The Net Is Not Your Friend

Pickleball: Know Your Personal Limits

Jeff

In a recent post, I wrote about the net and how players shouldn’t give up on the ball when it is heading for the net because it just might go over. Here is the link The Net is Not Your Friend.

I want to make sure that everyone understands the concept of personal limits related to Pickleball and any sport for that matter. Only you know how well your knees are doing and how your back feels, etc. When I play Pickleball, there are some players who have difficulty bending down to pick up the ball yet they continue to play. Is it safe? Yes it is because they know their personal limits and they don’t try for balls they know they cannot reach.

There are a number of times I am playing against opponents and they make a “near perfect” lob when I am at the net. It is not too high, just over my head and headed for my backhand, rear corner. This is a ball I would have trouble getting if I am leaning forward at the net. What do I do? I sometimes just say “good shot!” and let it go. They win the point if it lands in. I know I cannot get that ball so I don’t try for it.

In essence, I live to play another point. I don’t get hurt. It is only a point after all and there are other points to be won or lost. It is important that we all understand our personal limits and don’t try to do too much especially those who, like me, are past retirement and heading toward the seventh decade worth of birthdays.

It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try for a ball you are fairly certain you can get. It means understand which balls may be too great a risk to try for under the current circumstances and with your physical limits.

Other than that, have a great time and keep up the Pickleball playing

A Pickleball Thought -The Net Is Not Your Friend!

Jeff

On the surface Pickleball seems like a fairly simple sport, but don’t be fooled! Pickleball’s basic elements are simple, but it is far from a “simple sport.”

Almost every skill needed to excel in other racket/paddle sports is needed in Pickleball. When you take into account the non volley zone and the fact that the ball can go around the net and still be a valid winning shot (if it lands appropriately in the opponent’s court), one might be able to argue that it is even a bit more complex, but let’s not go there.

I am a relative beginner when it comes to Pickleball having played for just under one year. I hadn’t played a racket sport in nearly forty years before I discovered Pickleball fun! So take this as it is, i.e. from a beginner’s point of view.

Over the year, I have learned a lot. I have made many mistakes, but I have tried to learn from those errors. One thing that I have come to appreciate is that the Pickleball net is not on your side. It is not your friend.

What I mean by that statement is this. I often see players watch the ball as it heads for the top of the Pickleball net and on both sides, play seems to slow or stop. So what is wrong with this picture? The problem is that the ball is going to end up on one side of the net or the other and it might remain playable.

Both sides need to be ready to react. Continue to play the ball as though it is going to be a valid shot in the event that it does make it over the net. Don’t give up on the play!

If you are prepared, you might be able to salvage one or two points in a given game just by being able to return a ball that sneaks its way over the net and remains “playable.”

I have lost a number of games by just one or two points that have escaped my team in this fashion. If I had only been ready to respond as the ball fell just on “our” side of the net, I may have salvaged that one more point.

Watch the better players and notice that even when a ball hits the net, they are in line with the ball, paddle in hitting position and waiting to respond.

Don’t give up on the play. Continue the play until the ball is “dead.”