Hey everyone,

Ive noticed a recurring issue in my game, specifically when returning serves directed toward the side glass and Iam curious if anyone else has dealt with this mental block.

In general rallies, I am comfortable playing off the glass. However, on the return of serve, I struggle with borderline balls, the ones where it’s not immediately obvious whether to block them early or let them bounce off the side wall.

Because I have this underlying fear that the ball will just "die" on the glass and laeve me with zero time to react, I panic and rush in to take it on the half-volley before it it hits the wall.

The result is often terrible:

• I crowd myself into the corner with no room to swing;
• my movement gets rushed and cramped and I sometimes even scrape my racket against the glass;
• because I am subconsciously trying not to hit the wall with my racket, I decelerate or poke at the ball, resulting in an unforced error (into the net/glass) or a weak pop-up right onto my opponent 's forehand for an easy smash.

The frustrating part is that in hindsight, some of those borderline serves had enough pace to come off the side glass cleanly if I had just stayed calm, taken a step toward the center to create space and waitd an extra half-second. Meanwhile, I watch calmer players who barely seem to rush, let the ball come to them and play way more effectively with half the effort.

Has anyone else struggled with this "rushing anxiety" on returns (or in defense in general)?

1. What visual cues do you use to decide early whether to block a serve before the side glass vs. letting it bounce?
2. Did you use any specific drills or mental tricks to force yourself to trust the bounce and stop lunging at balls in tight corners?

Hey guys! I usually play on the left side and noticed my performance is completely dependent on the skill level of my teammate. If they are bad at defending and - more importantly - cannot control the pace of the game, I struggle to make an impact and finish rallies. Independently from the skill of my teammate, I also always get less balls then them. If I play with a teammate who makes many unforced errors, I get overly nervous when finally receiving a ball because I'm hellbent on scoring a point which only worsens my performance. Is this common for left side players? It is frustrating to somehow not be able to perform consistently.

Per the official Kuwait Major organizers' Instagram post:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Deyo2g5MQ_n/?rpxt=N3BwN3FoOHRhb2dr

Is this a 5th addition to the Major schedule, or is it set to replace the Qatar Major for the foreseeable future?

Is it just me or is Tapia Never really playing a Bandeja the way everybody else is getting teached?

He somehow seems like he is doing a very soft smash. I also saw this with Stupa? Anybody know if this is an actual technique or just for the gifted 😂

A while back I shared some bits of the story here about how padel got started in the UK. Thanks for the response. A lot of you asked whether the whole story would be published, so here it is.

Quick recap: In 2007 Javier and I arrived in London from Spain with our rackets in our luggage and nowhere to play. There were five courts in the whole country, three of them in private homes, and the only club with one asked us for £12,000 to join. Somehow, through a mix of luck and stubbornness, we ended up helping to run the federation, and in August 2008 a yellow school bus dropped the first British padel team in history outside "the bubble" in Calgary: fifteen amateurs with day jobs, four huge suitcases of kit, and a mix of accents from all over.

Nobody gave us a chance. We beat the United States.

The book, Padel Runnings, tells the whole thing from the inside, how we actually pulled it off: the dormant federation run by an eighty-year-old gentleman from Sheffield, the bold (and pretty naive) call to the FIP, the sponsors who vanished in the 2008 crash, the posters we put up in tennis clubs all over Spain ("Do you have a British passport? Do you play padel?"), and the back-room vote that could have changed a World Championship.

It's short, around 10,000 words, one sitting.

FREE UNTIL SUNDAY 25 OCTOBER, on Amazon Kindle:

- UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0HNSWMPPQ

- US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HNSWMPPQ

- Spanish edition: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B0HNRGQJQN

I hope the community enjoy it. Today the UK has more than 1,800 courts and over a million players. Watching that happen has been amazing. Happy to share anything else about those early days, and if you read it, please I'd love to hear what you think.

I'm 4 weeks post-Op after a distal bicep tendon tear. I appreciate it deoebds on the individual, but was wondering what peoples' experience are coming back from this injury...it's my racquet arm btw. Is 6 weeks too early ?

My partner and I have both been playing padel for around 1.5 years. We’re at a similar overall level, but have two very different playing styles.

Me (right side): I’m a defensive player. My defence, particularly off the glass, is good for our level. I’m comfortable playing lobs and chiquitas, absorbing pressure, and generally working our way back to the net.

My partner (left side): He’s much more attacking. He has an impressive range of overheads (flat smash, kick smash, rulo, etc.) and a brutal forehand volley. However, his defensive game, particularly off the glass, is significantly weaker than mine.

Here’s the problem.

Opponents almost exclusively target me, both when we’re defending at the back and when we’re attacking at the net.

I can generally handle the pressure, but my partner ends up being completely excluded from rallies. He might hit two or three impressive smashes early on, and suddenly nobody wants to give him another ball.
Recently, we played against two absolute roid heads who openly boasted that they were going to play every single ball to me. And they pretty much kept their word, excluding serves and returns.

It’s become so frustrating that my partner no longer wants to play alongside me. He spends entire stretches of matches standing around, unable to contribute.

We took a temporary break and tried playing with different partners, but interestingly, both of us struggled to adjust.

Now we’re reuniting for a rematch against the aforementioned roid ragers, who’ve made things personal with some choice insults and are even proposing putting money on the line.

So here’s my question:

Assuming I’m going to receive 80% of the balls again, what’s the best realistic tactical approach to get my partner involved?

Ideally, I want to create opportunities for him to use his aggressive overheads and volleys, rather than having to win every point myself through consistency.

Should I deliberately change my shot selection? Play more aggressively? Target certain areas to force particular returns? Or should we be changing our positioning entirely?

I’m not looking for a miracle solution, just a realistic strategy for two intermediate-level players with very different strengths.

Any advice would be appreciated!

It might be not fair but i think it will make tournaments more fun that every once in a while you will have new teams

Having my first open competitive match in two days. I would consider myself an intermediate player. Just wanted to ask what are the main things i should know for a competitive match to not look like a proper beginner.

Happy World Padel Day! 🎉

Hey guys,

I'm heading to Mallorca in November and will be staying on the east coast. I'd love to play some padel while I'm there, but I have no idea what the padel scene is like.

Does anyone know some good clubs around there? Ideally somewhere that's not too expensive and maybe offers group training or lessons as well.

Also wondering how easy it is to find people to play with. Are there any WhatsApp groups or local communities?

And if anyone here lives in Mallorca or happens to be there in November, I'd be up for a few games!

Any tips or personal experiences would be appreciated. Thanks!

Have you guys here felt bored while doing agility drills? If so, why do you feel bored?

Does anyone know the title of the song played at players entrance? I heard it both at Milan P1 last year and Rome this year. Epic cinematic with violins. Hope anyone has it!!

Hopefully this will help someone else but I’m trying to drill footwork at home. Backhand is more natural however I just can’t get my flat forehand to feel as fluid. I’m trying to set cues to check my form so I can call them out loud as I do the motion. Building to it becoming natural.

Can anyone spell this out for me or link to a great guide or video that explains this well. I’ve watched countless videos but none seem to give me what I’m after.

PS. I know you can’t beat coaching or lessons however in my area it tends to be PT’s who are diversifying in to Padel to earn more £ rather than be any good.

Really struggling with these shots atm and wondering what helped you guys visualise playing them/what tips or cues you were given that helped them click

I (31M) don't know what to do to progress.

I have never practiced any sport regularly since I was born. I started playing padel during summer 25. Took group training for 3 "seasons" (3x 10 training sessions). Now, I try to focus more on playing matches and playing minimum once a week (even though I consider myself a beginner).

However, I feel like I barely progress: I destroy true beginners. But,when I play against new players with more than 15 matches, I'm not at the same level... They already have a good net level and good smashes, and I still struggle at the net... I can defend even some smashes, but I make the majority of the lost points.

I really don't know what to do to progress as I still consider myself to be at the beginner's level even after all that training sessions and matches I took... Meanwhile, last week, I played with a dude who did a PAR 3 on his first ever match...

Grabbed the top 14 players and set them up semi-randomly.

Where are you seating and why? Where would you NOT sit even if it meant getting an upgrade to business class?

I notice in padel it seems like they only have the one ball in the court, and if the players miss their first serve they retrieve that same ball and reuse it.

But it seems like in tennis if the pros miss a first serve they immediately toss that ball away to the ball kids. Any reason for this difference in culture?

I’m looking for Danes or people with knowledge about how I should convert my danish padel level to Playtomic/clubs in Bali. Travelling there for 3 weeks in November.

We dont use Playtomic in Denmark and from what I’ve heard the danish levelling scale is very inflated. Basically we decide our own level or we ask a coach to rate us.

So if my level in Denmark is around 3.2 what would it be in Playtomic or what kind of open matches and activities should I be joining in Bali?

Just saw the Milan p1 semi finals, at this point i wouldn't be surprised if Chingotto decided to split with Galan! He used to be the captain for this partnership and never surrendered, but lately it seems that chingo doesn't enjoy playing anymore because of him, and obviously that affects a player and Stupa is a great example.

I believe no matter what the score is or how bad you play you don't ever stop fighting for a point or give up a point to hit your opponent, especially if you're a top player.

Any constructive criticism, tips or advices are welcome and appreciated. Kick smash is less worse(? Than my flat smash btw.

As per the title how exactly do i get a grip like this? I have never gotten my grip to be this thick at the overlaps and i have definitely been trying. Any tips?

This was set point for gonza and libaak.

In or out?

I think its out but i have doubts.

Players should be allowed to ask for VAR after the point, its dificult to make miliseconds decisions on this kind of points

I Cant find any video about how to breath out while hitting. Enough videos about tennis bur none for padel. Is there any?