Love them or hate them, bangers in pickleball are here to stay.
Maybe you are one or you’ve been one or maybe you’re in the camp that likes to play almost exclusively with soft game shots.
Any way you slice it, you need to remember that lots of pickleball players like to hit the ball hard and more are coming to the game every day because let’s face it…whacking the heck out of the ball just feels good.
There's just something really satisfying about it which for many is part of the appeal of pickleball.
Unlike tennis, if you hit it that hard, it's probably going over the fence. In pickleball...it stays in!
For many players, if one can hit hard AND win points and games on top of that, well... that just too good of an opportunity to pass up and pickleball offers that at a certain level.
It's a win-win.
So the challenge then becomes… how do we deal with these hard hitters once and for all?
The answer is…
STRONG and CONTROLLED volleys.
You need to move forward and make your way up to that NVZ line which may seem counterintuitive because they’re hitting hard
BUT…
Because they’re hitting hard, the ball is coming relatively high on your body since they have to clear the net. It’ll often come at least waist high if you are at or approaching the NVZ line.
You simply have to take that shot out of the air and block it back at them, preferably at their lower body.
Keep doing that and you’ll win because strategically, you’re making the smarter play. You’re getting high contact points from close up and they’re getting low contacts points from further back in the court.
The deck is stacked in your favor.
They’re already providing all the speed.
You don’t have to do much, you just have to knock it back to them and keep it low and that takes CONTROL.
In this video, I dive deep on how to gain total control over your pickleball volleys. Gain this skill to beat bangers once and for all:
Gain Solid Volleys For Beating Bangers - Click Here! >>
Happy Pickling!
Nicole Havlicek
Prime Time Pickleball