Imagine that the pickleball sails into the air on a lob. You and your partner need to make a quick assessment on whether you or your partner will strike the pickleball as an overhead, or let the pickleball bounce and strike the pickleball off the bounce. If you decide to strike the pickleball as an overhead, follow these basics to execute a killer overhead:

1. Raise your paddle up by your ear and lay your paddle back slightly so that the paddle face is tilted toward the sky. You want your wrist forward and paddle laid back slightly so that you have some room to whip the paddle head on the overhead.

2. Raise your non-paddle hand and point your pointer finger toward the pickleball in the air. Keep your non-paddle hand up throughout the overhead to keep your chest up throughout the shot.

3. Rotate your upper and lower body sideways by taking a small step back with your paddle-side foot. This is important because you should avoid backpedaling on an overhead, which can be a dangerous maneuver since you will likely be off balance. So, do a small drop step with your feet and be in a sideways position prior to striking the overhead.

4. Shuffle and move your feet to position yourself under the pickleball in such a way that you will strike the overhead slightly out in front of your body. If you move your feet correctly, you should make a sound similar to a horse in a gallop. Most pickleball players will only be able to move two to three steps. Beyond two to three steps, you probably should let the pickleball bounce, rather than try to track down the pickleball for an overhead.

5. Strike the overhead between 12 and 2 o’clock (or 10 and 12 o’clock if you are a lefty) out in front of your body, with 1 o’clock (or 11 o’clock if you are a lefty) being ideal. Your contact point for an overhead should be as high as you can reach. In other words, your body should be extended from your paddle to your foot. If you strike the pickleball too low, you may find yourself hitting the pickleball into the net too often. If the pickleball is a bit low, bend your knees and get low with your lower body, so that you are still fully extended from your waist to your paddle.

The overhead is one of the few shots in pickleball that you should engage your entire arm (including your elbow and your wrist) and get into the shot. Try engaging your entire arm to get some power behind your overhead.

Key Takeaways:

1. When a pickleball sails into the air, communicate and work with your partner to determine (a) whether you or your partner will hit the pickleball; and (b) whether the shot will be an overhead or a shot off of the bounce.

2. To hit an overhead:

a. Raise you paddle up by your ear with your paddle laid back;

b. Point your non-paddle hand at the pickleball;

c. Rotate your body sideways to avoid backpedaling;

d. Move your feet;

e. Strike the pickleball out in front of your body, with 1 o’clock (or 11 o’clock if you are a lefty) being ideal; and

f. Engage your entire arm in the shot.