The return of serve in pickleball is one of the most underrated shots in the entire game because your opponents will have a very difficult time with their third shot drop if you can get your pickleball return deep. Here are four common mistakes people make when they hit their returns — as well as how to fix them.
Mistake #1: Return of serve swing path
The first mistake many players make when it comes to the pickleball return of serve is treating their swing path a lot like their drive.
Your return of serve is not the same as your drive: when you're driving the ball, for example, you typically have more of a low-to-high swing path because you want that ball to dip over the net.
But on your return, you will want to get the shot deep and not dip over the net with topspin.
So instead of having a low-to-high swing path like your drive, you want more of a flat swing path on your return. This will get the ball deeper into the court with a penetrating pace, which makes it really hard for your opponents to hit a third shot.
Mistake #2: Mis-using pickleball spin
Another mistake players make is overusing spin: A good rule of thumb is to only give spin to somebody if you're willing to get spin back.
Players with a heavy slice on their return are likely also putting intense backspin onto the ball. But if you slice the ball at somebody who has a really good drive or who can put topspin onto the ball, they're probably going to come up and add spin to your spin — making their drive that much more difficult for you to return.
A flat return is not a bad return because it has minimal spin (if you don’t want your opponent to return spin to you).
Mistake #3: Overdoing your swing
The third mistake a lot of players make is overdoing it on their swing, especially their backswing.
The serve is likely going to be coming at you with a lot of pace — and the higher level you play, the more pace you're going to get. When you have a big backswing, your margin for error is a lot bigger (because you have a lot more time). You can still get a lot of power on a short backswing and you'll have less margin for error.
Mistake #4: Foot positioning during the pickleball return of serve
The fourth mistake pickleball players make during the return of serve is being on their heels.
One of the reasons for this is that players will hug the baseline on the return. The serve will likely come deeper with more pace — so if it's coming deep and you're hugging the baseline, you're going to get jammed up and be on your heels. A great way to avoid that is by giving yourself some margin behind the baseline.
The return of serve is one of the only shots in pickleball that you can hit running forward. Your forward momentum while hitting the shot is going to help give you power with that short backswing and get you up to the kitchen line, which is the best and most offensive place to play on the court.