I’m struggling to know what part of my game I should focus on. I love watching players with great technique but I see players that move well winning a lot of matches. I’m 35 and only have about 10 hours a week to work on my game. What do you suggest?
- Dean, FL
Hi Dean,
It’s a question as old as sport: footwork vs. technique. The answer lies in the requirements of the game and in the case of pickleball, technique is very important — but footwork is vital.
Here’s why:
Time and space dictate what you can do on the pickleball court. Can you get to a ball in time? Can you close the space so your opponent can’t attack there?
These are two paramount questions that are constantly being asked and answered. We want to answer “yes” to those questions as often as possible and between the two components — footwork and technique — only improved footwork enables this.
When you watch 2.5 pickleball you will see a massive variety of techniques. When you watch 4.5 pickleball, you will see markedly less variety, and at the professional level, even less. What you won’t see at the pro level however is carbon copies of each other. There are players like Riley Newman, with very extreme grips and seemingly strange techniques, and players like Catherine Parenteau, who stroke the ball with the grace of a seasoned ballerina. What do they have in common? Effective movement.
Footwork is the catalyst that enables good technique to be applied. Without it, no amount of skill in stroke production is useful. Have you ever worked on your 3rd shot drop on a ball machine? If you have, then you may have also been surprised that the picture-perfect technique you performed was nowhere to be found the next time you played a game. One reason for this is because the ball machine practice likely didn’t include the movement challenge that an actual return of serve does.
In contrast to this example, let’s imagine you used that same amount of time to work on your footwork: Plyometrics, ladder drills, court sprints, to name a few. After the training effect has taken place, usually at least 24 hours, your muscles, tendons, and ligaments have developed to effectively increase your power, speed and agility. Armed with this you will now have a greater chance to not just retrieve difficult balls, but you will be able to get to normal balls and have time to spend on some luxury items that you see pros do. Creating a wide balanced base, loading the legs to create effective ground force, and coiling the upper body to give angular momentum all take time…time that you now have, because of your footwork training.
The theory I’m discussing is the reason why singles players tend to have better 3rd shot drops than pure doubles players. A return of serve can come quickly and only the best movers can still get to the ball and have time to use high-quality technique. By this rationale, if you don’t want to put a lot of effort into footwork training but could stomach a few games of singles each week, then you could improve your footwork organically and still have time for some technique training.
Ultimately, great technique follows great footwork, not the other way around. So you put your eggs in the footwork basket first and foremost. When you feel your movement has significantly improved, then switch your attention to stroke production/technique.
Happy New Year Dean!
- Morgan Evans
Learn more about Morgan Evans and CoachME pickleball.
Do you have a question for Morgan? Submit it here.
