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The racket twists in your hand on volleys. What is the fix?
Racket twisting on volleys: the grip is too thin. Add an overgrip, or two, so the handle fills the hand.
On off-centre volleys the racket turns in your hand and the ball goes wherever it likes. What is the most likely cause?
Racket twisting on volleys: the grip is too thin. Add an overgrip, or two, so the handle fills the hand.
Why
Padel rackets usually come with a thin base grip, and a handle that is too small for the hand twists on any off-centre contact: most noticeably on volleys and blocks. The fix costs a few euros: one or two overgrips, wound over the base grip, until the handle fills the hand and can be held firmly with a relaxed forearm. A good test is that the fingertips do not quite touch the palm when gripping. Fresh overgrips also matter for sweat: a slippery grip produces the same twist, and a wet grip is how rackets fly out of hands on a small court.
What this means at your level
Beginner
Buy a pack of overgrips and add one. If the racket still turns, add another. Change them when they go shiny.
Intermediate
Hold the racket with the fingers, not the palm, and let the overgrip do the holding. A relaxed grip volleys better.
Advanced
Grip size also changes the feel of the racket's balance slightly. If you add two overgrips to a head-heavy racket, it will feel a fraction more even.
Common questions
On off-centre volleys the racket turns in your hand and the ball goes wherever it likes. What is the most likely cause?
The grip is too thin: add an overgrip. Racket twisting on volleys: the grip is too thin. Add an overgrip, or two, so the handle fills the hand. Padel rackets usually come with a thin base grip, and a handle that is too small for the hand twists on any off-centre contact: most noticeably on volleys and blocks. The fix costs a few euros: one or two overgrips, wound over the base grip, until the handle fills the hand and can be held firmly with a relaxed forearm. A good test is that the fingertips do not quite touch the palm when gripping. Fresh overgrips also matter for sweat: a slippery grip produces the same twist, and a wet grip is how rackets fly out of hands on a small court.
Why not you are not holding it tightly enough?
Squeezing harder tires the forearm and stiffens the volley. The fix is the size of the handle, not the strength of the grip.
What should a beginner do here?
Buy a pack of overgrips and add one. If the racket still turns, add another. Change them when they go shiny.
How does this change for an advanced player?
Grip size also changes the feel of the racket's balance slightly. If you add two overgrips to a head-heavy racket, it will feel a fraction more even.
Puzzles like this one
The ball is coming off the back glass. When do you hit it?
Move back with the ball, let it pass you, hit it in front of your body.
beginnerYour racket slips out of your hand and still hits the ball over. Point?
The racket has to be in your hand when it meets the ball. The wrist strap is a rule, not a decoration.
intermediateThe ball splits during a rally. What happens?
A ball that breaks during the point means a let. A ball that has merely gone soft does not.