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Padel, explained properly
The guides behind the puzzles. Written the way a good coach talks: what to do, why it works, and what changes as you get better.
Padel rules explained: everything you actually need on court
The full rulebook is long and most of it never comes up. These are the rules that decide real points, in the order you will meet them.
Padel positioning: where to stand, and when to move
More club points are lost by standing in the wrong place than by hitting the wrong shot. Positioning is the cheapest improvement in padel and almost nobody practises it.
The bandeja: the shot that keeps you at the net
The bandeja is not a smash and it is not meant to win the point. It is the shot that lets you answer a deep lob without giving the net back, and it is the clearest sign of a player who has stopped playing tennis.
Padel wall play: how to stop being afraid of the glass
The glass is the reason padel is not small tennis. It is also the reason most beginners spend six months hitting balls into the back fence. Here is the timing.
The lob in padel: the most undervalued shot in the game
The lob is not a panic shot. At every level from club to professional it is the main tool for taking the net, and the players who lob well are the ones who look like they have all the time in the world.
The eight mistakes every padel beginner makes
Nearly all of them come from playing padel as though it were tennis. Fix these and you will jump a level without hitting a single new shot.
The padel serve: how to hit one that wins you the net
Nobody aces anyone in padel. The serve has one job, which is to get you and your partner to the net before the return comes back, and most club serves fail at it.
Padel volleys: the block, the punch, and where to stand for both
The net is where padel points are won, and the volley is how you keep it. Most club volleys fail for one reason: the player swings.
Bandeja, víbora or smash: which overhead to hit and when
Every lob gives you a choice, and choosing wrong loses more points at club level than hitting badly does. The height of the ball and where you are standing decide it, not how you feel.
Padel levels explained: what 2.5, 3.5 and 4.5 actually mean
Every app and every club asks for your level and nobody agrees what the numbers mean. Here is what each level looks like on court, so you can put yourself in the right box and stop getting the wrong matches.
How to choose a padel racket: shape, weight, balance and core, in that order
Brands sell you carbon counts and colours. Four things decide how a racket plays, and you can work out which one you need in ten minutes.
Padel for tennis players: what carries over and what you have to unlearn
Tennis players pick up padel faster than anyone and then get stuck at the same place, usually about six months in. The swing that got you here is the thing in the way.
Padel elbow, sore shoulders and the other injuries: why they happen and how to stop them
Padel has an injury profile all its own: elbows from the volley, shoulders from the overhead, calves from the stop-start, and eyes from the ball that comes off the glass. Most of it is preventable and most of it starts with the racket.