Padel forehand

Which padel forehand should you use?

A lot of padel players coming from tennis still use the topspin forehand. A shot they used to play during the rally. In padel, the topspin forehand isn’t always the right forehand to play. A flat forehand can sometimes be more effective. The flat forehand is a disguised shot. you can play it fast at your opponent, slow at the feet of your opponent or play a lob. A topspin ball is mostly used to make the ball go a little bit faster and make it dip down.

When to use which forehand?

When a ball bounces up high and comes above chest height, you wouldn’t want to hit it with topspin but rather with slice or flat. You also don’t want to play it with topspin if you are in a difficult position and close to the back glass. A ball which comes from the back glass is difficult to add topspin to because of the spin it has. A ball you would use topspin on, is a slightly easier ball which you can hit in front of you.

Topspin Technique

The only time you want to use topspin in padel is when you try to dip the ball down over the net. So you don’t need to generate loads of rotation or speed in your backswing. The technique is almost similar to the flat forehand. A short take back with your racket and just a little brush over the ball to add the topspin

For the padel players coming from tennis and are only using the topspin forehand, try to learn the flat forehand. Eventually, it will give you more opportunities and this shot is more likely to surprise your opponent.