Spin is a big part of pickleball and continues to be explored and used in many different ways. Especially in the serve nowadays. Learning how to see, read, and utilize spin comes naturally if you have a racket sport history. But, if you don’t, then its a skill that needs to be developed if you want to keep improving your pickleball game.
Gamma Pickleball recently released the first ever two-toned outdoor and indoor balls for this purpose. To learn how to read and use spin. The idea behind the two-tones is to make it easy to visualize how the ball is rotating so you can react accordingly.
I got my hands on some to try them out because I really liked the idea of them. Plus, they only cost $10 for a bag of six so it doesn’t break the bank.
I drilled and played with them for a few hours and immediately noticed a few things. I was generating way more slice with my backhand dinks than my forehand. My drives weren’t generating as much topspin as I thought I was. Spin had a bigger effect when it bounced off the concrete than it did off my paddle. And that’s just to name a few.
To get more specific, I want to highlight what I learned about the return of serve. I most commonly use a slice return, as do a lot of other players. Because of the two-tone balls, I was able to read the spin a lot better off my opponents serve so that I could add more of the same rotation and compound the spin that was already on the ball. This was when my slice returns were the most effective. I think the return of serve is a very important part of the game and the two-toned balls helped me see the type of spin coming in on the serve and use it to my advantage.
Most importantly, these balls enabled me to experiment with spin and better react to it. I originally thought these balls would be best for beginner players but I now think there is value in this ball for every level of player. I compete at a 4.5 level and understand how spin works, but I still learned things while playing with this ball.
If you are newer to the game and don’t have a racket sport background, then these balls are a must. If you are an experienced player, you can still experiment and learn while playing with them.
Looking for the right paddle to fit your game? Take our paddle fitting quiz for three recommendations that will match your style of play.
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I drilled and played with them for a few hours and immediately noticed a few things. I was generating way more slice with my backhand dinks than my forehand. My drives weren’t generating as much topspin as I thought I was. Spin had a bigger effect when it bounced off the concrete than it did off my paddle. And that’s just to name a few.
To get more specific, I want to highlight what I learned about the return of serve. I most commonly use a slice return, as do a lot of other players. Because of the two-tone balls, I was able to read the spin a lot better off my opponents serve so that I could add more of the same rotation and compound the spin that was already on the ball. This was when my slice returns were the most effective. I think the return of serve is a very important part of the game and the two-toned balls helped me see the type of spin coming in on the serve and use it to my advantage.
Most importantly, these balls enabled me to experiment with spin and better react to it. I originally thought these balls would be best for beginner players but I now think there is value in this ball for every level of player. I compete at a 4.5 level and understand how spin works, but I still learned things while playing with this ball.
If you are newer to the game and don’t have a racket sport background, then these balls are a must. If you are an experienced player, you can still experiment and learn while playing with them.
Looking for the right paddle to fit your game? Take our paddle fitting quiz for three recommendations that will match your style of play.
