Dinking, often known as the “soft game,” is a quick drop shot from the non-volley line that is executed without much force and lands in the non-volley zone of the opponent.
The primary benefit of dinking is that you can frustrate an opponent into making a mistake by forcing a player who is hitting the ball harder than you to play the soft game, or on your terms.
One of the first things individuals typically learn when learning about pickleball and starting to play this sport is to hit the ball forcefully. The skill of the gentler, dinking game is all but gone in the attempt to develop one’s power game along with precision.
Because of this, having that strategy in your toolbox is a good idea. Particularly against players who lack the finesse required for dinking.
Why Should You Dink?
One of the main purposes of dinking at an opponent in pickleball is to deter him/her from playing at a high level and make him/her play more slowly.
Think about what occurs when a player dinks. The opponent’s feet or the no-volley zone are where the ball is anticipated to land. It becomes challenging for a player to play a powerful game in any scenario.
The only way your opponent can respond if the ball is dinked into the kitchen zone is to let it bounce, however, if the ball is dinked near to your opponent’s feet, he or she will need to play a volley up to get the ball over the goal.
In both situations, it lessens the impact of a pickleball power player or compels the opponent to hit it into the net or lob it over the baseline.
How To Dink In Pickleball?
- Kneel to the ground
- Maintain a 45-degree angle on the paddle’s leading side.
- Maintain a Stiff Arm and Wrist when Swinging From the Shoulder
- As you follow through, keep an eye on the ball.
- Put yourself in a position where you are prepared to return.
It’s essential to bend, but not at the waist, but rather at the knees, in order to dink and slow down the ball. The reason this is beneficial is that it lowers your center of gravity and enables you to hold your pickleball paddle at a 45-degree angle. Pickleball can be played across the net from here the finest.
Use your shoulder to play the dink and play the full shot through to the follow-through while maintaining a stiff wrist and arm.
Once you’ve done that, it’s crucial to maintain your eyes on the ball and position yourself so that you’re ready to react to any kind of response from the opposition, including a dink or an aggressive groundstroke.
As was previously stated, maintain your patience and use three to four shots to establish the point.
The most crucial aspect of dinking is to continue honing your skills till you improve. Understanding its theoretical implications is one thing, but being able to quickly decide whether to play a dink on a pickleball court should be ingrained in your muscle memory.
And the only way to achieve that level is to continue improving your abilities until you become more proficient in it.
How To Improve Pickleball Dinking?
- Take up Position
When dinking the ball, good locations are crucial. You want to stand with your body parallel to the net in an athletic stance. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart with your knees bent. You have the best chance to shift laterally and enough room to cover shots to your left and right when you do this.
- Await Your Opportunity to Act
While up at the net, we are all under pressure to score as soon as possible. However, sometimes making a dink shot is more about positioning yourself for a better shot in the future. Before someone makes a bold effort to score, dinks frequently go back and forth for four or five consecutive strokes.
- Maintain Focus on the Ball
You’ve heard the advice to keep your eyes on the ball in sports your entire life. There is no difference between pickleball and dinking in particular. It’s incredibly simple to turn your attention away from the ball and onto the intended target. What occurs, though, if you do that? You accidentally hit the ball with the paddle’s side or completely miss it. Work on keeping track of the player in front of you while watching the ball connect with your paddle and using your peripheral vision.
- Footwork
When the ball is in play, standing still is almost never a good idea. We always want to be prepared to move left, right, up, or down. When you are standing at the NVZ line (the kitchen), you don’t want to get caught flat-footed and have to lunge at your opponent’s return shot. Instead, keep your feet moving and even step back if you need to.
- Hold the Line
The pressure is on at the top of the line. The ball is moving rapidly, as both teams are trying to make a kill shot. Hold the line and be assertive while in the cooking area. If you retreat from the NVZ line, you can allow your adversary to make difficult-to-return shots at your feet. So, if you move backward, get back into position right away and wait for the return shot.
- Defend your feet or attempt a short hop
Strong players will aim their shots at your feet, especially when they are at the line, to disadvantage you and make it more difficult for you to get a good return back to them. You may avoid allowing this to happen frequently by hitting the ball with a short hop.
- Lift Through the Ball Gently
We frequently discuss hitting the ball through on your shots. This is most likely the case on drive shots, where you must give the ball strength and a level trajectory over the net. But as you swing into the ball for a drive, you must also turn your hips.
- Remove the ball from the air
By striking the ball before it bounces, you remove it from the air. Sometimes this is done purposefully, other times it’s essential because there isn’t enough space between you and the NVZ line to allow it to bounce. When dinking, hitting the ball out of the air can quicken play, take the bounce factor out of the equation, and help you put more pressure on your opponent.
Recap
A dink shot is a soft shot executed somewhere around the non-volley zone line (NVZ) meant to land in your opponent’s kitchen area (the region between the net and the NVZ) (the space between the net and the NVZ). It’s intended to be a challenging shot for your opponent to reach and one that alters the tempo of the game.
The dink shot can effectively assist you to counteract the advantage of a player who prefers to play at the baseline or who is good at driving the ball.
