I've thought that going over the requirements of a player in a specific situation, might be worth talking about. If you're new to the game, these are things you are expected to know in a more advanced game. Some of this is obvious and some is not. I wish I would have known about such items when I started out. There is a summary at the end.
The most important position is probably the guy at the net when a point is started. One should note that there is only one person at the net and there are things that can be done from that position and no other.
First, watch the serve as it comes to partner. You are allowed and encouraged to call the serve out if it's out. That allows partner to concentrate on just hitting a return. Just turn your head for this task as you want to be facing the other side of the net real soon.
Second, your partner returns the serve and you might have to duck to let it go past. You are now going to change your location on court based on where your partner's service return will land. There are three cases here. First is that partner returned down the middle. This is an excellent choice by partner and is considered to be the classic return location. In this case you will move very closely to the center T of the court. The reasons for this will be discussed later.
If the service return goes straight across the net, let's assume to your right, for this explanation. When the ball is in this corner, you should move even more to the center of court, perhaps getting a foot well to the right of the T. Partner should cover the side line, so the middle needs additional coverage and you are expected to provide it.
Third case, the service return goes cross court. In this case you must move to cover the sideline, with the service returner moving to cover the middle.
Those are the basic movements and note that in all cases that some movement is required. It's rare that your ready position at the net will be perfect for the return.
Let me talk about the ready position. As mentioned above you want to be able to watch the serve hit into the service area. Also you usually will be moving towards the center of the court, so you might was well start several steps towards the center of the court. Hanging out at the side line puts you out of position for most shots and will require more movement as the point develops. Frequently the third shot will be well over the net. Be prepared to hit this shot down into the court. Also, if it's hit hard, high, or has a lot of under spin you want to duck and let it go out. This happens a lot, please watch for it!
OK, now the point will develop quickly. You are in position and your team has good coverage of the middle of the court. Your partner will have joined you at the net after returning the serve -- do I need to mention that?
Note that the sideline(s) might not be fully covered, but the middle might have coverage from both you and partner. This is valid and what you want. You and partner will be shifting side to side as the play goes on, with less coverage to the far cross court sideline. This is very strong play as the out boundary provides its own protection to the cross court shot. I'm not saying you won't be beat here, but the cross court shot is technically difficult and can't be hit very hard. Note that some players can hit this shot and usually you will notice this behavior and you can adjust your play with that knowledge. That is a discussion for a future post. As for now, ignore it, and work on middle coverage.
There is one more thing to discuss and it's the most important one. All middle shots (with the exception of the cross court scenario mentioned above) should be handled by the net guy. The reasons for this are several. Firstly he is already there and dancing on the kitchen line and has his paddle up and can easily cover the entire middle of the court even extending well into partner's side. Secondly partner might not be all the way up to the net so aggressive coverage is a help to partner.
The net guy must be ready to move into partner's side and thus good foot work is vital. The big error to move a little bit, then stretch to hit a ball. Frequently that will result in a miss hit. Move the feet and get as close to the ball as you can. I see this a lot and tell partner that I want him to hit this ball, but make sure he's in position to hit a good shot.
A team really wants that net guy to hit the fourth shot. This is another reason to avoid a cross court service return. A center return or somewhat down the line makes it difficult for the third shot to be hit cross court. That gets more shots to the middle, where the coverage is, by design, very aggressive and you will defend this shot from the net, while the opponents are still at the baseline -- it won't get any better than this and this is the essence of the game of pickleball, if you control the kitchen, you control the point.
Summary, as the initial "at the net guy":
- Watch for service errors
- Move towards the ball, usually move more middle
- Expect to take the fourth shot if it's near the middle
- Be ready to hit this shot down at someone's feet, i.e., paddle up
- Have your feet ready to move in front of partner if required
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