Time and time again players have issues when playing with bangers. The tendency is to play faster and faster…thoughtless, chaotic play. If that is not your game, you need to learn to control the tempo of the game. Choose the tempo you want to play with. Select your pickleball metronome.
Top Players
When we watch the top players, we notice a great deal of variety in the pace and shots they are able to hit. They can dink for twenty shots or more, recover from a smash and return to dinking again. Many intermediate players are comfortable and capable dinkers, but when faced with bangers they become frustrated and unwittingly attempt to play their game.
Pickleball Karma
There is a post on the RVPicklers’ site about pickleball karma. It is true! Pickleball karma exists. If you hit a ball hard, you better expect the ball to come back at you harder and faster. If you don’t think you can win the war, it is best to not start one! But too often, we allow ourselves to be drawn into the other player or team’s tempo. As things speed up, we loose focus. We rush from shot to shot. We allow the game to happen to us, rather than us controlling the tempo of the game.
Rushing to the Ball
I notice this often when I teach. My students hurry to get to the shot, and then hurry to hit the ball. They seem to be ten times faster doing everything then I am. Perhaps that is why when we watch the most advanced players play, they never seem to rush…they don’t often hurry to the ball…they seem to have all the time in the world.
Practicing Your Pickleball Metronome
When you practice with a partner or on your own, I want you to imagine a metronome keeping you on the tempo you choose with each shot.
- Think of going in slow motion.
- Breathe and take your time to hit every ball. (When practicing, you might allow the ball to bounce twice to maintain the tempo you desire.)
- Keep your body loose to slow the ball down. You don’t need to hit the ball harder to hit it just a bit deeper. Remember the hardest ball to return is one that floats just a bit deeper than your opponent expected.
Your Tempo When Playing
When playing against bangers, do everything you can to NOT adopt their tempo.
- You might want to intentionally hit a floaty return of serve. Often bangers know how to use the power they receive against their opponent…so don’t give them any.
- Take your allotted time to get into position, and check in with your partner along the way.
- Loosen up, soften your grip and simply make contact with the ball.
When I have someone that wants to keep speeding up the ball and my tempo I try to get my mindset as loose and slow as I can make it. I take a breath and let my body naturally relax any way I can. I take extra time to hit the ball and don’t rush my shots. Being aware of how fast you are going on the court as well as the players around you is important. Then you have to ask if that is the tempo you want or would you rather change it?
