Volleys at the net: punches, blocks, and resets
A volley is any ball you hit before it bounces. Once both teams are at the Kitchen line, roughly 80% of the shots are volleys — so the better your volleys, the more points you’ll win. The good news is that volley technique is simpler than any other shot in pickleball. The bad news is that simple doesn’t mean easy.
The three volleys
1. The punch volley
This is the attacking volley. When a ball comes at you above net height, you punch it down into the opponent’s half with a short, compact motion. No backswing. The paddle moves maybe a foot.
The key word is compact. Beginners see a high ball and wind up like they’re hitting a tennis forehand. That’s how you spray punch volleys long or into the net. The correct motion is almost all wrist and forearm, with the body staying still. Think of it like punching a heavy bag from six inches away — you can’t generate swing-speed, but you can generate pop.
Aim the punch at the opponent’s feet, or at the gap between the two opponents, not at the sidelines. Feet are hard to defend. Sidelines are hard to hit.
2. The block volley
When a ball comes at you hard and low — usually a drive from the baseline or a punch volley from the opposing team — you don’t try to hit it back hard. You block it. The paddle face is held still, angled slightly upward, and the ball bounces off the strings at low speed and drops into the opponent’s Kitchen.
This is the most underrated shot in pickleball. Recreational players either try to punch a hard ball back (and net it) or they back up to give themselves time (and lose the Kitchen). The block does neither. It absorbs the pace, resets the rally to a dink, and keeps you at the Kitchen line.
Technique: soft grip, paddle in front of your body, no swing at all. You are not hitting the ball — you are letting the ball hit you (or rather, your paddle).
3. The reset volley
Sometimes you’re caught off guard — a hard ball at your belly button, or a volley you didn’t expect to have to hit — and you need to do something that doesn’t lose the point. The reset is a soft volley whose only job is to drop into the opponent’s Kitchen and buy you time. It’s the volley version of a dink.
The motion is almost the same as a block, but you may have to give a tiny push to make the ball clear the net if you’re hitting it from low. Keep the grip loose. Think “catch and drop,” not “hit.”
Ready position between volleys
Your paddle stays up at roughly chest height, face vaguely pointing at the opponent, between every shot. Not at your side. Not down at the thigh. Up. This is the single most-important habit in pickleball: paddle up, always. It’s the difference between reacting to a fast ball and getting eaten by one.
Where to aim your volleys
Priority order for placement:
- At the feet of the opponent closest to you — especially if they’re in the transition zone (between the baseline and the Kitchen). Low balls at feet are nearly impossible to handle.
- Down the middle, between two opponents. Partners often hesitate on the middle ball, and one of them has to hit a rushed backhand.
- At the body of whichever opponent has the slower reactions. This is crude but effective.
- Down the line only when you’re attacking a clear weakness — it’s the riskiest placement because the sideline is right there.
Corner winners look great on video but lose rallies in real life. Aim for the feet and the middle.
Drilling volleys
Two players stand at opposite Kitchen lines and volley to each other. No dinks — just volleys, soft and controlled. Try to go 20 in a row without a miss. This teaches the block and the reset by forcing you to absorb incoming pace.
Then add one rule: either player can “attack” (hit a harder punch volley) whenever they want. The receiving player has to block and reset back to the neutral volley. This drill is ugly for beginners and transformative over a month of practice.