How to volley in pickleball

The rules that shape the pickleball volley

• Not in the kitchen. You cannot volley while standing in the non-volley zone, the seven-foot (2.13 m) strip by the net, or touching its line. If your momentum carries you into it after a volley, even after the ball is dead, it is still a fault.
• Not on the serve or return. The two-bounce rule means the serve and the return must both bounce. Volleys start from the fourth shot at the earliest.
• Back out before you volley. If you step into the kitchen to play a bounced ball, both feet must be back outside before you volley again.

So the volleying position is toes just behind the kitchen line. Everything below assumes you are there or on your way there.

Ready position: paddle up

Feet a little wider than the shoulders, knees bent, weight on the balls of the feet. The paddle is out in front of the chest, around 30 cm from the body, face neutral, tip pointing slightly up and forward. The elbows are in front of the ribs, not tucked against them.

Many coaches teach a slightly backhand-biased ready position, with the paddle face turned a little toward the backhand side. The reason is geometry: a ball at your body is far easier to cover with a backhand block than by pulling the elbow back for a forehand.

Cue: if you can see your paddle without lowering your eyes, it is in the right place.

Grip for volleys

Use the continental grip, the hammer grip, index knuckle on the upper right bevel for a right-hander. It covers forehand, backhand and the ball at the body with no change, which matters when the exchange lasts under a second. Pressure around four out of ten for punches, softer for blocks. A player who changes grip for every volley at the kitchen line will be a fraction late on most of them.

Punch, block and roll: the three volleys

Punch volley

The attacking volley for a ball above net height. The paddle moves forward about a hand's width from the ready position, firm wrist, with the motion coming from the shoulder and a little from the elbow. No backswing: the paddle is already where it needs to be. Aim down, at the feet or into the gap. It is a punch, not a swing.

Block volley

The defensive volley against a hard drive or a speed-up. The paddle barely moves. Set the face, let the ball hit it, and absorb the pace with a soft grip and a small give backwards, as if catching an egg. A good block drops into the opponents' kitchen. A block that goes back hard at a player who is still at the line usually comes back harder.

Roll volley

The advanced option. For a ball around or a little below net height, the paddle starts below the ball and brushes up and forward, adding topspin so the ball dips after it crosses. It lets you be aggressive from a height where a punch would go long. Learn it after the punch and block are reliable; a roll volley done badly is just a pop-up.

How to volley in pickleball, step by step

1. Split step as the opponent hits. Land balanced with the paddle up.
2. Read the height. Above the net: punch. At or below the net and fast: block. Rising past your shoulders from a drive: consider letting it go, because many of those land out.
3. Move the paddle, not the arm. Short movement from the shoulder, paddle out in front. On a forehand, the paddle moves forward from in front of your body, never back past your hip.
4. Contact in front. Around 30 cm ahead of the body. Contact beside you means the paddle was late getting there.
5. Firm wrist, short finish. The paddle stops pointing at the target.
6. Back to ready. Immediately. The next ball is coming before you have finished admiring this one.

On the backhand side, the paddle faces the ball with the elbow leading slightly, and the motion is a short push outward from the chest. At the body, turn the backhand face and block.

Hands battles at the kitchen

A hands battle is a fast volley exchange between players at the line, usually started by a speed-up. It is over in a second or two, and it is decided less by reflexes than by paddle position and swing length.

• Short swings win. A compact punch recovers in time for the next ball; a big swing does not.
• Aim at the paddle-side hip or shoulder. Hard to get the paddle around, especially on a forehand. For a right-hander, their right side.
• Counter low. A counter aimed down at the chest or hip is harder to counter again than one that rises.
• Reset out of it. If you are behind in the exchange, a soft block into the kitchen stops it. You do not have to win every hands battle by hitting harder.

Common volley mistakes and the fix for each

Taking a backswing

The most common one, especially for tennis players. Fix: keep the paddle in front where you can see it, and think "push forward" instead of "swing".

Paddle dropping between shots

Fix: after every volley, return the paddle to chest height before the opponent hits. A ball at your chest with the paddle at your knees is the easiest point in the game for them.

Flicking the wrist

Fix: firm wrist, movement from the shoulder. The paddle angle at the start should be the paddle angle at the finish.

Swinging hard at a low ball

A ball below the net cannot be hit hard and kept in. Fix: block or dink it, or roll it if you have that shot.

Volleying balls that are going out

Fix: any drive rising past your shoulders at the line is a candidate to leave. Get the paddle out of the way.

Falling into the kitchen

Fix: stand a few centimetres behind the line, and on a stretching volley, recover with the back foot rather than stepping forward.

Volley drills without a court

The volley is small enough for a hallway, and a wall is the best volley partner you can own. The broader routine is in pickleball practice at home, and shadow swing drills covers how to make shadow reps count.

• Shadow volleys, 20 alternating. Split step, punch forehand, back to ready, split, punch backhand. Cue for the set: the paddle never goes behind your body.
• Shadow blocks, 20. Same rhythm, but the paddle does not move forward at all. Just a small give.
• Wall volleys. Arm's length from a wall, no bounce, as fast as you can control. Ten seconds on, ten off, six rounds. Use a foam or indoor ball.
• Mirror check. Stand in ready position facing a mirror. If you cannot see the paddle face above your hands, it has dropped.

The replay shows the path; it does not see the ball or where it would have gone. That is what the wall and the court are for.

Volley drills on court

• Volley to volley. Both players at the kitchen line, cooperative, no bounce. Start slow and keep the ball below shoulder height. Count consecutive volleys.
• Block wall. Your partner drives from the baseline; you block every ball into the kitchen. Count how many land there. Then swap.
• Speed-up and counter. Dink rally until one player speeds up a ball; play out the hands battle. Keep score on who wins it, and note whether the winner was the one with the shorter swing.
• Roll volley from the dink. Your partner dinks slightly high; you roll-volley it at their feet. Ten each, then swap.

Related guides

• How to reset in pickleball
• How to dink
• How to hit a drive
• Pickleball practice at home: drills without a court
• How to volley (tennis)