Tennis players are good at padel within a week and stuck within a month. The timing and footwork carry over; the habits that win tennis points mostly don't. These are the six things to change first, roughly in the order they cost you points.
1. Shorten the swing
The court is 20 m long instead of almost 24, and the back wall returns anything you overhit. A full tennis forehand from the back of the court either flies into the glass on the other side, which loses you the point, or comes back as an easy ball for the team at the net. Think of most padel groundstrokes as three-quarter swings with control, not power.
2. Drop the forehand grip
An eastern or western forehand grip works from the baseline and falls apart at the net. Padel is played with the continental grip for almost every shot, including the volley and the bandeja. It feels weak for the first sessions. Stick with it.
3. Stop running towards the back wall
Your tennis instinct says a deep ball must be chased and hit before it passes you. In padel you step back, let it hit the glass and play it on the way out. Once that clicks, half the balls you used to scramble for become comfortable.
4. The net is the goal, not the finish
In tennis you come to the net to end a point. In padel both teams fight to stand there, and the team holding the net usually wins the rally. From the net you volley deep and low and wait for the short ball. From the back you lob to get there. Most tennis players lob far too little.
5. The serve is a start, not a weapon
The serve is underarm, hit at or below the waist after a bounce. Aces are rare. Aim deep into the box, towards the side glass, and use the time it buys you to move to the net with your partner.
6. Play as a pair
Even good tennis doubles players leave gaps in padel. Move forward together, back together, and call every ball through the middle.
The racket mistake tennis players make
Strong tennis players often buy a heavy diamond racket because they are used to generating their own power. A diamond's small, high sweet spot punishes the timing errors everyone makes in their first months of padel. Start with a round or teardrop racket and an even or low balance. You can move to a more powerful racket once the volleys and the back glass feel natural.
Shoes are the other point. Clay-court tennis shoes with a herringbone sole are usable on most padel courts; hard-court shoes with a smoother sole tend to slip on the sand.