Backhand Slice Drop 💥

jamesignatowichcoaching

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Hit your 4th’s like Jimmy 👌

When someone leaves a drop a little above net height, or even one that bounces a little high, you’re obligated to hit that shot as effective as possible. It might be your best chance to win the point. Where you hit it and how hard is determined by your own positioning and balance, the ball height, and how close your opponents are to the kitchen. Taking advantage of this even slight opportunity is important at the higher levels, because it can mess up the rhythm of the opposing team. If they hit an average drop and waltz in, but then you tattoo their chest, they might think they have to start doing a little more with it, causing a few more errors. They might also be less inclined to set up crash plays. One thing I love about Max Freeman’s development is how fearless he is with this shot. He makes TOO MANY errors still, but he will tie it together, and everyone knows if they leave it hanging to him it’s getting crushed. Start working on your aggressive rolls/flicks as well as off the bounce transition attacks. Down the line and crosscourt transition games with no scoring is best for this so the net player is free to make mistakes.

2 Handed Backhand Dink with Ryan 😍

The two handed backhand dink is becoming to most useful shot in pickleball. Gone are the days of people only hitting slice dinks. Let’s go over the reasons why you should hit the two hander, and also the correct technique.

Why Hit With Two:

1. With a two handed backhand you have the ability to speed up the ball at any time. If you only hit with one hand, your opponent can lean into the kitchen because they know you cannot speed up the ball. With you hands on the paddle you become a lot more scary.

2. Two handed topspin dinks are much harder to deal with than a slice. The ball will roll away from your opponent with topspin, while if you are only hitting slice, the ball will have backspin. There is no pressure added with a slice backhand; you are essentially just “making” the ball. If you want to be a more offensive player you need to incorporate two hands.

3. You can get more control with a two handed backhand than with one. With two hands, your paddle is steady and there is no chance you flick your wrist while you hit. On the other hand, people who slice their dinks often flick their wrist to finish the shot, causing the ball to pop up.

Technique: How to hit this shot

• There are a copy key factors you want to consider when hitting this shot. The first thing is making sure you are behind the ball. If you are reaching, the two handed backhand is going to be a tough shot. You are also going to want to load your legs down. That is how you get under the ball so that you have the control you need to go cross court OR down the line. The lower you get, the more likely you will make the shot. Lastly, if you watch the video attached, you can see me and James are in a semi-open stance. This is so we can change the direction of the ball if we need to. If we are in a closed stance then it will be hard to go cross. If we are completely open it’s hard to go line and speedup. Semi open is right in between and allows for more options.

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