Dinking 101
WHY DINK?
So, why do we need the dink? There are many
reasons, but the most important is that it neutralizes
your opponent’s hard game. If your opponent hits
the ball hard, you can control your opponent by
using the dink. It neutralizes your opponent’s shot,
therefore he or she has to play the soft game with
you.
Also, if you hit a ball to your opponent and it lands
in the non-volley zone, if he or she hits the ball
back hard, it is going to either go into the net or,
if it clears the net, it’s probably going to go out of
bounds. It is very difficult to hit a hard ball from a
low position in the non-volley zone.
PATIENCE
One thing that dinking does take, though, is a lot of
patience. You may dink four, five, six times before you
actually set the point up in order to make a winner.
Patience is extremely important because, without
it, people tend to rush. When you rush, you run the
risk of hitting the ball into the net, or you might have
the tendency to hit it high to where the opponent can
smash it back at you.
READY POSITION
One last thing to consider in dinking is that when
you finish your dink, it’s extremely important to bring
your paddle back up into the ready position. You really
don’t know if your opponent is going to dink back
to you or perhaps hit a slap shot. With your paddle
ready, you will be able to handle either one.
So, keep working on your dink. It will give you a new
dimension to your game! •
Special Thanks to: Tom Earley
PROPER TECHNIQUE
Here is the proper technique when dinking. First
of all, you want to bend at the knees, not at the waist.
Bending at the knees allows you to point the leading
edge of the paddle toward the net at about a 45-degree
angle. You want your wrist to be stiff at your elbow,
and you’re going to be swinging from the shoulder. It’s
extremely important to watch the ball all the way until
it hits the center of your paddle. Then you should finish
the stroke with a nice follow-through.
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019 |
MAGAZINE
19