If you’re a 4.0 or higher, this video is just for you.
We’re going to show you some really advanced drills.
In this video/blog, we’re going to show/describe to you four super advanced pickleball drills that you can add to any of your practice sessions.
These drills are designed to work on very specific and advanced skills and you will see that as we break them down.
Big thanks to my friend and drilling partner Drew as we try our best here to show/describe to you how they’re done.
Let’s get started..
Fireball
This first drill is called fireball.
You will have one player start on the even side at the baseline and the other player will start at the non-volley zone on their even side of the court.
The goal of this drill is for the player at the baseline to work on hitting very aggressive serves. The net player will have to make sure that they’re ready at the net.
After each point ends, the server should start on the other side of the court and their partner should also switch sides.
The server should try to hit the most aggressive serve that they can. Here (in the video), you see me hitting with lots of topspin and trying to put as much pace on the ball as I can. I’m trying to force an error from my drilling partner Drew.
The goal of the net player is to try to hit a nice solid volley at the net. They are trying to keep the ball deep and their opponent back if they can.
As you can see, this promotes and rewards hitting very aggressive serves which is a really good thing overall as strong serves will put more pressure on your opponent.
After the serve is struck, it’s a live ball and we will play the remainder of the point out cross court.
Remember both of you should be trying to win the point.
Here (in the video), you see me doing my best to get up to that non-volley zone so that I can get to a neutral formation.
Drew’s responsibility is to try and keep me back and apply lots of pressure on me as he tries to keep the ball low at my feet.
As for scoring, which is really important when drilling, you can use rally scoring to 11 points with the same person serving during the whole drill.
After someone gets to 11, switch roles as the other player serves and their partner starts up at the net.
Terminator
This next drill is called terminator.
One player will start at the non-volley zone and the other will start around the baseline.
The net player will feed a high attackable ball to simulate a weak return.
The player at the baseline will step in and drive this ball as they would if they were hitting an offensive third shot drive.
The player driving the ball should do their best to keep the ball low to the net if they can and try to stay aggressive and win the point.
The player at the net should do their best to neutralize that initial attack and try to volley the ball down towards the feet of their opponent and to continue to keep them back if they can.
After the feed from the net player, it is a live ball, and the point will be continued to be played out on one half of the court.
You can do this drill straight on using half the court like we see here or you can do this drill cross court from even side to even side or from odd side to odd side.
This is a great drill that can work on your attacking skills and being a more offensive player on the court.
As for the net player, remember you are purposely setting up a weak attackable ball for your opponent. There will be many times in pickleball where you or your partner will hit a weak or short return and this is just a great drill to practice neutralizing your opponent’s attacks with your volleys.
Just like the last drill you can play to 11 points using rally scoring. After each game to 11, switch roles so that the other player has a chance to work on their offensive drives as well.
Survivor
This next drill is called survivor. For this drill, one player will start at the baseline and the other at the non-volley zone.
The player at the baseline will feed a shallow lob right to the player at the non-volley zone.
As they receive the lob, they will do their best to try and put the ball away with an overhead smash.
The goal of the player at the baseline is to try to survive and stay in the point.
Whether they hit a drop, drive, lob or just block the ball back, they should do whatever they can to play good defense and stay in the point.
Just like the other drills, after the feed, it is a live ball and both players will play the remainder of the point using only one half of the court.
You can play this game straight on or you can play this game cross court, even side to even side or odd side to odd side.
This drill really works on taking advantage of a weak lob and hitting strong overheads.
It also tremendously works on the defense of the player at the baseline.
Just like the last drill you can play this game to 11 points using rally scoring. After each game to 11, switch roles so that the other player has a chance to work on their overhead smashes or defense as well.
Mid Court Crisis
This last drill is called mid-court crisis.
For this drill one player will start at the non-volley zone and the other will start somewhere in the transition zone.
The player in the transition zone will feed an attackable ball that lands and bounces high in the non-volley zone.
This simulates a high third shot drop which should be attacked by the player at the non-volley zone.
This player should do their best to hit the ball with topspin and pace, rolling it down towards the feet of the player in the transition zone.
This obviously puts the player in the transition zone at a major disadvantage which is great as it will work on their defense and also neutralizing the attack from the net player.
They should do their best to hit a reset shot and neutralize the point so that they can give themselves the best chance to win it.
After the initial feed from the player in the transition zone it is a live ball and both players will play the remainder of the point using only one half of the court.
You can play this game straight on or you can play this game cross court, from even side to even side or odd side to odd side.
Just like the last drill you can play this game to 11 points using rally scoring.
After each game to 11, switch roles so that the other player has a chance to work on attacking high balls at the non-volley zone.
This concludes this advanced drills video. We hope you really enjoyed it.
Remember this is more geared to advanced level players 4.0 and above. Happy pickeling!