In this video, a game between one of my favorite players, Mark Napartovich, who I call the wizard and a player who if 6'7" aka the Giant. Check it out.
Several viewers here calling foot faults when the camera is behind the player. The ref stands at the net for a reason. Another point is your shoe has to be actually 'touching' the line. The tip of your sole probably arches up a bit allowing the shoe to be over the line without actually touching it. There was one case where Mark's momentum clearly carried him into the kitchen but the other foot faults are questionable due to the bad camera angle. A similar example is a recent game where my partner's serve touched the surface immediately beyond the NVZ line but both opponents called it short and it is their call. From our side, we could clearly see the ball landed beyond the kitchen line but from their angle I can see why they thought the ball hit the line. Without a ref, it's their call.
This one was fun to watch, and intriguing, Rory. A few comments: 1. I believe each of these players is good; I think BJ's wingspan forced some tactical changes which didn't workout too well for Mark and V ... even though they finally won. 2. It seemed -- for about half the game -- Mark and V were somewhat intimidated by BJ's size and reach. I think we saw that V is capable of 3rd shot drops; it struck me he wasn't confident he could keep them away from BJ's poaching. So V drove the 3rd too much. 3. Mark came around to playing normally at about the halfway point. (Meaning he wasn't trying to use special tactics against BJ.) That seemed to turn the tide. A single player CAN change the course of a game ... and Mark is probably one of those players who could nearly always change the game's direction. 4. I've seen many videos of Mark playing. This was probably the "least good" play I've seen from him. More misses than I'm used to seeing on his part; more mis-placed shots too. (But finding a way to win when you're not playing your best is another indicator of a true competitor.) 4, a. Mark always strikes me as being surprisingly ... cavalier ... about his ready position and footwork. This game was the first time watching a game of his I thought, "It's costing him some points to be so casual."
Rory - I’m surprised you didn’t notice VJ’s feet touching the kitchen line on a few of his shot. From the 9-12 minute mark he had at least 2 shots he hit that won his team the rally - where his foot was on the line. I normally don’t watch for that but seems like he has a tendency to get too close to the non volley zone on his volleys
I feel a lot of people who almost solely rely on a 3rd shot drive, had success with it when they started and never gave it up. Drop it in there people. :-)
Hi Rory , new to Pickleball & Love your channel, learned a lot watching them. You mentioned only 4 things can happen if you use A Third Shot Drive, all with bad results. Do you recommend A third shot drop on all your third shots? My coach said the game has changed and the third shot drop may not be the best choice 🤷🏻♂️. Thanks have a lot of catching up to do with watching your videos.
I appreciate you watching. Sure. A third shot drive serves a purpose. If a return of serve is hit very shallow, drive it. If the return of serve is hit to the back of the court, a player driving it is hoping for one of two things to happen. The first thing is to have the opponent pop up the fourth shot in order to put away the ball on the fifth shot. The second thing is to, after hitting the third shot drive, move halfway up to about the transition zone and then hit a 5th shot reset into the kitchen in order to move all the way to the non-volley zone. Thanks for asking and thanks for watching.
Foot fault @8:50 (man in white shirt) hitting off the air at NVZ. It's always hard to call those unless there's a referee, but in rec play, it's hardly ever caught. Great learning video.
About 6 minutes in you point out the corner of opposing side kitchen. That’s about my target 80% as well. With great placement arch and space you can open the court just as the wizard did.
Thanks for asking. I don't think so. I'm pretty sure it's a standard continental grip. I've done it enough to where I can get the ball in, most of the time. It really frustrates my opponents. I don't use it often, but it's a good shot to have in my arsenal.
V has good third short drives but they were essentially useless against the lady and the giant. He's probably the weakest player here and possibly a 4.0 due to no ability to drop the third. Mark and V were essentially targetting the lady so we didn't get to see the giant's full abilities. Seems like a strange combination between the giant and the lady. She was good but the giant is on a different level. Also a very weak partner for Mark - V and Mark have to be at least a 1.0 level apart.
I agree with your comments. V's inability to attempt third shot drops was an issue. He's definitely a level below mark. He did hit a couple of really nice backhands down the line. Thanks for watching.
To keep opponents off balance. A lot of players cannot handle backspin very well. A video like this probably doesn't do justice to just how much backspin is actually on the ball. Watching it and hitting it are two different things. Mark is a former high level tennis table player. It's just what he does.
