Serve and return basics: common mistakes and fixes
Simple ways to make your serve and return consistent and deep.
What to focus on
- Make more returns deep
- Dink without popping the ball up
- Move with your partner instead of chasing alone
- Recognise when to reset instead of swinging harder
Core skills
Deep returnsBasic dinksEarly split stepSimple target selection
Drills to run
- Deep return ladder
- 100 soft dinks with a partner
- Serve-return-plus-one pattern
- Transition-zone stop drill
Best paddle profile
Control or all-court paddle with enough forgiveness to protect consistency.
Recommended next reads
Dinking fundamentals: staying steady at the kitchen line
What a good dink looks like, the technique behind it, and how to practise patience at the net.
Court etiquette and open-play (pickup) norms
Paddle stacks, calling lines, and the etiquette of rotating in at busy courts.