Basic Rules and Gameplay - a New Video

I have been posting about a series of new videos from Pure Pickleball that cover topics previously discussed but are worthy of updating the topic.

Today's topic is basic rules and gameplay as covered in my prior posts Doubles Scoring and Player Positioning and Rallies and Faults. The name of the video is How To Play Pickleball: Part 3 of 3 - Rules and Gameplay.

Serving and Scoring - a New Video

Yesterday I posted about a series of new videos from Pure Pickleball that cover topics previously discussed but are worthy of updating the topic.

Today's topic is serving and scoring as covered in my prior posts Service Rules and Doubles Scoring and Player Positioning. The name of the video is How To Play Pickleball: Part 2 of 3 - Serving & Scoring.

The Court - a New Video

I am always on the lookout for new videos - even if they repeat information already presented. Pickleball is exploding and videos supporting it are always improving. I came across a few new videos from Pure Pickleball that are very well done and they will be the topic of the next several days.

First up is a video discussing the court called How To Play Pickleball: Part 1 of 3 - Intro & Definitions. It is a quick overview and aligns with my post The Court.

Overhead Drills with Lobs

Overhead drills work in conjunction with lob practice. An effective overhead drill requires a good lobber to feed the ball properly. But these drills benefit both players as one gets to practice overhead smashes while the other gets to practice a lob return off the overhead smash.

Drill 1 for 2 players – The lobbing feeder stands at the baseline and hits lobs to the overhead player across the net. The feeder tries to hit high lobs that land between the kitchen line and ¾ court. The other player tries to hit overhead shots back at the feeder so that the ball can be lobbed back. The overhead shot should not be hit at full power. The focus should be on form and control instead. Rotate the feeder and overhead roles often.

Drill 2 for 3 or more players – Two lobbing feeders hit lobs to a single player across the net as in Drill 1. The overhead player practices hitting shots to the center and both corners of the court. After 4 consecutive successful shots, the overhead player can try to win the rally with more emphasis on power and angles. Players rotate roles regularly, including rotating in from the sidelines.

Volley Drills

Volley drills can be very similar to dink drills since the player positioning is the same. I will link to that post, Dinking Drills, rather than repeat the entire discussion here. Obviously, the shots should be kept in the air rather than letting them bounce.

The simplest volley drill for 2-4 players is to stand at the kitchen line and volley the ball back and forth. Each player should hit the ball to the other team such that the return volley can be made. The goal is to have a rally with a large number of continuous hits and not to hit winners.

The speed and target for volleys in drills is dependent on skill levels. For beginning players, the drill will include slow and high volleys hit mostly to the forehand side. But a player’s abilities must be tested to improve skills. There is no better time to do so than in drilling. Even beginning players should intersperse harder and backhand volleys into the drill regimen.