, the shoe held. When I stopped after a short step, I did not feel that little drift. I cannot tell you it made me faster. I can tell you I mis-hit less, because I was not adjusting my feet at the last second. That is a real thing for me, and it is enough.

The ASICS are not perfect. The listing says they are not water resistant, and that is true in my experience. I played a morning after a light rain, and the outsole picked up a little grit and the upper felt damp. I do not wear them in wet grass or on a soggy court. I also would not call them a plush shoe. The cushioning is moderate, the listing's word, not deep and soft like a running shoe. The first two sessions my feet felt the court more. By the third session I did not notice it.

I still play in the gym in the winter, and the ASICS come with me. The gym floor is a different surface, and I like having a shoe that does not slide. In the outdoor season I keep them in the truck behind the seat, next to my bag. I do not wear them to the store. I do not wear them to the hardware store. They are court shoes, and I treat them that way.

I had some tightness in my right elbow in my first season. I saw my own doctor about it and managed it with rest and a lighter grip. I am not a doctor, and I am not going to tell you a shoe fixes an elbow. If you have pain, talk to your doctor. What I can tell you is that better footing made me feel less like I was catching myself mid-step, and that felt better to me.

What I'd Tell You If We Were Sitting at My Kitchen Table

If you are playing in running shoes because they are comfortable, I understand. I did it for two years. But if you are playing four mornings a week and you feel that little slide when you push off, I would spend the time to look at a court shoe. Not because it will make you a different player. Because it is the piece of gear between you and the floor. The ASICS Gel-Dedicate 9 is the one I bought and the one I still wear. Read the listing. Check the fit. If it does not work for your foot, send it back. That is the deal I would make.