5 DECEPTIVE Pickleball Shots To Win Easy Points
Throughout every pickleball match, especially at the lower levels, there are times when players can pick up easy points–whether by capitalizing on their opponents’ mistakes or putting themselves in better positions. But, something that may not currently exist within your pickleball tool belt is a handful of pickleball shots that will confuse your opponents and catch them off guard.
This article discusses five deceptive pickleball shots to win easy points. Of course, you can’t use these shots too often–otherwise, your opponents could catch on and make you pay. But, the right shot at the right moment could make all the difference in the match.
#5 - The flick speedup
This shot is generally used in a dinking situation where all the players are up in the kitchen. To perform the shot, we’re going to take back our paddles like on an ordinary dink, but as you bring it forward, instead of hitting a dink shot, we’re going to flick our wrists at the last moment. If done well, this can catch your opponent off guard with a quick drive shot.
This quick flick can be much more effective than pulling your club back like you would on a regular drive. It can be done with a forehand or backhand, but most perform it more successfully with a forehand. That moment of surprise is what you’re aiming for, making this shot so effective.
Another aspect to consider is where to drive the shot. Often, the best spot to aim at is the person directly in front of you. Especially if you just had a volley going cross-court. You make it seem like you are aiming across the court again, but instead, you flick your wrist, so the ball goes directly at the opponent standing in front of you. Hitting it directly down the middle, between your opponents, is also a great spot to aim.
#4 - The disguised dropshot
Deceptiveness is the name of this article for a reason. The next shot reverses the previous one. This time, you want to take notice of your opponents playing back toward the baseline and bring your paddle back as though you’re about to drive the ball at them. But, instead of a drive, you perform a quick drop shot that lands just inside their kitchen that they can’t quite get to.
This shot works very well against slower opponents with less mobility. But, there are three other situations where you can use this shot effectively.
The first is off the bounce, and your opponent accidentally hits the ball too high on their dropshot. You can fake the drive and slow down your paddle–the key to this shot’s effectiveness.
The second situation is off a higher, easier volley. If your opponent pops the ball between your shoulders and hips, your go-to shot is to go hard at their feet. But, sometimes, you can add deception by acting like you’re about to do that, then drop it short.
The last way to use this shot is off an overhead ball. This gives you a perfect opportunity to drop the ball short instead. Simply go back and raise your paddle as you would for your slam, then just softly tap the ball over the net. If you get an overhead shot opportunity and your opponents are back, they will likely start going even farther back to prepare for your slam shot.
#3 - The lob
The most common way lobs are used is when all players are at the front of the net. This shot is great in this situation when everyone is dinking and not expecting a ball over their heads. The key is ensuring you aren’t telegraphing the lob shot–similar to the wrist flick. Take the paddle back like you’re about to dink, but flick the ball over the other team’s heads at the last second. This finesse shot takes a lot of practice to master, but it is a fantastic shot to have when you do. Hit it too soft and give your opponents an easy overhead. Too hard, and it’ll go out the back. The last key for this shot is to try and hit the lob over your opponent’s backhand. Hitting it over their forehand makes it more likely they can reach it with their paddle.
#2 - The poach
When you’re at the kitchen with your partner, you are typically responsible for the balls that come through the spot you’re standing in. But, if timed correctly, you can snap-shot a ball that was meant for your partner by crossing over to their side while your opponent isn’t expecting it. You “poach” the ball from your partner, but you do it with the best intentions.
Players use this shot mainly when they are on the serving team. When one player hits their third shot, the other player creeps their way to the kitchen. This works because if the third shot is good and the player who hit it is still back, the other team will likely hit a ball at the player who’s still back. The player at the kitchen can anticipate this and cross over to pick the ball out of the air with a strong volley shot between or away from their opponents. The downside is that if the third shot isn’t good and you’ve committed to the poaching, the other team will have a wide-open gap to hit the ball to for an easy point.
Poaching is risky, but if you pull it off, it can be the shot of the day.
#1 - The spin serve
One of the most annoying shots in pickleball is a really good spin serve. Many players don’t even use it because it can ruin a match or upset your opponent. Unless you’re a pro, it’s typically not a great idea to make everyone you play with hate playing against you. However, if you need a point and don’t think you’ll lose your regular playing buddies, you should try this infamous shot.
The goal of this serve is to spin the ball off in your hand so that when it hits a surface (like your paddle or the ground), it jets off in one direction. 2022 rules dictate that you can only spin the ball with one hand, so it takes some practice. And interestingly enough, this spin is so effective that it’s completely banned on the PPA tour.
Want to see how the spin serve is done? Check out this video from Enhance Pickleball.
Now go out there and get those easy points!
