Pickleball Footwork!
Good footwork is critical to advancing your pickleball game!
You’ve got to know when to move forward, when to stop, and when to move to side to side!
I even made a short video which shows the type of footwork you need on the court!
Begin Moving Up
I hang back for the third shot, and watch my partner take it. I see that it’s a decent drop, so I move forward just a bit.
Right before my opponent strikes the ball, I stop so that I’m in position and ready for the fifth shot.
I make a drop into the Kitchen and advance to the line.
And this is all part of the transition game – advancing to the line to take away the advantage of the receiving team!
And yes, that fifth shot was made in No-Person’s-Land! As I’ve remarked many times at my bootcamps, you’ve got to go through No-Person’s-Land to get to the Promised Land (i.e., the Kitchen!)!
At the Line
So that’s moving up to the line. And your footwork doesn’t stop there!
When at the Kitchen going into a dink rally, that’s where you need to move side to side.
Notice that when my opponent goes crosscourt to my partner, I shift all the way over to the middle of the court to cover the middle third alley!
And when my partner goes back crosscourt, I shift over to get in front of the ball.
You can’t just stand in the middle of your box! You’ve got to move side to side to stay in front of the ball! This will prevent your opponent from being able to push the ball behind you, because that’s when the trouble really starts!