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Tips for more topspin
Paul from Pickleball Daily
February 13, 2026
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Tip of the day
The Pickleball Clinic identifies four critical errors that prevent players from mastering the topspin drop, a essential shot for moving to an advanced level.
Effective preparation begins with footwork to ensure your body is positioned correctly so you can contact the ball out in front.
You cannot generate topspin if the ball is caught behind your body or too far to the side of your frame.
A common technical error is hovering or covering over the ball with the paddle face, which often causes the shot to dive into the net.
Instead of rolling over the top, you should focus on brushing up the back of the ball from low to high while keeping the paddle face toward your target.
Taking an excessively large backswing is another mistake that makes the ball travel too deep rather than landing softly in the kitchen.
A compact swing that starts in front of the body allows for heavy spin while maintaining the slower speed necessary for a drop.
Players often fail because they hit the drop without a specific target in mind or do not follow the shot up to the net.
Aiming for the middle of the court or sharp crosscourt angles forces opponents to reach and limits their ability to counter-attack effectively.
As soon as you recognize a high-quality drop off your paddle, you must immediately transition forward to the kitchen line to capitalize on the advantage.
Key Points:
Position your feet to ensure you always make contact with the ball comfortably in front of your body.
Brush up the back of the ball with an open paddle face to generate spin without losing control.
Use a short and compact backswing to keep the ball landing within or near the kitchen line.
Target the middle or crosscourt areas to force opponents out of position and eliminate their hitting angles.
Move toward the net aggressively as soon as you hit a successful drop to finish the point.
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That’s it for today! As always, thank you for reading. 🙏
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Happy pickling,
Paul