Does Zendaya actually know how to play tennis?

After seeing her dominate in Challengers in 2024, plenty of people have curiosities about just how athletically inclined she really is.

Here’s what you should know about Zendaya when it comes to a challenging sport like tennis.

Zendaya is truly an impressive star to keep an eye out for, and the fact that she genuinely learned how to play tennis to film Challengers is a true testament of that.

According to Today, it was revealed that Zendaya thoroughly trained multiple hours each day five days a week for about three months in preparation to film the sports romance.

Before filming the movie, she had never played tennis before.

Her trainer, Brad Gilbert, is a former tennis champ who also won a bronze medal in the Olympics.

He spoke highly of Zendaya saying, “I think she was fascinated…just watching the dynamics of players competing. From the coaching to everything, you could just see how she was taking everything in.”

Zendaya filmed Challengers with Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor. It turns out that Mike had a little bit of tennis history in his background after playing in high school. Josh, on the other hand, did not.

The trio collectively trained to make sure the movie looked as realistic and believable as possible.

A body double was also used in some scenes of the movie, but Zendaya still learned how to play the sport.

Tennis is considered one of the most challenging and dynamic sports out there.

It’s also a sport that can be handled completely alone, which means you don’t need to pair up with teammates to perform.

People who are good at playing tennis are people who are determined and dedicated to being the best they can be athletically.

According to LTA Tennis, Zendaya spoke about the role and its difficulties saying, “It was a scary challenge if anything and also incredibly stimulating emotionally and physically. I was not a tennis person before this. All I really knew was Serena Williams and Roger Federer. So, I just threw myself in there. I’ve pretty much seen every video, every match that’s online. It became my thing.”

She went on to note, “I was very young when I started in my industry, so I relate to the idea of pressure and having all eyes on you. But in many ways, I couldn’t imagine the shoes she has to walk in as a tennis player and as a professional athlete. I remember when we were shooting our US Open scenes at the Billie Jean King Centre, I was absolutely terrified and I wasn’t actually playing.”

How do you feel knowing that Zendaya actually trained in order to film those hard tennis scenes in Challengers? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.