Many players have a tendency to hit a pickleball as if it were a tennis ball…turning to the side of the ball. Instead, you want to keep the pickleball in front of you.
smaller court…smaller movements
As I work with tennis players that are learning to play pickleball, I emphasize one truth…everything is smaller. The court is smaller. A pickleball paddle is smaller than a tennis racket. The amount of time we have to prepare for a shot is shorter. As such we need smaller movements. We don’t want a big backhand, with the paddle well behind us. Instead, we want a compact swing:
- The paddle goes back only about one foot; and
- Extends toward our target...not across the front of our body or over our opposite shoulder.
pickleball in front
The more in front of you you can keep the pickleball and your contact point the better. Keeping your hips and your toes in a forward direction enable an easier transition forward as well as better net clearance. Many players that struggle with consistency do so because they are making contact too far back.
I find many tennis players’ first move is to turn sideways (away from the net). This causes their weight to drop backward and results in contact too close to their body. Instead, I want the player to remain fairly square to the direction of the ball…keeping their arms extended so they can make contact well in front.
cornhole
I often use cornhole as a reference in pickleball. When you toss the bean bag forward, you are square to the target. You create a low to high underhand motion. You extend your hand and arm softly toward the target. My hips and shoulders finish to the target.
Consistency!
Creating a more compact swing that keeps the pickleball in front of us will improve your consistency. And hitting the ball consistently to our intended target will improve your game.
