After the service, we will now discuss the rules to know when returning from service.

First of all, the receiver must have put on his wrist strap! As I often repeat, the wrist strap is mandatory at padel. If it is not put, we lose the point directly! It is a matter of safety, for all. This is often a problem at first for players coming from tennis, who sometimes feel a bit trapped. But, very quickly we forget it and it becomes natural to have it around the wrist.

The placement

Next, it is important to know that the raiser can place himself wherever he wants on the field. In other words, he can quite put himself in his service box ... and even just behind the net if he wants (ditto for his partner).
It is just compulsory for the 4 players to be on the field (forbidden to wait outside for the point to start).

However, the safest placement is to wait for serve behind your square line, in the area commonly referred to as the house. Basically, towards the imaginary intersection of the two lines formed by the last intersection of the side window and the first at the baseline. Some players like to stick their square line, others wait closer to the back window… it's personal, and it depends on your profile and your strengths.

Léa Godallier forehand return world padel tour


How to hit the ball?

The serve must be restarted after a single bounce. It is forbidden to restart a volley.

If the ball bounces twice in the square, the serve is good (if the ball did not hit the fence after the first bounce)… and the returning team loses the point. 

The receiver has the right to return the ball either directly after the first bounce or by using one or two windows (but not the wire mesh).

 

 

If the return hits the receiver's partner, the fence or any other object on the other side of the net, the point is lost for the team on the return.

Who raises and for how many games?

The raiser who will have returned the first service of the match (to the right therefore), will have to restart the service in this same diagonal and this during, at least, the whole duration of the first set.

Raisers may change diagonal at the start of each new set. So you have to know yourself well and choose the diagonal where you feel most comfortable to relaunch all types of services!

Important to know: If, by mistake, the receivers have swapped their diagonal of returns during a game or tie-off, the reverse positioning should continue until the end of the game or tie-off in which the find took place. The pair will resume the initial positioning from the next game.

In a future article, I will discuss the tactical part of returns and the preferential possibilities to retain in order to progress.

¡ What disfruten!

Line Meites

Line Meites is one of the best French players in padel. It's the voice of your live on Padel Magazine. But not only, she also hosts the column “Investigations of the Swiss Army Knife”. Every month, she will come back to a controversy or a theme that is close to her heart.