Pickleball Tips for Beginners
If you’re looking to get started playing the fun and addictive sport that is pickleball, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re a beginner pickleball, this article is packed with helpful pickleball tips and tricks that will encourage you to play with confidence!
Tips To Learn the Basic Strokes
Many tips strokes can be helpful for pickleball beginners. However, the best ones for you will depend on your level of skill and experience. Here are a few of the most important strokes to consider learning as you get started in pickleball:
- The serve: The pickleball serve is the first, but most important stroke in a pickleball rally. It is an important way to set the tone of the game. There are several different types of serves in pickleball, including the drive serve, and the lob serve. However, you must focus on perfecting the basic serving method first. A useful tip is to aim for a deep and consistent serve that lands near the baseline of your opponent’s court.
- The forehand: The forehand is a powerful stroke used to hit the ball in front of the body. It is typically used to hit groundstrokes, as well as volleys and overheads. Some tips for improving your forehand are to keep your eyes on the ball, use a smooth and fluid motion, and follow through with your swing.
- The backhand: The backhand is a stroke used to hit the ball on the opposite side of the body. It is typically hit with a continental grip style. A helpful tip for mastering your backhand is to turn your shoulders and hips sideways, bend your knees slightly, and extend your arm towards the ball.
- The volley: The volley is a stroke used to hit the ball out of the air before it bounces. Volleys can’t be played in the NVZ. Some tips for executing a good volley are to keep your paddle up and ready, step forward with your dominant foot, and hit the ball with a firm wrist.
- The overhead: The overhead is a stroke used to hit the ball when it is above your head. It is typically used when the ball is hit high in the air and is hit with a backhand or a forehand. A useful tip for smashing an overhead is to move quickly under the ball, raise your paddle above your head, and swing downwards with force.
Start with a strong grip
If you’re new to this game, you’ll need to start with a strong pickleball grip as it is one of the best skills for pickleball. With a strong grip, you’ll be able to control the ball better and make more accurate hits.
If you don’t have a strong grip, you’ll be unable to control the ball and will be at a disadvantage when playing against other players.
As a beginner in pickleball, you need to focus on developing a strong and effective grip that will serve as the foundation for your stroke technique. Here are a few techniques for developing a strong grip as a beginner in pickleball:
- Play with different grip styles: There are several different grip styles that you can use in pickleball, including the Continental grip, the Eastern grip, and the Western grip. It is important to try out each of these grips and find the one that feels most comfortable and effective for you.
- Practice your grip: Once you have chosen a grip style, it is important to practice using it consistently. This will help you develop muscle memory and improve your control over the paddle.
- Be mindful of the grip pressure: It is important to maintain a firm, but relaxed grip on the paddle. A grip that is too tight can cause tension in your arms and shoulders, which can negatively impact your stroke technique. Similarly, a light grip will prevent you from winning a game.
All in all, you need to have a strong grip on the pickleball paddle. With regular practice, you’ll have a close-to-perfect grip style.
Focus on your footwork in pickleball game
Footwork is an important aspect of pickleball and is crucial to pay attention to as they learn the sport.
Good footwork can help you to hit better shots by maintaining your balance and positioning on the court. Here are a few pickleball tricks to improve your footwork in pickleball:
- Start by practicing your movement around the court. Work on quick movements of your foot, and focus on keeping your feet aligned with the shoulders.
- Practice your footwork when hitting different shots. For example, when hitting a forehand groundstroke, focus on getting your feet set and balanced before you hit the ball.
- Work on your footwork in game situations. As you play matches, pay attention to your footwork and try to improve it each time you hit the court.
- Consider working with a coach or experienced player who can give you feedback on your footwork and help you develop your skills.
Overall, the key to improving your footwork in pickleball is to practice regularly and focus on developing good technique. With time and dedication, you can become a faster and more efficient player on the court.
- Read more: “Where to stand in pickleball: Positioning Guide”
Keep your eye on the ball when you play
It’s important to keep your eye on the ball when playing pickleball, especially if you want to have a pickleball strategy for beginners. Clear random thoughts from your mind and focus on the movement of the ball.
Always keep an eye on the pickleball and try to analyze where it’s going. This will help you to react quickly and make better decisions.
Keep in mind that the eyes are not the only part of the body that needs to focus. The rest of your body should be in tune with your line of vision.
Therefore, you must stand in an athletic stance such that your knees are slightly bent and your feet and shoulder are properly aligned.
Be ready for anything all the time with “Pickleball Ready Time: Paddle Position & Body Preparation”
Strengthen the Communication With Your Partner
Good communication with your teammate is important in any sport, and pickleball doubles are no exception. Here are a few tips to help you strengthen your communication with your partner on the pickleball court:
- Use verbal cues: Verbal cues such as “yours,” “mine,” or “got it” can help your teammate know whether you’re planning to hit the ball or not. Use verbal cues regularly to avoid confusion on the court.
- Communicate with the eyes: Making eye contact with your teammate can help you communicate nonverbally and let them know about your future moves. This will keep the conversation a secret so that your opponents would not know about your moves.
- Use hand signals: Hand signals can also be a helpful way to communicate with your teammate. For example, you might use a hand signal to indicate that you’re going to hit the ball to a particular area of the court.
Get Familiar With the Vital Rules
It is one of the most important pickleball tips that we can give to you! This pickleball strategy is not difficult to learn.
Try to read all of the rules in an official rulebook, but as a beginner try to focus on a few rules at a time, master them by practicing, and then move on to the next ones,
These are the 5 pickleball rules that you must be familiar:
- Pickleball is played on a rectangular court that has an official area of 20 feet by 44 feet.
- A typical game of pickleball is played until one team has scored 11 points with a lead of two points. A serving team wins a point when the recipient team commits a fault.
- The serve is hit with an underhand stroke and the player must be standing beside the baseline. The serving ball has to be thrown toward the diagonal court.
- The server has to call out the score before making the serve.
- A volleyed shot can not be hit in the kitchen or the non-volley zone. Otherwise, it will be a fault.
Home Court Advantage: How to Practice Your Shot
When they say practice makes a man perfect, they aren’t wrong. Indeed, practice improves your game to the next level. However, you should have a proper setting to practice in.
For instance, you can conduct a practice session on a pickleball court. For this, build a temporary court in your backyard or on top of an old tennis court.
However, if you have money, we suggest you buy a membership to the local pickleball court. You can choose either an indoor or an outdoor one.
There are two ways to conduct practice sessions; by yourself or with a partner. Having a team partner in the practice will help your team-building skills and will also increase your communication with your teammate.
However, if you don’t have a partner, you can practice the pickleball tricks on your own. For this, you can consider using the ball machines that are available in the local courts.
Don’t Forget to Have Fun With Pickleball
If you are just getting into the world of pickleball, chances are that you might be worried about petty things.
Therefore, you need to know that you don’t have to be perfect with a few days of practice. Be gentle in your physical and mental progress.
For that, you must learn to have fun while playing pickleball. Thiis a game that’s comparatively supposed to be easier and more fun than other racquet games.
To make the game more enjoyable, start playing it with your friends and family. Introduce them to this racquet game if they are unaware of it. You can also watch some videos on the pickleball channel to learn from the experts and get inspired by their skills.
Finally
There you have it! We hope that you learned some useful tips today from our official club. We have done our job, now it is up to you to use these tips practically in your matches.
Finally, we advise you to have fun while playing pickleball with your friends and family. Remember to not get too worried about the pro shots or complex rules as a beginner since they’ll only fry your brain. Before you start playing, please read our privacy policy and terms of service to ensure a smooth and safe gaming experience. Thank you for choosing us as your pickleball guide.
Related Article:
- The 15 Pickleball Tips for Intermediate Players You Need to Know
- How To Keep The Ball Low In Pickleball: 11 Steps Low-ball Keeping
- How To Hit a Pickleball Harder: Topspin Hitting Technique
- 14 Common Pickleball Mistakes should Avoid
