Control and Power are fundamental weapons in Padel and therefore the grip also becomes important to be an excellent and high-level player, without risking muscle injuries.
In Padel there are various ways to hold the racket and in this article we will analyse them, with the relative pros and cons that there may be, to help performance on the court, avoiding errors that can lead to injuries or epicondylitis.
The basic grip must have 4 fingers on one side and the thumb on the other, and with this mode you can have at least 8 different grips, which will allow you to hit the ball with various effects:
- Continental socket
- Eastern reverse grip
- reverse semi-Western grip
- Western reverse grip
- Western straight grip
- Eastern straight semi socket
- Eastern straight grip
- Australian plug
As seen above, there are many ways to hold the instrument, however some essential and important aspects need to be explored. Let's start with the fundamental grips for beginners and therefore those that are also the most used, analyzing their pros and cons.
Like the tennis racket, the Padel racket has an octagonal handle and depending on the grip you will make a precise and determined shot. Let's go into detail to see the most used grips:
- CONTINENTAL GRIP
It is the simplest and the first one that is taught by the masters to their students; it is useful for both forehand and backhand hits. It is certainly the most instinctive and the most basic, suitable for beginners. It must be performed with a relaxed posture and is also called hammer grip, since to perform it you just need to hold the racket in the same way you hold a hammer.
PRO : with this grip you can perform most shots: serve, volley and smash . You can hit low balls with good power and you can create a backspin effect.
CONS : It is more difficult to hit spin shots such as top spin .
- EASTERN GRIP
This grip, like the continental one , allows you to play forehand and backhand shots, with the ball low, but with a small difference: it is much more effective for producing top-spin effects and this grip is preferred for the 3-meter smash, vibora or defense with low shots.
PROS : Gives more power on the forehand and backhand. Allows for a faster and more aggressive game. Ideal for attacking players.
CONS : poor efficiency on high balls.
Furthermore, it should be considered that, compared to tennis, in Padel it is preferable to hit the ball with a back-spin and not a top-spin , this is because with the top-spin the intention is to push the opponent to the back of the court, who however would be neutralised by the rebound on the walls, therefore the back-spin is preferred, that is, the shot that allows you to send the opponent out of time, perhaps positioned at the back of the court, with a short ball under the net.
A special mention must be made for overgrips , in fact each player has a different hand, so there can't be a universal grip that works for everyone. The grip must give maximum adhesion and must ensure that the hand does not slip along the handle; we can also modify the grip, increasing or decreasing the thickness, adding or removing one or more overgrips. We have already talked about the difference between overgrip and hesacore in a previous article and if you haven't read it we provide the link:
https://projectxpadel.com/blogs/news/cose-lhesacore-e-quali-sono-i-suoi-pro-e-contro
To conclude, we provide you with a small visual suggestion of how the grip should be to avoid the classic muscle injuries that can occur when playing Padel .
