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A 2 minute read, written in August 2026 and read over again on 10 October 2026

Padel volleys: the block, the punch, and where to stand for both

The net is where padel points are won, and the volley is how you keep it. Most club volleys fail for one reason: the player swings.

Where to stand

Two to two and a half metres from the net, roughly level with your partner, racket up at chest height with the face slightly open. Closer than that and every lob goes over you; further back and the ball drops below the net tape before you reach it and you volley up, which is how you lose the net. Between shots, move together: when the ball is on your partner's side, you slide toward the middle to cover the gap.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall
To the deeper player's feet Volley low and deep to the feet of the player standing further back. He has to hit up, and you get the next one.

The punch

The normal padel volley is a short, firm push. Racket back no further than your shoulder, contact in front of the body, follow through a foot or so toward the target, done. The ball should leave with a little slice so it stays low after the bounce and dies near the back glass. If you take a full swing you hit the ball into the glass at head height and it comes back over your head as a lob you did not need to give away. Think of it as catching the ball with the strings and pushing it back.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall
Through the middle, at the seam A volley between two players makes them decide who takes it. Keep it low and deep; it does not need pace.

The block

When someone drives hard at you there is no time to punch. Hold the racket still in front of the ball with a firm wrist and let it rebound. The pace they gave you comes back off your strings and lands short and low, which is exactly the volley you wanted. Blocks feel passive and are not. The mistake is trying to add to a ball that already has everything it needs.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall

Your call

You are two metres from the net and the ball arrives below net height, right at your shoelaces. What do you do?

A ball below the net cannot be attacked. Block it deep and wait for one above the tape.

The whole reasoning, at every level

Height decides direction

A ball above the net can be volleyed anywhere, and to the feet of the nearer opponent is usually right. A ball at net height goes deep to the glass, so the bounce and the wall do the work. A ball below the net height, which you will get plenty of, has to be lifted and cannot be hit hard, so play it deep and central and accept that this volley is a hold, not an attack. Players who try to win the point off a low volley hand the net over. Players who hold, and wait one more ball, get a better one.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall
A sharp angle volley beats them, but the glass brings it back. What now? The side glass rescues the over-angled volley. Aim to bounce twice before the wall, or to die on it: soft.

The volley to the feet

The single most useful volley at club level. Aim at the shoes of the opponent who is closest to the net, or who is running in. They have to dig the ball up, and whatever comes back is slow and high and yours. It works because it is the shot with no good answer, not because it is hard to hit.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall
The ball is fired straight at your body at the net Body balls are backhands. The racket gets in front of your chest faster on that side than on any other.

Errors and what they mean

Volleys into the net mean you are reaching for the ball behind your body or the face is closed; open it and step in earlier. Volleys that float long or into the back glass mean you are swinging; shorten the stroke. Volleys that come back as a lob over you mean you hit too hard into the glass; slice it, hit it softer, aim at the feet.

YouPartnerOpponentsBall
They played a chiquita at your feet. What now? Answer a chiquita with a chiquita. Low, slow, back at their feet, and do not surrender the net.
The Playbook, chapter 4: Holding the netStand two to three metres back from the net, not on top of it.See the chapter

Try it on court

Today's Scenario

One position, one decision, the reasoning written out.

Today's Mock Game

One point played shot by shot.

Padel: The Game

Play the point yourself and see what the coach says.

What the pros and coaches say

Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría, the dominant pair of the women's game, win the majority of their points at the net with volleys that go to the feet, not to the corners. Coaches teach the same target for club players, because a volley to the feet has no good answer at any level. On technique, the consensus from Hello Padel to the Spanish federation coaches is one word: punch. No swing, contact in front, the racket stops a foot past the ball.

Drawn from match statistics and footage of Ariana Sánchez and Paula Josemaría, and the volley curricula of Hello Padel and Spanish federation coaching courses.

Questions people ask

How far from the net should you stand to volley in padel?

About two to two and a half metres. Close enough to take the ball above the tape, far enough to step back for a lob. Move with your partner so there is never a hole in the middle.

Why do my padel volleys go long?

You are swinging. A padel volley is a short punch with the contact in front and a small follow-through. The glass returns anything hit hard, so a long volley comes straight back as a lob.

Where should I aim my volley in padel?

To the feet of the nearest opponent when the ball is above the net, deep to the glass when it is at net height, and deep and central when you have to lift it.