As you advance in pickleball and start using third-shot drops effectively, you’ll feel good about your growing skills and strategic gameplay. You’ll win games with precision, smart court positioning, and good shot selection.
Then… you’ll face a power player—or even worse, a team of two. In these matches, using the drop shot against power players can make all the difference.
What is a Power Player?
Some players, especially those with strong racquet skills from sports like tennis, may avoid drop shots and dinking altogether.
Often referred to as “bangers”, these opponents rely on their ability to hit powerful drives, aiming for winners with speed and precision. Their forehand drives, often hit with heavy topspin, can be overwhelming to deal with.
Power players excel at reading the court and exploiting any openings. Their preference is to dominate the game with power, avoiding the soft, strategic elements that are key to pickleball.
Power Players are Tough to Beat
This fast-paced, power-focused style can be challenging, particularly if you lack a tennis or racquet sports background. Their speed and aggressive shots can quickly put you on the defensive.
However, you can level the playing field by consistently executing well-placed drop shots and blocking their drives efficiently.
Drop shots force power players to slow down and engage in a style of play they’re less comfortable with. While they may return poorly executed drop shots with ease, even the best bangers are prone to mistakes when they’re forced to go for winners against soft, well-placed shots.
Power players’ drives are hard and fast. They almost always hit third-shot drives to overpower the defense and move to the net.
How to Counter Power Players
Defense
On defense, be ready for hard third-shot drives. Block the shot by punching it back to keep them from advancing. If they are far back when hitting their drive, block the drive softly just over the net. Done well, this soft block won’t be reachable by them. Be aware, these players often rely on the Shake and Bake play. They will drive it hard at you and then move quickly to the net looking for anything up in the air from your block. To counter this, block shots to the side and down and away from them.
Blocking drives softly just over the net or punch volleying them in a direction away from your opponent are advanced skills and take a lot of practice. You will need to get good at these skills to beat these power players who constantly drive shots at you.
Offense
On offense, stay composed and focus on executing consistent drop shots and reset shots to make your way through the transition zone to the kitchen line. As you maneuver forward, you are hoping they drive an unattackable drop shot into the net or out of bounds.
They may also play a volley back at you with an upward motion that you can put away. Use patience and precision to wear them down and get to the net to engage them in a dinking rally.
With this strategy, you can shift the momentum and frustrate their game plan. Power players often rely on dominating the pace of the game, and controlled blocks and drop shots take that control away from them.
Summary
When you face power players, their powerful drives and smash shots may feel overwhelming at first. But as your drop shot and blocking skills improve, you’ll find yourself winning these matches. Younger, stronger opponents will struggle to attack your perfected drop shots, which land just out of their reach. You will softly block their drives just over the net out of their reach.
Their frustration will lead to mistakes, and you’ll be ready to exploit those opportunities. When the game ends, you’ll smile, knowing exactly why you won. Meanwhile, they’ll leave scratching their heads, questioning their strategy, and perhaps even reconsidering their approach to the game.
In doing so, you haven’t just won—you’ve helped them recognize the importance of a more balanced style of play.