How To Get Better At Pickleball: 5 Ways To Make Every Session Count

You’re getting the games in, but parts of your game still aren’t quite clicking. Sound familiar?

That doesn’t necessarily mean you need more court time. Sometimes, you need to use that time differently.

A little more purpose, better movement and a few focused changes can make a real difference.

Here are five things to try next time you step on court.

1. Practise. Don’t Just Play.

It’s easy to warm up and head straight into a match. But game play doesn’t always give you enough chances to work on the areas you want to sharpen.

If your serve feels inconsistent or your third-shot drop needs work, spend some time isolating that skill before the points start. Take the score out of it and get the reps in.

Games test your skills. Practice gives you the chance to build them.

2. Give Your Session A Focus

Trying to work on everything at once usually means nothing gets your full attention.

Instead, give each session a purpose. Maybe you want to get more depth on your serve, a more reliable backhand or make better decisions when the rally speeds up.

Choose one area and keep it in mind while you play.

You don’t need to leave court with a completely different game. You want one part of it to feel a little better than it did before.

3. Get Set Before You Hit

Sometimes the shot isn’t the problem. Your position is.

If you’re stretching, leaning or still moving as you make contact, you’re already making the next shot more difficult.

Move early, use small adjustment steps and give yourself enough space to get balanced before you swing.

Good movement makes everything else easier, and if you’re playing regularly, proper court shoes can also help with all those quick stops, starts and changes of direction.

4. Build Control Before Pace

We all enjoy putting a ball away.

But hitting harder isn’t much use if you can’t put the ball where you want it.

Start with control. Focus on making solid contact, keeping the ball in play and placing it with intention. Once that starts to feel repeatable, then add more pace.

That’s where the Franklin Sweet Spot Trainer Paddle can be useful. Its smaller hitting area gives you less margin for error, putting accuracy and centre contact at the heart of the drill.

Find the middle first. Add the speed later.

5. Give Yourself A Better Challenge

Good training doesn’t have to mean doing the same thing over and over.

Give yourself a target.

How many controlled dinks can you keep going? Can you land five serves into the same area? Can you keep your drops low enough to make the next ball easier?

You can even make the ball itself harder to hit.

bZer Training Pickleballs are smaller than a standard pickleball, adding an extra challenge to tracking, timing and ball striking.

Then switch back to your normal ball and see how that added concentration carries into your usual game.

How Do You Know It’s Working?

Don’t measure progress only by the score.

Maybe you’re making fewer unforced errors. You’re arriving at the ball in better balance. You’re choosing better shots when the point gets quick.

Those little changes count.

Because getting better at pickleball usually isn’t about one huge breakthrough.

It’s about the small things becoming more consistent.

ONE SESSION. ONE FOCUS.

Before your next game, decide what you want to work on.

Give it some attention. Put it under pressure in a match. See what holds up when the rally gets faster.

Then build from there.

READY TO MAKE YOUR PRACTICE COUNT?

Work on accuracy with the Franklin Sweet Spot Trainer Paddle, challenge your tracking and timing with bZer Training Pickleballs, or support your movement with the Skechers Viper Court Pro 2.0.