In tennis a ball that gets past you is gone. In padel it comes back. Players who learn to wait for the ball off the back glass can stay in rallies against people who hit much harder, which makes this the single most useful skill for a new player.
Decide early: take it or let it come
Watch where the ball bounces. If it lands deep, within a couple of metres of the glass, or comes in fast, let it hit the wall. If it bounces near the service line and it is slow, take it before it reaches the glass: waiting only gives your opponents time to close the net. The mistake is deciding late, when you are already too close to the wall to do either.
The movement, step by step
- Turn sideways as soon as you see the ball is deep. Shoulder to the net, racket back early.
- Move back with the ball, not after it. Keep a good racket length or more between you and the glass.
- Let the ball bounce, hit the glass and come back towards you.
- Wait until it drops to about waist height or lower. Hitting it on the way up, close to the wall, is much harder.
- Hit with a short, controlled swing, moving your weight towards the net.
Which shot to play from there
- Lob
- The default when both opponents are at the net. High and deep, over the player on your diagonal. It buys time and can win you the net.
- Low cross-court ball
- When the opponents stay further back or one is out of position. Keep it below net height on their side so they have to volley up.
- Down the line
- Only when there is a clear gap. It is the shortest distance with the highest part of the net, so it misses often.
What you should not do from the back glass is try to hit a winner. You are in defence. The goal is to get the ball back in a way that lets your team move forward on the next shot.
Corners: two walls
A ball that bounces near a back corner can hit the side glass and then the back glass, or the other way round. Wait for the last wall. Most beginners swing after the first rebound and find the ball already changing direction. Stay further from the corner than feels natural, so the ball has room to come out.
A simple drill
- Your partner stands at the net with a basket or a few cans of balls.
- They feed balls deep, so each one bounces and hits the back glass.
- Play ten forehands, then ten backhands, aiming every ball back as a lob.
- When that feels easy, ask for feeds into the corners.
Old balls are fine for this. At ₹500 to ₹700 a can, it is worth keeping your used balls for practice instead of throwing them out.