Compare today the trips players at the back of the track between two racket sports that share similarities, the tennis and padel. And you will see that few things bring them together.

Although the padel always detaches himself more from his relation with tennis, we can not help but compare them. It is true that many points bring them together, but over the years we realize that, in detail, there are great differences. Let's talk about moving to the bottom of the track.

Tennis

Tennis players start their points at the back of the court. It is from this position that the game starts. As strikes, players will try to move their opponent to either gain the point from this position, or for some, come to the net to put an end to it.

So here we can say that the baseline is used for defense but also for attack. And even more interesting is that you can go from defense to attack in one hit, and vice versa. The movements are therefore carried out accordingly, with the concern of always finishing forward to avoid suffering too much.

At the bottom of the track, tennis players will have the line as a reference. Major movements will be made parallel to this line to access as quickly as possible and with a concern for violence on impact, balls played by the opponent.

Au padel

Au padel it's different. Points start either near the net or at the back of the track depending on whether your team serves or returns. You will therefore have to process several positions: either the offensive position at the net, that is to say the defensive at the bottom. Let’s focus on today's theme, the track background.

As explained above, if you are at the bottom of the track, you are in a defensive position. Your primary objective is not to gain the point from this position but to push back the opponents to take their place at the net and find yourself in an attacking position.

We will therefore have to organize a defense. Although the bottom line can be taken as a reference, at padel, we can also play with the windows behind us; and this is where our movements will evolve.

A player of padel will not move parallel to the end line, but in a zig-zag, front-to-back, for several reasons. The first to give yourself time before hitting the ball, the second to be able to access the defense of the windows, and the third to finish the strike in the best possible position.

Lob preparation at the bottom of the track when exiting the window

The major differences Tennis /Padel

  • Move parallel to the line for tennis and zig-zag for the padel
  • In tennis, the goal is to go from defense to attack in one stroke while in padel we organize a defense in the hope of pushing back the opponents, not of winning the point
  • In tennis no windows, a ball behind the body is lost, in padel you have to know how to play with these windows and use them to slow down the game
  • In tennis you can finish the point with a single strike from any zone. At padel, if you are badly placed or badly repositioned after the strike, you create the hole and a chance for the opponents to finish the point

You know everything about travel. So if you are a tennis player who takes to the padel or a player from padel who is playing against a tennis player, pay attention to movement, they could make you lose the match… or on the contrary help you win it!

Julien Bondia

Julien Bondia is a teacher of padel in Tenerife (Spain). Columnist and advisor, he helps you play better through his tutorials and tactical/technical articles padel.