Groundstroke — Padel Drills
Groundstrokes — forehands and backhands played after one bounce — are the baseline of padel technique. Unlike tennis, most padel groundstrokes aim to set up net play rather than win points outright.
Technique: step by step
Ready position
Between shots, stand in a split step — feet shoulder-width apart, weight forward on the balls of your feet, racket held centrally. The split step loads your muscles to move in any direction.
Early backswing
Start your backswing the moment you read the direction of the incoming ball — not when it's arriving. In padel, early preparation is more important than in tennis because courts are smaller and balls come faster off glass.
Contact in front of your body
Strike the ball in front of your leading hip — not level with your body (late contact) or too far ahead (loss of control). A cue: you should see the ball and your racket face in your peripheral vision simultaneously at contact.
Follow through toward your target
Swing through the ball toward your intended target. The follow-through determines direction more than the backswing. A compact, directed follow-through produces consistent placement.
Recover to centre
After every groundstroke, recover toward the centre baseline (not the centre of the court — stay near the baseline until you can transition to the net). Your partner should mirror your position.
Coach tip
In padel, groundstrokes are a vehicle to get to the net — not a weapon to win points. Every groundstroke should be played with the net transition in mind.
Drills by level
- 1.Mini-court rally: both players stand at the service line and rally cross-court. Smaller distance reduces pace and allows focus on technique. 50 consecutive rally target before increasing court size.
- 2.Crosscourt consistency drill: baseline-to-baseline crosscourt forehands only. First player to 10 clean shots within the opposite service box and baseline wins. Tracks shot consistency objectively.
- 1.Deep ball drill: all groundstrokes must land behind the service line. If it lands short, it's a free ball. Trains the habit of pushing opponents back — short balls get punished at P2+.
- 2.Spin differential drill: alternate topspin and slice groundstrokes. Slice sets up net approaches; topspin pushes opponents back. Build both in your game.
- 1.Transition drill: play 2 groundstrokes, then move to the net on the 3rd ball. The goal is to use groundstrokes as setup for net dominance — not to win from the baseline.
- 2.Pressure-point drill: baseline player must win 3 points in a row with groundstrokes only (no lobs). Net player volleys normally. Simulates the specific pressure of breaking through net dominance with groundstrokes alone.
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