The theme of the tutorial padel this week is how to quickly detect if your opponents are going to play a bandeja or a smash. As always, Julien Bondia offers you short tutorials so that you can focus on a specific part of the game. How do you quickly know which move your opponents are going to play?

One of the problems we may encounter when we are placed at the back of the field, in a defensive position, is to quickly detect if our opponents will play a particular shot. As soon as we have this information, we will place ourselves accordingly. Subsequently, you are free to set up your attack.

Today I suggest you understand if your opponents will play a bandeja or if they are going to play a smash.

The case is the following. You are at the back of the field, your opponents at the net. You or your partner decide to play a high ball. If the lob is successful, well done. Your opponents go back to the bottom and you take the net. If this is not the case, your opponents will try to stay at the net, or even finish the point with a bandeja or a smash.

How to have information?

It is from here that history interests us. There is no question for you to watch the ball, but your opponents. Let me explain. You, or your partner, play your lob. Look directly at the opponent players and especially who will play the ball. It will take very quickly to look at his non-dominant hand, the action of the arm that does not wear the racket.

This arm will have 2 options: Either it will announce a bandeja, or a smash.

  • Bandeja

To hit a bandeja, the non-dominant hand will move up the side of the body, towards the side grid. If you are very fast, you will see that this hand passes “generally” in front of the player's legs to go to the side of the body, at shoulder height, towards the grid. Then, this position can change, if the player has to change his placement, play in support with the ground or in suspension. But the starting movement will be the same.

  • Smash

For the smash, it's different. The non-dominant hand will no longer point the side gate but directly the ball. Since the ball will be in the air and that to hit a smash, the player will be under the ball, the position of the non-dominant hand will be directed to the sky.

Conclusion

If you practice looking at your opponents, their position and in particular the position of their non-dominant hand during your lobs, which is the moment when you will have the most time, you will be able to place yourself on the ground accordingly, and thus achieve better defensive shots. We will discuss how to position yourself during a bandeja or a smash from our opponents soon.

On your rackets.

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.

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