Transcription
Here are the top seven habits that will take your game wherever you are now to a 5.0 player.
The first tip is being proactive, but not as the player who's actually hitting the ball, but as the off-ball player. This doesn't get talked about a lot at all. So, we got to make sure that when you are the player not hitting the ball, you know what to do. This is actually one of the biggest skills that you have to learn what to do because that will help your partner out when you can be in the court positionally well and you can be stable and looking to be a threat against your opponents.
One example of being proactive as the off-ball player is whenever that ball is cross-court from you. Doesn't matter if you hit it, your partner hit it, but whenever that ball is cross-court, you have priority of being in the middle. Making sure you shut that middle down and making your opponents know that if they speed up there, you will be right on top of it and sending it back at the feet.
Second example is to make sure that when your partner and his or her opponent is in that cross-court dinking exchange, that you are being active. What I mean by active is that you're constantly going to be reaching in and looking to take that ball out of the air, potentially poach, and just to make your opponent's cross-court dink that much harder while you're applying a ton of pressure.
The third example of being a very good, smart, proactive partner is making sure that when your partner is working their way through transition and hitting their third shot, you are actually going to be creeping forward slowly, okay? Slowly, but smartly and efficiently. Making sure that you're watching their positioning and their shots. If their shot is low, you advance forward towards the ball, cutting off that gap. And if it's high, you back up and you look to defend. But when you're moving up and advancing early, you're applying a ton of pressure on your opponents and making their strike zone to your partner smaller, helping you with that success.
The next tip to get you to a 5.0 player is to make sure that when you get that higher ball, instead of thinking, "Oh, now I have the chance to hit this ball hard." Instead think, "Let's now hit the ball down." There is a huge difference in both of those. How often has it happened to you where you get this ball, you think you can put it away? So, what is your mindset? "Oh, let's hit it as hard as I possibly can." Probably hasn't gone too well all of the times. Maybe you find the net, maybe you hit it deep and force an error.
Instead, what I want you to think about is I've earned that high ball maybe around shoulder level and we're going to get this ball at the feet. Players are very good at defending. So, if we just focus on hitting the ball hard, you're eventually going to send the ball out or force an error upon yourself. Instead, make them hit one more difficult ball cuz remember, you have a high ball, you're the player who's on offense, they have a very tough position already. Don't make it harder on yourself and lose the point then and there. Just simply get the ball down and make them hit up.
One of the best skills you can actually have in pickleball is discipline. So, making sure that when you're getting that higher ball, you have the discipline to just find the feet. You may not win the point on that exact shot, but chances are you're going to get a better ball later in that rally, maybe like an overhead, then you can look to hit that ball hard down at the feet and win the point.
Real quick, a lot of these habits come down to one basic skill and that's knowing how to attack at the kitchen line. We've built a free attacking masterclass just for you. Make sure you check out the link below or scan the QR code.
Tip number three is making sure that you are aware and not hitting out balls. In games, I see this all the time. Players wind up to hit a ball, they crush it right into the net, and I'm just thinking, "They could have let that ball go out and had a free point." So, a lot of the times in pickleball, the best shot to hit is not hitting the ball at all. You have to recognize that the court on your side from the net to the baseline is 22 ft. 22 ft, that is it. So, even a ball sometimes that's crossing me right here at hip level could very likely be going out. Make sure we're aware of their backswing, their balance when they hit the shot, and making sure we just know in general how hard they hit the ball. If we're playing against the banger, your goal is not always, "Oh, how do I get a paddle on this ball that's coming at me really fast?" It's more so, "What ball should I be handling? What ball should I just let go and fly by?"
The one tip I have for you to make sure that you're not hitting too many out balls is to be aware of your ready position. What I mean by this is when you're at the kitchen line, we all know our good ready position, paddle up right above the net level to make sure we're ready for those lower shots. But, as we move back into the court, my ready position is gradually going to lower. The reason is is when I'm back near the baseline, I don't need to hit a shot up here anymore. All those shots that I would be hitting with that high of a ready position are going deep. So, you want to make sure that our paddle is in the most likely area where the ball's going to go to and the ball that I actually have to worry about, which from the baseline is the ball at my feet.
Tip four for becoming a 5.0 player is making sure that you're eliminating the net as much as you can. And what I mean by that is make your opponents hit one more ball. Doesn't matter who's across the net from you. Doesn't matter if it's your friend or Ben Johns. You still have a better chance of beating that player while making them hit a shot than testing the net. The net always wins. Try your best to eliminate the net, focus on making your shots, and working the point from there.
Whether you like it or not, a lot of the times in the pickleball rally, you're going to find yourself on defense and in an uncomfortable position. This is absolutely not the time to go for a perfect low margin ball right over the net. You're going to find yourself hitting the net, the top of the tape so often. So, making sure especially when you recognize you're in a tough position, whether your opponent is pushing you back or you're reaching out for a ball, whatever it is, make your opponents play another ball and just simply stop striving for perfection.
Tip number five is to figure out what you are good at and what your strengths are. Now, this might seem simple, but have you really thought about it? Normally, players are really good at figuring out, "Oh, what my weakness are." And they can list off so many different weaknesses of theirs. But, if you really want to get to that higher level and keep building your game, finding what you're good at and doing your best to play to your strengths is going to be huge.
For instance, my favorite shot has always been a backhand roll or a backhand flick. This allows me to have confidence anytime I see a backhand coming in that I can strike the ball cleanly and I can put immediate pressure on my opponents. Another example of finding your strengths are for instance your serve. This one's pretty basic and easy, but it's huge for an advantage because if you have a really good serve, you got to use it. You I got to go for it and you got to make sure that you're putting pressure on your opponents. That's going to allow you an easier third shot, allowing you more success to the line and winning more games.
Now, just to be clear, I'm not saying to just forget about all the other shots that you're maybe not good at. We still want to work on those, but especially in tournament settings or the high pressure situations, we really want to make sure that you are hitting your most confident shots. And by going for those, you're going to win more and find better success.
Tip number six is to prioritize improving your counterattacks. So, as the game has continued to evolve and change, the game has gotten faster and players love to attack. We've all played against the so-called bangers, and there's not a great way to stop them until we actually give them a reason to stop. And the way we get them to stop is by sending the ball back at them just as hard as they're sending it at you. Now, this might seem a little bit scary for some players standing right in there when there's pace coming at you, but the reality is is that players will continue attacking you until you show them that you can put an end to it and get it at their feet.
So, one quick tip for if you're struggling with your counterattacks is actually that it really helps me, it's your mindset going into counterattacks. I want your mindset to be your ready position is saying and showing, I dare you to speed this up. That's what you're saying to your opponent every time you hit a ball to them, cuz the moment you let back and lay off, maybe your paddle starts to drop down, chances are they're going to speed it up and you're not going to be ready. So, next time you're on the court, make sure every time you hit a ball to them, expect them to speed it up, and that ready position is going to say, I dare you to speed it up at me. That way you can put the ball back at their feet before they even have a chance to get another back.
Tip number seven for getting to a 5.0 player is making sure you are focusing on your percentages of getting to the kitchen line. One of the biggest misconceptions in pickleball is, "Oh, I have to get to the line as fast as I can." If you're trying to get there quickly, you're going to run yourself into a lot of trouble, and you're still not going to come out on top of a lot of rallies. Make sure instead your mindset is, "I'm going to get to line efficiently and smartly. Making sure that even if I pop a ball up, that is okay by me. I'm going to stall back at the baseline. I'm going to stay for one or two shots knowing that if I try and charge in on a higher shot, their chances of finding my feet are a lot better and I'm going to have a tough ball to defend."
One of the best ways that you can make sure that you're getting from the baseline to the kitchen line safely is simply your mindset going into the transition zone. A lot of players fear the transition zone and okay, it's maybe not the most ideal place to be in, but you have to be okay once you're there. If we go into panic mode every time that we entered the transition zone, we're going to hit sloppy shots and we're going to get you or your teammate killed. We got to make sure that we're okay when we get to transition. If a ball comes at our feet, we stay soft, we lift the ball over, and we work from there. I don't care if I get to the kitchen line in one shot or nine shots. If I get there, that is a success.