Welp It's Been A Minute: When to be aggressive

Welp, it’s been a minute. Life’s been busy, but my pickleball grind definitely hasn’t slowed down—especially in mixed doubles. Since coming back from injury, my mindset on the game has shifted a bit.

I’ve always been a big believer in playing aggressively and taking calculated risks. But I’ve also realized you have to be smart about when to lean into that strategy. It shouldn’t be the strategy you force no matter what; it should be the strategy you default to when the match calls for it.

I know the pickleball traditionalists are probably saying, “Well, no duh,” but hear me out.

I still think testing your opponents early—drives, speed-ups, seeing how they handle pace—is a fantastic way to gather information. Those first few exchanges tell you almost everything you need to know. If your opponents struggle with speed, keep attacking. If they handle it well, then shift into a more patient game.

But the keyword is patient—not passive, not conservative.

At lower levels, playing safe and waiting for unforced errors might actually work. But against anyone with experience, you need to recognize the right moments to take risks. The difference between winning and losing at higher levels often comes down to knowing when to pull the trigger and when to stay disciplined.

Because of the Gen 3 and Gen 4 paddle technology revolution, players have become much more willing to pull the trigger. And honestly, they should—these paddles allow you to do things you simply couldn’t before. But you also have to recognize when it’s working and when it isn’t.

If you initiate three firefights in a row and lose all three, that’s a sign. It’s probably time to dial it back, dink a bit more, and wait for an opportunity where you can attack a more vulnerable spot. Don’t just keep firing and hope that if you swing ten times, four of them will magically land. We all know that’s a losing strategy.

This part of the blog is meant to serve as a wake-up call: just because you can speed it up doesn’t mean you have to, or even that you should. That doesn’t mean becoming a hyper-passive player who dinks 100 times a rally and never applies pressure. It means developing the awareness to recognize whether your offense is actually effective—or if you need to adjust before the match slips away.




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