When I first started playing pickleball I used to get creamed on a regular basis
by a fellow named John. Now John was just shy of his 80th birthday and about ready
to get his hip replaced. It amazed me at how easily he could dispatch me on a
pickleball court. Perhaps you can relate because I think at one point in time we
have all been beaten by somebody who's a little bit older than we are? Well here
are some of the strategies that I learned from John and how I apply them
when I'm facing somebody younger on the pickleball court. Stay tuned.
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to all of them.
Hey everybody it's CJ Johnson. It doesn't matter if you're 80 or 70 or 60 at some
point in time you are going to be on a pickleball court with somebody who is
younger than you are. What types of strategies can you use to
stay competitive when you know right off the bat that generally their reflexes
are faster and they're going to be more mobile around the court. It turns out
that those lessons that I got from all the beatings I took from John not only
apply to playing people who are younger than we are plain and simple
they're just good pickleball strategies. And here are the four things that he
taught me.
It's likely you've heard a lot of different things about the ready
position in pickleball. What you'll notice that all these ladies have in
common is the paddle is up and in front of them. The longer it takes for the
paddle to travel from its position to the ball
the slower it's going to be. In this still photo you're going to notice the
same thing. The paddle is up and in front of each of these players.
I think each and every one of us has probably lost a point while we stand
there and admire a shot and suddenly the balls come back to us and we're not
ready. In this clip James even though he's
slightly out of position is very quick and has the ability to get to this ball.
However I'm expecting it to come back and I'm easily able to take advantage of
the open court.
John used to love to isolate my backhand. Here I'm gonna do the exact same thing
to James. He likes to take a big cut at the backhand right down the center. When
I return it with a block towards his feet I catch him off balance. Believe it
or not this isn't a replay, it's a completely different point. But you'll
notice the exact same thing happens.
In this point keep an eye on your Jurgen. He's across the court from me. He is
incredibly fit and incredibly fast. He's gonna try and make a play on every
single point. Even when Jeanne hits a great lob over our head and drives us
away from the line look at Jurgen. He is up at the kitchen line ready to play.
Keep moving a person around the court for a long period of time and eventually
they are going to get tired!
One last thing that you have control over is your
health and fitness. Take a little bit of time away from the pickleball courts
work on your cardio conditioning, your balance, your flexibility and your
reflexes. Those things will all make a difference once you get out on the court.
If you got value from this video if you wouldn't mind giving it a little thumbs up
or leave me a comment down below. Tell me what are your best strategies out on the
pickleball court. Because together we can
Train Smart, Live Bold, Age Well