Putting it in the fridge is a tactic sometimes used in padel whose objective is to avoid at all costs the strongest player in a pair. Conclusion: The player who is supposed to be strong does not touch the ball of the game.

If this tactic is sometimes logically used in official matches, it can seem quite harsh and perhaps even incomprehensible in friendly matches.

François Lorenzo, player and referee of padel among others from the National Padel Cup gives us its opinion.

Putting in the fridge is a subject that has tickled me for a little while. As a player, but also as a referee, players can be heard a number of times complaining about the freezing. A tactic that is not always unanimous. For my part, my opinion is clear: yes during the official tests, and not during the friendly tests!

Note that I make a big distinction between OFFICIAL match and FRIENDLY match.

During an OFFICIAL GAME, I don't understand how we can complain. Sometimes even the player in the fridge can be so frustrated, upset that it can take on disproportionate attitudes. In general, we know when we play with someone who is weaker or stronger. Therefore, both should expect to be put in the fridge or to be watered with bullets. The opponents indeed want to win, which seems perfectly normal and will therefore favor the area of ​​the player supposed to be less good. We can't blame them!

In a FRIENDLY GAME, on the other hand, I don't understand at all this tactic of putting one of the players in the fridge and thus wanting to avoid the strongest player being on the other side of the net. Is the aim of these unofficial games to win at all costs? Isn't it about spending time with friends? Isn't it possible to take advantage of the player above the strip and seek to progress technically and tactically?

What do you think ? If we look more closely, it even seems counterproductive for the team that applies this bet in the fridge since it takes it out of the basic scheme which is to play the majority diagonally to control the field.

Can we consider putting in place rules of decorum which prevent a friendly game from becoming uninteresting for one of the four players (more rarely, two of the four players if one player from each team is put in the fridge)?

My solution: We could for example consider limiting to a maximum number of consecutive balls played on the same player.

I await your opinion and your ideas.

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovers the padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since padel is part of his life. You often see him touring France going to cover the major events of padel French.