Meryl Streep Inspiration for Pickleball Commercial Director
When the going gets tough...
In today’s Bite Size Pickleball newsletter:
What I plan to do on my summer staycation
NVZ Strategy
Video of the Week
Bite Size Podcast
As you may have read, in a previous post, I already took the main trip of my summer to Oregon. For the rest of the summer, you can find me camping out on the courts.
However, the idea is NOT to play every day. Whaaaaaaaaat?
I’m committed to getting in my cross-training this summer and NOT letting pickleball get in the way of that. In other words, I don’t want total pickleball addiction. I want to mix in some other forms of exercise. My end game is to be strong, and able, enough to CONTINUE playing pickleball for years to come. There will be no Neil Young’in it for me. It is not better to burn out than to fade away. Unless, of course, you happen to be Neil! From what I hear, he is still in the “fade away” process, and multiple sources told me his latest tour is a trainwreck, with conductor Neil as surly as ever. Sometimes, it may work against you to try and keep on rockin’ in the free world. Or play pickleball every day with zero cross-training.
Easily, one of the biggest mistakes I see at the NVZ (non-volley zone, aka the kitchen line) is players backing off of the line when someone drives it at them. Sometimes they’re taking a step back before the opponent even swings their paddle. It’s the whole “flinch” thing. Understand, the moment you flinch, is the moment you give up valuable territory to your opponent. Flinching=loss of balance.
In order to get past this primitive habit, catch yourself in the act of doing it. Then catch yourself again, and again. Eventually you will wean yourself off of it. Yes, flinching is in our DNA. Like, centuries ago, if we didn’t flinch, and/or run for the hills, a saber tooth tiger may have eaten us for lunch.
Fuhgettabout the saber tooth tiger! Give yourself a firm stance at the net, with your feet a little wider than shoulder width apart, knees bent, and root yourself into that spot, and keep burrowing. You ARE a gladiator now! Not a mere caveman.
Everyone goes through the flinching stage, it is very common on the beginner and intermediate levels. I, myself, used to be the President of the Flinching Club. Not anymore. I love seeing a big banger line up to drive it at me. Eight, or nine, times out of ten, they’re not getting it past me. The difference now is that I am inviting the challenge in, rather than resisting (read: flinching) in fear of it. It might help you to think to yourself, when an opponent is about to drive it at you, something like, “Come on! Bring it!”
A lot of players also take a step back from the line because they are trying to get their forehand on a drive. This almost never works. Why? Because players try to put that forehand out in front of their body, and they generally wind up getting jammed.
The majority of times, when you’re defending at the NVZ, you want to be using your backhand. It’s obvious why. It can extend a good two feet out from where a forehand can. Picture that. You can’t get a forehand out in front of you like you can a backhand. And, the quicker you can take the ball at the net, the less time your opponents will have to react. Meaning, you want to be contacting the ball as far out in front of you as possible.
Yes, use a forehand when the ball is cleanly hit to that side of you, otherwise fuhgettabout it. Think of your backhand as your shield. You might not be able to ward off a saber tooth tiger with it, but you’ll definitely be able to ward off a few pickleballs!
VIDEO OF THE WEEK
I have a major P.P.P. Pet Pickleball Peeve. In every commercial that features pickleball, the “actors” don’t have a clue on how to play: where to stand, how to hold the paddle, etc. It’s kind of infuriating. Couldn’t they have just phoned someone on the crew’s grandmother and asked her how to hold that paddle? Unconscionable. Say hello to the Video of the Week. In our spoof, a commercial director works on a spot about the new adult diaper designed especially for pickleball players. What the hell does this have to do with Meryl Streep? Just watch.
BITE SIZE PODCAST
If you didn’t get to hear this Sunday’s podcast, you can listen here and learn about a truly advanced skill you’re going to need.
Read a FREE sample of my book How to Play Better Pickleball on Amazon. Click here.