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Keep it Simple & Play the Middle

Quick Tips Pickle4 Team 06-24-2025

In doubles pickleball, targeting the middle—meaning the space between your opponents—is a smart and effective strategy. When using the middle strategy, you are generally hitting the pickleball into the biggest area of the court and over the lowest part of the net. This not only gives you a high margin for error, but should also translate into fewer shots into the net. Hitting the pickleball down the middle can help to generate confusion and mistakes amongst your opponents. They may hesitate, both go for the pickleball and collide, or both pull back, expecting the other to take it, leaving the ball to sail untouched down the center. The middle strategy can also help you to open up other parts of the pickleball court, create space, and reduce the angles of the opposing team. Disrupt your opponents, apply pressure, and create opportunities for winning shots by aiming shots between your opponents.

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