The pickleball drop shot is one of the most important shots in the game, but also one of the most difficult to master. Learn the 7 most-common mistakes pickleball players make with their drop shots, including where to stand, how to contact the ball, and why you shouldn't try to be perfect. Plus, a pickleball drill to help you fix every aspect of your drop shot.
The goal of the pickleball drop shot
When you hit the drop shot, you have most likely just served and your opponent has returned the ball. You are now going to try to drop the ball to advance to the kitchen. If your opponent knows what they're doing, they will already be standing at the kitchen line.
The point of a drop is to hit an unattackable shot that starts to dip below the net that will allow you and your partner to advance to the kitchen line, because your opponents can't do much damage with that ball.
So, the goal of a drop shot is not necessarily a shot that has to land in the kitchen — the goal of the drop shot is a ball that your opponents have to hit up on. The pickleball drop shot is an unattackable ball that will allow you and your partner to advance to the kitchen line.
Mistake #1: Pickleball drop shot court positioning
Where you’re standing on the pickleball court is one of the most important things to remember when it comes to hitting a successful drop shot, but it's also the most overlooked.
Many players tend to be worried about the pickleball paddle swing, but if you're not in the correct position when you're hitting the drop shot, you can do everything right with the paddle and still not hit a successful drop shot.
When hitting your drop shot, make sure that you're contacting that ball in front of your body. The moment your opponents hit their return, you should be moving your feet in anticipation of where that ball is going to go, so when the ball gets to you, you're balanced and you have space to hit it in front of you.
Mistake #2: Having too big of a backswing
The next mistake many pickleball players make when hitting a drop shot is having too much of a backswing. Having too much action behind your body is unnecessary movement and will create inconsistency. Instead, make your swing nice and compact.
You should think of a concept called “Zero Forward,” which means: if you pull your paddle back, the negative space is behind your body. If you push your paddle forward, anything in front of your body is positive space.
When hitting a drop shot, the goal is to get to zero and go forward. There's no reason to pull your paddle back into negative space. A compact swing is key, and you should practice eliminating your big back swing for more consistency on your drop shot.
Mistake #3: When to contact the pickleball
When hitting a pickleball drop shot, you should practice your strategic timing. Many beginner players think that the moment you should hit the ball with your paddle is after the ball bounces and gets to the highest point of the arc, after the bounce. But the best time isn't to hit the ball at the highest point, but actually as it starts to dip and decelerate downward. At this point, the ball isn't continuing to jump into your body so it's easier to time your spacing. Because it's decelerating, it's easier to manipulate the shape of the ball.
Mistake #4: Stepping forward
Another mistake that's common among beginner pickleball players and people who struggle with their drop shot is making contact with the ball while on their back foot, or their weight is pushing them backwards. Instead, you should step forward with your opposite foot (the opposite side from your paddle), and make sure your weight is forward on your front foot.
A drop shot doesn’t have much swing, so you're generating momentum from your legs. If you're not forward, you're going to pop the ball up or it's not going to make it there.
Mistake #5: Your follow-through
Another common mistake made when a drop shot pops up too high is that the player’s follow-through is up and their paddle face is open, facing the sky. Instead, when you're contacting that ball you should pretend that you're hitting two balls in front of it, which will help direct your follow-through to be forward instead of up.
Mistake #6: Trying to be perfect
Another mistake that players make is “flirting with the net,” meaning they try to hit a perfect shot that just barely goes over the net for a winner. But you don't need to do that when you're hitting a drop shot. Instead, give yourself some margin, a foot or two above the net. If you don't hit a perfect drop it's okay, you'll have another chance. The worst thing you can do is hit the ball into the net.
Mistake #7: Shallow does not = good
One of the biggest misconceptions about hitting a successful drop shot is thinking that it needs to land in the kitchen. There are players who think “the shallower the better.” But the reality is you can hit a shallow drop shot, and if it bounces high you can still attack it if you're the opponent.
Don't get married to hitting a shallow ball because that's not what a successful drop shot is. A successful drop shot is going to be any ball that forces your opponent to hit up on it. Arc the ball down below the net level so that your opponents have to hit up on it.
Good drop shots don't have to land in the kitchen, they make your opponent have to hit up.
Up/Down Drill to practice your pickleball drop shot
To practice your drop shot, here are the steps of the Up/Down Drill:
- Start at the baseline with your partner at the opposite kitchen line.
- Your partner can either be crosscourt or straight ahead.
- Your partner will feed the ball to you at the baseline, simulating a return.
- You are responsible for only hitting drop shots.
- As your drop shots go over the net, your partner (who's receiving the drop) will say “up” or “down,” meaning they're either hitting up on the ball or down on the ball.
- You should keep hitting drop shots until you get three successful “up” drop shots.
- After each “up” shot, you should be able to work your way into the kitchen and play the point out.
- Once you've successfully hit three “up” drop shots, you can switch with your partner so they get a chance to hit drop shots.
- The first person to get seven successful work-ups to the kitchen and win the rally, wins the drill.