WHEN SHOULD I RESET THE BALL?

A reset is a defensive shot used to try and disarm, slow-down and minimize an attack underway from your opponents.  To play smart, you need to slow-down and reset the ball when you find yourself in, what I call, one of the Three O’s:

• OFF BALANCE
• OUT-STRETCHED
• OFF COURT

If you are being attacked on court it is generally a shot with pace at our feet, knees or to the sides of our body, where it is very difficult, if not impossible, to counter-attack.  Because the ball is so low to the ground, if you swing fast or our paddle grip is too tight, the ball will rise up higher over the net.  This is called a pop-up, which leads to an even more aggressive attack from our opponents.

When you are attacked below knee height your best option is to reset the ball into the kitchen with a soft drop shot seeking to disarm the attack and resetting the point and ultimately neutralizing the attack.

If you find yourself in one of these three situations, a reset will give you time to either come back onto the court or re-gain our balance, composure and continue the point.  The worst thing you can do if you are stretched toward the sideline is speed-up the ball because you’re not in a position or stable enough to deal with a quick counter-attack.

Next time you’re on court, work on resetting the ball so you’ll be ready to play smart and continue the point.