The Top 5 FASTEST Ways To Improve Your Pickleball Game - Tips & Tricks
There are a lot of areas of pickleball to work on, and for many players, the goal is to get better as quickly as possible. Today’s article (and video at the bottom) covers the top five areas that we think will help you improve your pickleball game the fastest.
#5 - Stop taking such a big swing on your return
Players, especially those beneath the 4 and 5 levels, tend to take big swings on their returns, similar to how they hit their drives. What’s not taken into consideration is that these two shots are completely different and have entirely different goals. On the return shot, the main goal should be to hit the ball deep. Hitting it deep gives you time to move forward, and it can prevent your opponent from hitting a good third shot. Big swings can work sometimes, but they can also cause you to make a lot of unnecessary mistakes.
If your opponents are hitting hard deep serves at you, using a compact stroke as you move through the ball with your legs is best. To do this, shorten your backswing and start a little behind the baseline to give yourself space to move forward before hitting the ball. Even though your goal is to hit a deep return, this doesn’t mean that you have to add more power. A shortened backswing allows you to hit the ball with the center of your paddle more often, automatically providing more power to the ball. Adding height to your return helps you get the ball deeper as well, giving you more time to get to the kitchen line.
#4 - Stop attacking balls when you’re in a poor position
Another common error among players is putting themselves in poor attacking positions. In most sports, it makes sense to score as quickly as possible. But, in pickleball, you have to think of it like a game of chess. You can’t go for the kill immediately, or you risk losing a lot of pieces. Instead, learn to set up the kill shot. Going big on every shot will force many unwanted errors and give your opponents opportunities to take the point away from you.
If you are comfortable dropping the ball inside your opponents’ kitchen, then playing up at the net makes a lot of sense. But, if you’re not there yet, and you find yourself uncomfortable, then playing back a little might make more sense. This allows you to go after softer hit balls and play them on the bounce. It also gives you more time to recover.
#3 - Stop hiding your weaknesses
Inevitably, there’s going to be something you feel like you are not very good at. Whether it’s the backswing, the volley, or a third shot drop, players tend to start avoiding these shots during games. We believe this is a huge mistake. The issue is that if you don’t force yourself to try these shots, then you’re never going to improve, and your opponent will predict what you’re going to do, making it more difficult for you to win matches. It’s essential to use your strengths as much as possible, but also to go ahead and attempt your weaker areas to improve over time.
You just can’t become a well-rounded player if you never work on the weaker areas of your game.
#2 - Refine your third shot strategy
Mastering the third shot is one of the most vital parts of becoming a strong pickleball player. So many players hit the same third shot in every situation, and that’s a huge mistake. At the lower levels, more players seem to use a drive on their third shot, while at the higher levels, players use more drops on their third shot. The difference is that these players know when to mix it up at the higher levels, and they execute almost every time.
Your third shot strategy should change depending on who you’re playing and your position. To figure out who you’re playing against and how they like to play, you should test out a few different shots against them early in the game. Throw in some drops and drives and see how they respond. Do you notice them always using one side or trying to backhand every shot? Take note of their tendencies early on so you can look for evidence throughout the match that they might go to that shot again and again. Knowing your opponent's actions can help you strategize your own shot selection and score more points.
#1 - Take better advantage of higher balls while you’re at the net
Let’s say you’ve set up your opponent perfectly and put yourself in a position where your opponent hits a high ball while you’re at the net. What do you do? Well, unfortunately, what a lot of players do is give the ball right back instead of going for the putaway. If you have a ball above your shoulder in pickleball, you need to make sure that you give it a good amount of pace and put it in the most challenging spot for your opponent to return it. Obviously, you don’t want to slam it so hard that you lose control, but you want to ensure that your opponent just doesn’t have a good shot back at you.
If your opponents are back, instead of at the kitchen line, your best bet is to go as deep as possible so that they don’t have a shot at it. One of the worst shots you can make is trying to hit through them because they can easily hit it right back.
If the ball isn’t above your shoulder, then you can go for a shot called the roll, where you put spin on the ball and aim it at your opponent’s feet.
Conclusion
This doesn’t cover everything in pickleball, but by implementing these tips into your game, you might be surprised at the transformation your overall pickleball games have. If you’d like to watch the full video, check out the Enhance Pickleball YouTube Channel.
