10 Years Of Padel… The 10 Best Tips I Ever Got

Added: 2026-06-02

[00:00:00]Fontan, you made this.

[00:00:01]>> Yeah, I have been playing paddle for over 10 years. During these 10 years, I traveled like all over Spain, had training sessions with a lot of good Spanish and Argentinian coaches, and these are the top 10 things that they learned me that improved my technical game. So, I'm absolutely certain that this video is going to help you a lot because it helped me a lot. I'm in Northwike today and we're at Finerfeld.

[00:00:24]I'm going to start right now. paddles.

[00:00:26]Tip number one is regarding the volley in paddle which helped me a lot to generate some extra slice with power and this is with my session with really laost. He wanted me to do this last second like a lot. I was doing more of a motion with the entire arm which was nice but it changed one little thing which made it a lot better. You are when the ball is coming sometime you made this.

[00:00:57]>> Yeah.

[00:00:58]>> You made this.

[00:00:59]>> Yeah.

[00:00:59]>> Imagine you are now like a kat man.

[00:01:02]Okay. That you want to cut the wooden in the middle and you make a big power but you stop it.

[00:01:07]>> Yeah.

[00:01:08]>> Now I want you feel that you make this >> no bounce in the back. Not only >> Yeah.

[00:01:14]>> I want you when the ball is high again.

[00:01:17]>> Yeah.

[00:01:17]>> With power and you stop it and recover.

[00:01:20]Don't go fast for the next ball. Maybe you don't have to time for the next one.

[00:01:25]And now you are like a gun all the time.

[00:01:27]And you are shooting all the time. Boom.

[00:01:28]Boom. Boom.

[00:01:29]>> Yeah.

[00:01:29]>> Shooting. Shooting. Not not only one. If you win the point, perfect. But you don't win the point. Maybe the next one is >> Yeah.

[00:01:35]>> Soft.

[00:01:37]Good.

[00:01:39]Good. Okay, let's go. Yes.

[00:01:43]>> Yes.

[00:01:45]Yes. This is the ball. Take even a medium bully, you may power here. No bounce.

[00:01:52]>> So what Willie explained was that I should do like last second to tighten the hand and to use the hand a lot. This is really nice if you start higher than the ball and then try to do the last second thing with the wrist. H it's really really nice. But it's you need to use all of your muscles to do this.

[00:02:18]But that quick feeling super nice and the slower the incoming ball the more you can relax your hand and the the quicker the incoming ball the more you need to tighten the hand. The next tip is holding your position. So what I like this is also with shaver a lot also with god h god das to hold your position. So many people from the back of the court for instance and I was doing this I was try trying to doing that kind of thing from the defensive part which made my defensive game that I was playing too many balls too high and the net players could easily kill the volley >> point.

[00:03:09]Don't do that chicken ass. Yeah.

[00:03:16]>> Also, for instance, with the with the fiba that I did too many steps like backwards that took like in transition, it takes more time to run back and forth. Even though I jumped, I could stay like straight away. So that like holding the position was important. And so let's say I jump that I hold the position and I go back straight away. So when you play the vibra that you like hang in the air.

[00:03:44]This is what Stupa does really well.

[00:03:47]Yes.

[00:03:49]That's it. Come. Go.

[00:04:00]When you are hitting that one, you are thinking to run in that one.

[00:04:03]>> Yeah.

[00:04:03]>> But you didn't finish the shot. You are here >> and you are trying to come here. You have to finish the shoulder, finish the shot, go >> and go.

[00:04:12]>> This is physical.

[00:04:13]>> And with the backend folly, I did >> sometime. It's more vertical sometimes.

[00:04:18]Yes.

[00:04:19]>> And that it doesn't take like you hit the ball boom boom boom and then going forward. So that holding the position like the balance in midair playing the vira jumping or holding the position in this way or when you're nice that if you have the time that you go for the vibra without the jump and you hold your position that helped me a lot most of my mistakes are in my footwork and this was a massive game changer for me the list I make from not important to important by the Then the natural stance what I had in the beginning especially when I was playing the vibras that I was either in this way.

[00:05:02]So going up a lot or that I was smashing the ball and I was like going down a lot. So I was like be careful that the legs don't move up before the hands or vice versa.

[00:05:19]>> Okay. Look.

[00:05:21]>> Same time.

[00:05:22]>> You need to go together.

[00:05:23]>> Okay.

[00:05:24]>> Legs. But don't flex too much.

[00:05:26]>> Yeah.

[00:05:27]>> If I'm here, I cannot.

[00:05:29]>> It's hard to to generate because when you're here, you're going to go up and right.

[00:05:35]>> Yeah.

[00:05:36]>> So, it's here.

[00:05:38]And normally that leg will will come up.

[00:05:41]>> Yeah.

[00:05:41]>> When you are here, >> that will not happen.

[00:05:46]>> Softly.

[00:05:48]Too high. Lower. Lower.

[00:05:50]>> That's why you went down.

[00:05:51]>> Yeah.

[00:05:51]>> You play from really far. So you cannot go down anymore.

[00:05:54]>> Yeah. You have to go up.

[00:05:55]>> Exactly. Okay.

[00:06:00]>> Like that.

[00:06:01]>> Yeah.

[00:06:03]>> Going down too much instead of being like natural. So the natural stance playing the vibr but being neutral with the shoulders, not being in this way.

[00:06:12]And being neutral with the legs. So not that way or that way. Helped me. so much. Also, when I was defending, what I did was sometimes this uh instead of like just like getting behind the ball and holding my position to be neutral again.

[00:06:34]Back and down.

[00:06:37]>> Back and down.

[00:06:38]>> Yeah. Get your ass down.

[00:06:45]Your head is nearly lower than your ass.

[00:06:50]>> See, be careful with that.

[00:06:52]>> Okay.

[00:06:52]>> There.

[00:06:53]>> So, small stones, small small, but then open up when you need to go down. Make it easy to go down and up.

[00:06:59]>> Yeah.

[00:07:01]>> High.

[00:07:06]>> Yeah.

[00:07:07]>> Now I can get my knee. No. The key is that your left knee needs to get close to the ground.

[00:07:12]>> Yeah.

[00:07:13]>> I mean, I literally touch the ground many times with my knee.

[00:07:16]>> Yeah.

[00:07:16]>> If I have to. All right.

[00:07:18]>> So, that looks like kind of a movement that is a little bit new to you.

[00:07:22]>> Yeah. I never do this.

[00:07:24]>> Mostly I'm solving problems with my wrist. I don't know if you do the same, but if I solve problems with my feet, I just play way better. And that natural stance can help you a lot in that. Next tip would be walk on the court. For me, I was rushing a lot, especially when I was still playing tennis. I was used to move like really quickly. And once I started to walk on the court, I finally learned to play paddle. Walking on the court was for me a way to make less mistakes on the court. A way that my contact point was getting better because I was not rushing in. And I was not playing the chikita and then hitting the ball behind me. And also it was a way that I knew where to play the ball. Once you walk on the court, you realize that you play the ball to the wrong area. If you keep playing and running, you can solve a lot of problems, but you're not aware of the mistakes that you are making and still that you're hitting contact points behind you because you rush in and you play way too hard and you can never slow down any shot.

[00:08:34]Whenever the ball is lower than the net, the opponent's only options are high or short. In any case, to move forwards is a good idea. Now what could be happening is that you're running too much and that's why you don't find yourself precise enough to play down and then this >> is more comfortable. So for me the key of all this system you guys trying to play is to learn how to move and when to stop forwards. So for instance chikita that you play like soft on the feet you move two steps you play the other way you move two steps and you play in the open space and that's it. Before I had that lesson, this is what Kmon told me. I was like going in straight away. So I was playing the guitar, boom, running in, hitting the ball behind me, and losing the rally. Play your natural direction. I like to follow one rule, which is what I consider the natural swing. Which means if I'm playing a forehand volley, what is more natural for me? To play there or to play there?

[00:09:39]>> There. or to play in the middle or to play there >> there right >> so whenever I have it on my forehand I'm going to tend to play there I can bury sometimes of course but most likely that will be my choice >> y >> if I have it on my backand what is my natural swing that one or that one >> yeah or even maybe there >> yeah but I'm here >> yeah then more to the middle >> more to the middle now do I play sometimes in the corner yes when I have space because then the ball is asking me and it's giving me space >> and you're in the right position after.

[00:10:14]>> Yes. But if the ball is uncover natural swing.

[00:10:18]>> Yeah, I did this especially when I was on the right side on the left side.

[00:10:23]Maybe not so much. I was not playing my natural direction.

[00:10:29]I'm playing on the right side. Ball came from the right player and I'm playing my backand that comes inside of my body inside outside. Feels easy for me to do.

[00:10:41]But he said play your natural direction.

[00:10:44]So when the ball is like far from you, you can play cross.

[00:10:49]Totally fine. When the ball's close to you, play to the middle. That's it. If the ball's even slower, you can make a direction to play cross.

[00:11:00]If you follow this structure, if you make a lot of mistakes, this is a very big game changer. If you follow this kind of rule, you will make fewer errors on the court because the ball that you play is biomechanical easier. So this is harder. This is easier. So try to play a more natural swing. So sometimes it's fine if you play on the left side and you play your fore end folly straight in this direction because it makes more sense to than to play your foreand folly opening the racket a lot and to play in the corner.

[00:11:41]Next tip would be stepping in small. I think this is something to do with like I played tennis into was like 13 years old. So, I don't have like I'm not the best example of a tennis player because my tennis level was high when I was 13, but I stopped playing after that.

[00:11:57]Stepping in like big time, making very big steps was one of my biggest mistakes. And it's totally fine to make like a small step. Also, if you make like a big step for like a tennis volley, you can make a lot of extra power. But in paddle, you want to remain like pushing the ball. So what helped me a lot is to make my steps smaller and I kept my swing smaller. Especially with the volleys, I was overhitting a lot of balls. I was playing way too quick. Making a smaller step whenever I I had the time to make a step. My volleys were way more slicy, way more down, and I had way more control. I did this a lot. I actually did a training exercise. Uh this was with Alejandro from Kal Castonda Laplana. Very nice coach. But he put like the rubber band on my feet and then I could only do this.

[00:12:59]That's it. So he forced me in a way. He didn't say like make a small step. He just say okay play the volley. Put a put a rubber band on your feet and play. And that was super. And he also did that with us from the back of the court.

[00:13:14]So when we were defending the corner, we like a lot of players do, you make like a very big steps when defending the corner. When he was putting like the rubber bands on our feet, we were forced to play like smaller and he also had this thing that you put on your legs and then you're forced to be lower to the ground. If you're somebody that overthinks a lot, just putting that gear on makes it easy because you don't need to receive any information. You just put the straps on or the elastic bands or the whatever and you will feel the difference and you will feel the difference. Paddle is a positioning game and you need to play where the ball is going because every time you change direction from the back or at the net, you need to move where the ball is going because then your opponent is going to be positioned in that way. So what I learned is step and go.

[00:14:13]Let's say I'm staying in this position. I'm playing my back end there and I immediately move to cover the middle.

[00:14:24]I'm playing to the middle. Okay, I move closer to the net and I'm covering my fans. Again, this is on the edge of tactical, but it cannot get more important than this because if you're in the right position, tle becomes much easier. If you're in the wrong position, your technique, you could be like number one of the world, you could be tapia, but if you're in the wrong position, it's going to be very difficult. This is like what like three or four coaches teach me. And I think a lot of coaches will probably do this as well, but this is preparing in a way that you can play fast, slow, and medium speed from one preparation that you can hide your intentions. Normally, first I try to get here with a neutral position.

[00:15:07]>> So I'm not showing so much my intentions.

[00:15:10]>> No, but this is quite chemicated.

[00:15:12]>> Yeah, but that's how I prepared.

[00:15:13]>> Yeah.

[00:15:14]>> I would like to get here with my options open >> because then I will see what they are doing. I can play there.

[00:15:23]And I can play there and I can actually change direction or I can accelerate if I want to. I'm hiding my shot. I'm hiding a little bit more my intentions.

[00:15:33]But also I'm giving myself options.

[00:15:37]If I make a decision too soon and now the wall comes higher, I might ended up not being able to react. So that's why I always like to put myself in a position that in case something unexpected happens, I can react. If you want to defend well from the back of the court and you want to surprise your opponent and you don't want them to rush into the net or knowing when you play the lop, this is what you need to learn. So play with one. Learn to play from one preparation. hide your intentions and try to play three different kinds of speed from this preparation.

[00:16:20]Then this this for me was the number one via tip to prepare smaller and I just want to make the example of the vivra but I feel like in every shot in paddle having the preparation early and slowly and frozen is the number one technical tip.

[00:16:42]Well, the number two technical tip actually because there's one more but that I would give most of the students.

[00:16:50]This is every single tip regarding the preparation of your wrecket in paddle is way more important than everything that follows after it.

[00:17:00]>> Sometimes people when it goes for the bibra they go too much like this. That's for more banda more flat.

[00:17:05]>> Yeah.

[00:17:06]>> For bivbora it's more here and the elbow can be a little bit lower as well. Eso S. See, >> I feel this is a massive difference to be very close >> and very far.

[00:17:17]>> Yeah.

[00:17:18]>> If you're close, you're going down, you won't come up. If you're far, you're going straight.

[00:17:23]>> Many coaches should actually focus more on watching what somebody does wrong in the preparation. This could be the speed of the preparation. So, way too quick, way too long, so that it takes too much time. not like having a moment where it's actually frozen and the vibra for me was the click that made that happen.

[00:17:44]Prepare like small inmon wanted me to be like in this way so very compact like I was in a roller coaster uh kind of thing. He didn't said that but that's how it felt to me. And then I just feel like long and then I could long. So every thing in paddle starts from being small to being extended or to push. So when you prepare the back end in paddle, you don't need like this swing. You don't need that. I did that as of course when I was in the beginning when I was playing paddle, but just like this.

[00:18:21]So important that you go from small to long, from small to long.

[00:18:28]Do this. Just focus on this.

[00:18:31]Record your shot. Watch it back. Massive difference. The number one tip, and this is something that nobody's going to expect, but this is the thing that I worked on a lot with Kmon in my time in Spain, and this is head balance.

[00:18:51]All kudos to Kmon for this one because this is like nobody taught me this in tennis. I wish they did head with the ball.

[00:19:02]Backham Bali. Where's my head?

[00:19:04]>> On the left.

[00:19:05]>> Yeah.

[00:19:06]>> Foreham body. Where's my head?

[00:19:08]>> Yeah.

[00:19:09]>> On the right.

[00:19:09]>> With the ball.

[00:19:10]>> Yeah.

[00:19:12]>> Play there. Right. And I couldn't do this. But still my balance is there.

[00:19:18]See?

[00:19:20]>> Yeah.

[00:19:21]>> But I will never be playing there. Here.

[00:19:26]>> Yeah.

[00:19:26]>> So your head Yeah, easier. And also I clear contact point.

[00:19:37]>> Open up the space. Why? So then you have to go there. If the ball is here, you have to come this way.

[00:19:44]>> Yeah.

[00:19:45]>> So open up the space.

[00:19:47]>> Your head balance is key. For instance, when you do the kick smash that you're not like falling behind too much when you do the vi that you're not going there or that I was like too close to the ball. Then I was putting my head away from the ball which made me lose balance a lot. When I was focused on head with the ball folly head with the ball everything got so much better. felt like super neutral and also the tip head with the ball was very easy to perform. It was not like one of those tips that made things more complicated.

[00:20:27]Head with the ball made everything easy straight away. It also it helped straight away.

[00:20:34]Everything like came into place once I got this tip with my technique. So for in folly, head with the ball. Back in folly, head with the ball. Fibra I was doing this. I need to do this or at least staying with the ball and also not hitting the ball. Boom. Go there straight away. So it's something that you do before you hit the shot, during the shot and after the shot. Many paddle players do this.

[00:21:00]This is the reason that you over slice or that you hit too far in front. You make tons of mistakes. But you want is going to help you so much. It's insane. If you want any numbers from these coaches that I that I went through, feel free to ask. Um, I need to ask them first if I can give them your if I can give their number to you.

[00:21:28]But it's good to just go to a few coaches. For me, that was very nice.

[00:21:32]also could be a little bit confusing because one coach says something and the other coach says something different. So if you can make your own sauce out of it. So just pick the things from the coaches that you like and then focus on your game and maybe say okay this is some shots that I don't want to touch.

[00:21:52]They're fine. For instance, my kick smash I don't want to touch that much um because it's going well now. I'm not going to change that because it's gonna maybe make it wor worse. But there are a few shots that I would like to touch.

[00:22:06]Maybe my volleys, maybe my defensive game, my blocks, and I'm open for it. If you want me to make this list of tactics, let me know because I think this is going to be even more important than the technique. I hope this helped a lot. If you want to see more videos like this, please let me know below. And thank you all for watching. Hustiggo. Ciao. Adios.