Pickleball is becoming more and more popular with tennis players. While having a racquet background gives tennis players a huge advantage in playing pickleball, there are adjustments that need to be made to play pickleball well. Here are some common pickleball mistakes that tennis players tend to make when transitioning to the sport so you can avoid them.
Common Pickleball Mistakes Tennis Players Make
Driving Too Much
The most common pickleball mistake that tennis players make is driving too many balls. Without getting the touch for how much force to apply, too many tennis players hit balls out. Remember that the pickleball court is a lot smaller in size. Driving the ball is also not the best shot selection depending on who your opponents are.
At intermediate to higher levels of pickleball, many regular pickleball players can easily handle and block drives. It is a lot more effective to have good placement of the ball over power. That is why it is important to know how to drop and dink in pickleball.
Not Learning (Or Liking) To Drop And Dink
Learning how to drop and dink is essential to play pickleball well. In pickleball, the team that wins at the kitchen net usually wins the game. But to get to the kitchen requires learning how to drop the ball well into the kitchen so that it is not easily attackable. This will buy you and your partner time to move up.
If your opponents are dropping and dinking, it is also important to know which drops and dinks are attackable. And which ones you will need to dink back. Dinking at the net also allows you and your partner to spread your opponents wide so that you can create gaps between them.
Not Coming Up To The Kitchen Net
In pickleball, most of the battleground is at the kitchen net. Many tennis players tend to stay at the baseline or even in no man’s land. But it is so important to come up to the kitchen net with your partner for court coverage.
You don’t want to give your opponents more angles and room to make shots between you and your partner. If you look at the illustration below, the gap between the two players in Team 1 versus Team 2 is drastically different. Team 1 has a much bigger advantage because of the space created by Player 1 and Player 2 in Team 2.
Using Too Many Spins On The Wrong Balls
Tennis players love to apply spin on the ball, which can be great for certain shots. However, if you love your forehand or backhand slice, make sure it is for the right shot. A slice is great as a serve return because it makes it harder for your opponent to make their third short drop or drive.
Or if your opponent is serving to you with heavy topspin, your slice will send back their spin with additive spin. If you’re making a third shot, you can use a topspin drop if your opponent sliced the ball. But using topspin on a ball coming with topspin is not the same on the wiffleball as it is on a tennis ball. Many of them will go into the net.
You will want to evaluate each shot coming at you before you use a spin shot. Better yet, it is more important to get a simple flat stroke in, rather than to be inconsistent with spin and hit the ball out or into the net.
Trying To Hit Too Many Winners
While the goal is to have winning shots as it is in other racquet sports, winning in pickleball is a lot of being consistent and avoiding unforced errors. Many tennis players try to make a winning shot with every shot. That is whether hitting a big serve return that goes out, driving the third shot out of bounds, or using the wrong shot selection against competent opponents.
It is better to use your high-percentage shots, has good placement, and allow your opponents to make unforced errors. Or wait for the right attackable ball to make your putaway shot.
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