Golden Collection of Tips: Play the Lob Correctly

“The lob,” Bela answered without hesitation.

Beginner padel players, especially those who come to the game from tennis, tend to suffer from the same problem: they either hardly ever use the lob, or they use it incorrectly.

Yet this is a key element of the game and one that deserves far more attention, both in training sessions and in tactical work.

The lob is the main tool for transitioning from defense to attack. It is the most effective way to push opponents away from the net and take it yourself — in other words, to seize the initiative and move into attacking positions.

The lob consists of three elements:

• height

• depth

• spin

In essence, the lob also has a fourth component: direction. The ideal lob is played to the opponent’s weaker or more uncomfortable side. If you are playing against right-handed players, the main target areas are the right back corner or the second post on the left side.

When all these components are well balanced, the lob is not just a way to move from defense to attack, but a true attacking shot in its own right.

Main types of lobs

1. Standard lob

When people talk about the lob as the most important shot in padel, they are usually referring to this type. The standard (or attacking) lob allows you to move out of defense with quality, shift into attack, and try to establish yourself at the net.

This lob is balanced in height and depth: it makes the opponent’s counterattack difficult while giving you the time you need to move forward to the net.

One of the best modern exponents of this shot is Federico Chingotto. Notice how, by using a standard lob, he takes control of the net and wins the point:

https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkxo1ZxyRMpC189l0uqKvC6A0btY5aL66cc?si=Po-7WaIKToQ65LZz

2. Fast lob

This lob is executed with minimal height, so that the opponent cannot reach the ball from their position. At the same time, the low trajectory does not give them time to retreat or to set up for a counterattacking shot.

That is where the name comes from: a fast lob, meaning a lob that spends the least possible time in the air. It is very often played from the net or from an intermediate position, when opponents are trying to win back the net with low shots aimed at the feet.

In this video, Coki Nieto plays an excellent chiquita and immediately moves forward to the net to consolidate the advantage, but Ale Galán responds with a classic fast lob volley:

https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxUs5g3yyM0Fe7HKsOgLvaihtcxKF8Ifyf?si=PqLclAvk30oZw78G

This is a very effective shot, but one that requires serious technical preparation. Unlike a high lob, it can be disguised as a normal drive: it does not require such an obvious leg preparation and allows you to surprise the opponent.

3. Very high lob

(commonly known in Spanish as the “globo pinchado”)

This lob is usually used on outdoor courts, where there is no height limitation from a ceiling. The difficulty lies in the fact that the ball, when falling from such a great height, gains significant speed, making it technically very difficult to play before the bounce.

If you allow it to bounce, the ball often flies out of the court, effectively ending the point. Even the best players in the world regularly struggle with this type of lob.

In this video, in the first rally the player is forced to play the very high lob with great care, which allows the opponent to execute a second lob that is even more precise and just as high, eventually going out of the court:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1VZsQk7yIw

The typical beginner’s mistake

The main mistake made by players who are new to padel is trying to play lobs in the most difficult situations, while on comfortable balls they prefer powerful, low shots.

In reality, it should be exactly the opposite. Avoid lobbing on heavy or awkward balls, because a poor lob almost always ends either in an unforced error or in a very comfortable attacking opportunity for the opponent.

That is why the lob is considered the most important shot in padel.