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These men ’ s doubles players have good mobility all around . Both players on the far side are at the NVZ line . Vic is a banger . Where should he hit this ball ? |
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ANSWER
Vic is going down the middle . He is able to step into the ball and power it down the middle . However , Roland ( on the right ) needs to be ready for a drop volley . Vic could diversify his game by hitting a drop and closing in since both he and his partner move well . But a solid down-the-middle shot does not give much angle for the opponents to work with , and it might set up a high shot for Vic to take advantage of as he moves in to take control at the net . This could be a Shake and Bake play .
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ANSWER
In order to keep Bart back on the baseline as long as possible , Mike should return the ball deep to Bart , preferably deep to Bart ’ s backhand . If Mike returns deep to Kitty , Bart will immediately get to the NVZ line and begin to control play . Mike could even lift the ball high and deep to give himself more time to get to the NVZ line and force Bart to generate his own pace on the ball . If the ball bounces high to Bart ’ s backhand , he will either have to step around and take it on his forehand or hit a less powerful shoulder-high backhand . Either way , Bart ’ s position is far less dominant than it would have been if Mike had returned the ball to Kitty , who would have had a crosscourt forehand . Because you cannot serve and volley in pickleball , it allows you to trap a dominant player .
Kitty has served the ball to Mike ( in blue ). The dominant player on the court is Bart , Kitty ’ s partner in red . There is money on this match . Where should Mike return this serve ?
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SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2021 | MAGAZINE 27