The more the merrier is what people say! Pickleball played as a double is more fun and competitive than playing as a single player. Although this type of sport is all about fast response, for doubles it’s all about strategy! By strategy, we do not mean whole mind games to win your opponent. We mean fast responses, fast feet, and useful positions to win the ball. Play as a team and focus on the court and ball.
We have written a pickleball strategy guide that can help you understand how to play pickleball doubles.
The first thing you need to do is find an adequate partner, however, that is not based on strategy but luck. Here are eight useful pickleball doubles strategies that will help you and your partner win every game!
1. Non-volley line strategy:
Try to stay near the non-volley zone. At least one of you or both of you should stay here throughout the game. This helps to have better control of the court. Plus your feet can not be targeted by opponents so there are fewer chances of missed shots. You Can also check the Best Pickleball Shirts.
For players with less mobility and speed might tend to stay back which gives the opponent advantage. So make sure as soon as you hit the ball try to get close to the non-valley line with maximum speed. The team near the non-valley line always has better control plus you will see that strategy in lots of professional pickleball doubles matches.
Just whenever you serve the ball, your partner should charge towards the non-volley line. Then next your partner will hit the ball and you can charge forward. You can also check Onix Graphite Z5 Pickleball.
2. Pushing opponent team back from the non-volley line:
Same as you want your team near, you need to push the opponent team back. This strategy ensures four things:
- Your opponent’s shot might not reach your court area hence our team wins a point.
- The opponent team will have less control over the ball.
- The opponent will get more close to the baseline and might fall out of it. Hence you win a point.
- Their feet will be visible so you can aim at them.
Doing this strategy requires good hand control and swing power as it is one of the advanced pickleball double strategies. Make sure to send deep shots to your opponent team when applying this strategy. This will allow you to run toward the non-volley line too which will give your team an upper hand. Also, check the What is Pickleball Stacking?
The thing not to do when doing this strategy gives short shots. Also, you should avoid going towards the baseline.
3. Aim for holes:
Focus on the opponent’s team placement and look for the “hole”. The hole is the area that is not in reach of both opponent players so it will likely be missed. It is likely the middle area that will confuse players. However, it’s not middle every time it might be in a corner or near a non-volley line. Shot the ball anywhere away further from both opponent players
4. Drop-shot strategy:
For your third shot try doing a drop shot. Remember your opponent team also wants to stay in the non-volley zone. So for the third short, if you are the serving team, you will likely be further from the non-volley zone. While your opponent is near it. If you drop shot ideally in the non-volley zone then the team might miss it! Even if they do hit this will allow your partner to run up near the non-volley line which will give your team the upper hand.
5. Hitting on feet level of opponent:
So if one opponent player fails to get to the non-volley line, you do not need to drop the shot. Just aim at the back opponent’s left foot. This will force the opponent to do backhand serve which will mess their flow. You Can also check the Best Pickleball Machines.
Aiming at the back opponent’s feet in any position is a good strategy as well! Keeping them away from the non-volley line helps in doing this.
6. Try maintaining upper hand:
If your opponent team players are near the baseline make sure they stay there. Plus try looking for their weakness whilst focusing on the ball. You can do this by avoiding low percentage shots from the baseline.
7. Dinking:
Try dink shots safely, this will avoid giving other teams a chance of offensive shots. And if your opponent is using this same strategy try aiming at the backhand. This will cause them to panic if they are not professionals. Also, read How to Practice Pickleball Alone?
Dinking allows minimum chances of your opponent sending you a long deep shot. This will help you stay close to the non-volley zone as well!
8. Placement strategy:
The strategy is basically how you and your partner should move. Instead of dividing placement control over two divided portions of the court. You should try moving in unison with your partner. Just as you are looking for a hole so are they. So make sure there are no holes and you move in unison as if you are linked together.
Ideal spots and strategies for different placemats:
When serving:
When serving one should be close to the baseline and the other should be near the non-volley line. This helps to set a better flow of the game and hit the ball easily. Avoid service faults at all costs! The best strategy is to aim at the center of the box diagonally.
When service returns:
For service returns, aim slightly further from baseline and in the middle of the court opposite of where you are shooting from. This will force the right-handed player to use the backhand. It’s also called cross-court serve.
For the third shot:
Play drop shot. If you do not know how to then read the above drop shot strategy for this. You should practice drop shots regularly to master them.
For drop shots:
When your opponent hits you with a clever drop shot, they must be charging forward. Unless they get the speed they won’t be able to reach it when u hit the ball back. The best strategy for that is to hit to aim the shot at the left foot of the left player. Basically hitting a low shot at the backhand. If he returns it then you can start using dink shots and if he doesn’t you get a point. It’s a win-win situation just be ready to serve at all times and stay focused. Also, check the What is a Pickleball Made of?
When your opponent is at the net:
Give soft shots so they will not be able to shoot offensively. When you are not near the non-volley zone you will not be able to do dink shots. So for this try aiming for their non-volley zone. And in the meantime after hitting the ball you can charge forward to the non-volley zone.
When your opponent is back:
Make sure to keep the opponent at the back. Avoid soft and non-volley zone shots at all costs. Just aim at their feet while they are back as their feet are easily visible. You Can also check the Best Graphite Pickleball Paddles.
Conclusion – Pickleball Doubles Strategy:
We hope you found this helpful to understand pickleball strategies for doubles. Final words we would like to say to communicate with your partner. Shout words like “got it” or “mine”, so you can have a better understanding and control. And practice together regularly. Practice makes perfect so we highly advise practising. Mastering these pickleball strategies techniques can help you excel in the game.
