The Secret to Success in Pickleball, According to a Pro

Pickleball players very often focus on the paddles and hand movement when they are playing pickleball and they forget about their positioning. In fact, footwork is really the key to success in pickleball. Excelling in footwork enables you to hit more efficiently and be in a better position for both resetting and striking.

Players should generally position themselves 1-2 inch behind the kitchen line to prepare for a dink. If the dink is too short, putting one foot inside the kitchen line and the other outside the kitchen line is the ideal way to return it; in contrary, if the dink is too deep (e.g., at the kitchen line), you can pivot one foot and step backward with the other to create more space for yourself to return it.

Movement in dinking requires a lot of lateral movement and should lead by your outside leg. One of the frequent mistakes players make is crossing over their legs when returning a dink. For example, if you are right-handed and returning a ball on your right, your left foot might step across before hitting the ball. This is a common habit for players with a tennis background. Crossing-over takes more time and effort to recover, so this movement is generally not necessary to return dinks. Your opposite leg is also in the way of hitting the ball such that players might lose some control on the ball. Minimizing unnecessary movements on the court helps you stay in control and dominate your opponent in the game.

Players should avoid positioning themselves at the far back area of the transition area. (a.k.a No man's land). The transition area is generally defined as the central area between the kitchen line and the baseline. Compared with playing at the baseline or the kitchen line, players it the transition area are required to cover a lot more angles and it's generally more difficult to return. Also, players may experience balls hitting at their feet and they would need to hit a difficult shot from there. It is easy for players to lose balance and requires more time to reset their position. Hence, finding the right footwork and movement is important to get out of the No man’s Land and transition zone as soon as possible.

Resetting is an important concept in pickleball and relates to footwork. The key is the more you are prepared with the footwork, you can stay balanced and 'reset' yourself when you’re not in a good position to go for a big risky shots and simply need to dink back defensively.