Key Takeaways<\/strong> Padel has four core attacking shots and two defensive ones. The bandeja<\/strong> and v\u00edbola<\/strong> are sliced overheads hit from around shoulder height, used to hold the net. The chiquita<\/strong> is a slow, low ball played from the back of the court at the net player’s feet. The smash<\/strong> is the finisher, played only when the ball is high and short. Defensively, the lob<\/strong> resets the rally and the wall read<\/strong> \u2014 off the back and side glass \u2014 converts defence into attack.<\/p>\n Padel is a net game. Almost every rally is a fight over who stands 2\u20133 m from the net and who gets pushed back behind the service line. The rules<\/a> let the ball come off the glass, which means the defending pair always has a second chance \u2014 but only if they are far enough back to use it. Because points are long, the scoring<\/a> rewards the pair that stays patient rather than the pair that swings hardest.<\/p>\n Each pair splits into a net player (volleyer) and a back player (defender). The net player takes the volleys and the overheads. The back player covers the deep ball, plays the lob and the chiquita, and moves up the moment the pair wins the net back. The roles swap constantly during a rally \u2014 they are positions, not job titles.<\/p>\n From the net you hit down<\/em>, so the margins are on your side. From the back you hit up<\/em>, which is why defending pairs lob rather than drive. Nearly every “which shot?” decision follows from that single fact: am I hitting down or hitting up?<\/p>\n The bandeja is struck beside and slightly above the head with a slicing motion, the racket finishing low, and it is the shot that keeps a pair at the net. It carries little pace on purpose: the ball lands deep and stays low off the glass so the defending pair cannot counter-attack comfortably. The classic mistake is trying to win the point with it \u2014 a flat, hard bandeja bounces up into the opponent’s strike zone and hands them the net.<\/p>\n The v\u00edbola is the bandeja’s aggressive sibling. Same height, same slice, but struck with more racket speed and a wider, downward-brushing path that puts side spin on the ball. The result is a lower, skidding bounce that pulls the defender wide or makes the return awkward. It carries more risk: because the swing is wider, the ball has to be genuinely above the net for it to be worth playing. A control-oriented pala makes the slice easier to repeat \u2014 see our beginner racket guide<\/a> if you are still choosing one.<\/p>\n The chiquita is padel’s most underrated shot. Played from the back of the court, it is a slow, low, softly sliced ball that lands at the net player’s feet instead of trying to pass them. Because it arrives low, the net player must volley up \u2014 and the defending pair can advance. It is the standard way a defending pair takes the net back without needing a winner. Play it when the ball is below the net and you have time to place it, not when you are stretched and running.<\/p>\n The smash is played when the ball is high and short, and it ends the point more often than any other shot. Beyond the flat smash, players use the kick smash<\/strong> (heavy topspin, so the ball bounces high off the back wall) and the por 3<\/strong> or por 4<\/strong> \u2014 a smash angled into the side wall or the back corner so the ball leaves the court before the defender can return it. All three require the ball to be above the net and inside your reach. Attempted from the back of the court, a smash is just a fast ball delivered to the defender’s racket.<\/p>\n
– Position before technique.<\/strong> You cannot hit a bandeja from the back of the court \u2014 where you stand in the rally decides which shots you own.
– The bandeja is the workhorse overhead.<\/strong> Hit it to keep the net, not to win the point. The v\u00edbola is the aggressive version of the same shot, with side spin and a lower, skidding bounce.
– The chiquita is the highest-percentage passing shot in padel<\/strong>: slow, low and aimed at the net player’s feet, it forces a volley up \u2014 and lets you move forward.
– The lob is not a surrender.<\/strong> A good globo is the only reliable way to take the net back without attempting a winner.
– Read the walls early.<\/strong> The ball off the back glass comes back faster than beginners expect, and off the side glass it changes angle toward the centre.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nQuick answer: what are the main padel shots?<\/h2>\n
The net is the prize: position decides the shot<\/h2>\n
The two roles: net player and back player<\/h3>\n
Why you attack from the net and defend from the back<\/h3>\n
The four core padel shots<\/h2>\n
Bandeja \u2014 the safe overhead<\/h3>\n
V\u00edbola \u2014 the aggressive overhead<\/h3>\n
Chiquita \u2014 the low ball to the net player’s feet<\/h3>\n
The smash \u2014 flat, kick, and por 3 \/ por 4<\/h3>\n
Which shot? A simple decision table<\/h2>\n
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