As these young teens and pre-teen newcomers develop the sport will change. The top players in the sport now have backgrounds in other racket and paddle sports it will be very interesting to see what the younger generation will bring that have been playing this sport exclusively.
Agreed! They’ll potentially have some trouble with overheads and other tennis shots. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping, I don’t want to lose my job 😂 btw - for some more coaching tips, check out this channel I just made
Great analysis James. It is not just talent but time and experience of playing. We are already seeing that Ben has been having some issues trying to do repeat triple crowns. But both he and Anna-Leigh are very dedicated to constantly improve their games so it will be very difficult to defeat them.
I saw my first pro-level event at Pictona in November. I was there with my doubles partner and the very first thing we noticed that we had never seen before was how good the pros were at returning fastballs into the kitchen from the transition zone. There was a lot to be in awe of, but that is the first thing that really got our eye.
14:00 I remember Dayne mentioning one of the things that make Ben the best is that he does not disguise or try to be deceptive with the type of shot but the location. After all, why try messing up with your opponent's psyche when they are already triggered by their own pop up that they have to "guess" in a split second if it's fh/body/bh/out ball.
Great episode! You are right about pickleball being a relatively "small" sport and the talent pool being small. I foresee more Quang Duong vs. Ben Johns (Hyundai Masters) kind of moments in the not too distant future. Also, as a tennis player who picked up pickleball, the idea of sliding to the right for the two-handed backhand makes sense. Especially, if you are tall...
Very interesting....been working on a 2hBH...though being 5'6", with pterodactyl arms, my reach with 2hBH isn't that great so if I slid over to my right so that I'm almost on the sideline, would I be leaving too much space on my left that would be too far from my left-side partner to cover with their FH? Will have to try it on court and see what the spacing is like. (This is assuming hte ball is in front of me so the opponent may attack down my sideline or middle). Thanks!
Wow, very interesting discussion on speedups...I been in the camp of disguising it before I hit it, but I like that idea of them KNOWING it's coming, they just don't know WHERE. I've always been harping on my students and drill partners who "telegraph" their speed up--but that's because they just come right at the body and we can counter that. I like what you're saying about not hiding the telegraph, but hiding the location of the speed up. Can you do an actual video lesson on that? That would be great to see how it's actually done, what choices of locations we can speed up to, etc. Thanks!
Ben and Anna Leigh get more high-level tournament reps than anyone else. AL reaches the final of every event in every tournament. That's gives her a big advantage over most players. Even the other top women are usually only making it to the quarters or semis in one or two events.
Hi James, I am a great fan of yours and love your game. I eagerly wait for your tips and videos. Just one advice can you please try to add some visuals or show your tips with live drills etc. sometimes it’s very hard to correlate unless we see it visually what you are talking about. I am confused with your statement on if you have a two handed backhand and play on right side of the court why would you slide right ? Wouldn’t sliding right be my forehand so where is two handed backhand coming there?
What he means is, if you're a rightie playing on the Right side...you slide right (towards your sideline) to better utilize your two-hander ...your partner will cover the middle with their forehand, and you avoid being chicken winged.
We admire your content and believe our product-pickleball rebounder-would be a great fit for your audience. Interested in collaborating? (US ONLY) Please let us know. Look forward to the possibility of working together!
As these young teens and pre-teen newcomers develop the sport will change. The top players in the sport now have backgrounds in other racket and paddle sports it will be very interesting to see what the younger generation will bring that have been playing this sport exclusively.
Agreed! They’ll potentially have some trouble with overheads and other tennis shots. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping, I don’t want to lose my job 😂 btw - for some more coaching tips, check out this channel I just made
I love the Ben and AL show! They are amazing! It’s exciting to watch the other teams try to catch up to them/ beat them.
Great analysis James. It is not just talent but time and experience of playing. We are already seeing that Ben has been having some issues trying to do repeat triple crowns. But both he and Anna-Leigh are very dedicated to constantly improve their games so it will be very difficult to defeat them.
Thank you! Commenting from my new channel - More tips to come on this channel, with visual representations and more advanced stuff!
Appreciate you time and effort to the podcast.
Thank you! More tips to come on this channel I just made!
Short and sweet, thanks
Thank you! For more tips, check out this channel I just made!
I saw my first pro-level event at Pictona in November. I was there with my doubles partner and the very first thing we noticed that we had never seen before was how good the pros were at returning fastballs into the kitchen from the transition zone. There was a lot to be in awe of, but that is the first thing that really got our eye.
Definitely! I’ve always said that the transition game of the pros is what was always most impressive to me compared to 5.0s and below!
Best Mono-podcast! Thanks James, for the words of wisdom.
Thank you! Commenting from my new channel - More tips to come on this channel, with visual representations and more advanced stuff!
14:00 I remember Dayne mentioning one of the things that make Ben the best is that he does not disguise or try to be deceptive with the type of shot but the location. After all, why try messing up with your opponent's psyche when they are already triggered by their own pop up that they have to "guess" in a split second if it's fh/body/bh/out ball.
Great episode! You are right about pickleball being a relatively "small" sport and the talent pool being small. I foresee more Quang Duong vs. Ben Johns (Hyundai Masters) kind of moments in the not too distant future. Also, as a tennis player who picked up pickleball, the idea of sliding to the right for the two-handed backhand makes sense. Especially, if you are tall...
Thank you! I’ll be posting more tips with visual representations on this channel that I’m commenting from here! Subscribe for weekly tips and videos!
Is there a link to sign up for your news letter?
Very interesting....been working on a 2hBH...though being 5'6", with pterodactyl arms, my reach with 2hBH isn't that great so if I slid over to my right so that I'm almost on the sideline, would I be leaving too much space on my left that would be too far from my left-side partner to cover with their FH? Will have to try it on court and see what the spacing is like. (This is assuming hte ball is in front of me so the opponent may attack down my sideline or middle). Thanks!
Thank you! I’ll be posting more tips with visual representations on this channel that I’m commenting from here! Subscribe for weekly tips and videos!
Obviously with less wingspan there is less coverage space - so in a way it’s even more important to have a 2HBH
Wow, very interesting discussion on speedups...I been in the camp of disguising it before I hit it, but I like that idea of them KNOWING it's coming, they just don't know WHERE. I've always been harping on my students and drill partners who "telegraph" their speed up--but that's because they just come right at the body and we can counter that. I like what you're saying about not hiding the telegraph, but hiding the location of the speed up. Can you do an actual video lesson on that? That would be great to see how it's actually done, what choices of locations we can speed up to, etc. Thanks!
Thank you! Commenting from my new channel - More tips to come on this channel, with visual representations and more advanced stuff!
Ben and Anna Leigh get more high-level tournament reps than anyone else. AL reaches the final of every event in every tournament. That's gives her a big advantage over most players. Even the other top women are usually only making it to the quarters or semis in one or two events.
People forget that the only way to be the best is to play the best consistently. A luxury that not many have.
Hi James, I hope your shoulder is feeling better. Anna is probably missing you in Delray
Thank you! I’ll be posting more tips with visual representations on this channel that I’m commenting from here! Subscribe for weekly tips and videos!
Hi James, I am a great fan of yours and love your game. I eagerly wait for your tips and videos. Just one advice can you please try to add some visuals or show your tips with live drills etc. sometimes it’s very hard to correlate unless we see it visually what you are talking about. I am confused with your statement on if you have a two handed backhand and play on right side of the court why would you slide right ? Wouldn’t sliding right be my forehand so where is two handed backhand coming there?
What he means is, if you're a rightie playing on the Right side...you slide right (towards your sideline) to better utilize your two-hander ...your partner will cover the middle with their forehand, and you avoid being chicken winged.
Can you address the first part again but for a left handed player, on the right, with a two handed backhand
Agree
We admire your content and believe our product-pickleball rebounder-would be a great fit for your audience.
Interested in collaborating? (US ONLY) Please let us know.
Look forward to the possibility of working together!