Take-outs from Doha that could help your game

Service & foot faults

Per Padel Intelligence, the pros get 88% of their first serves in. Most pros will aim for the last square metre in the corner by the glass or in the other corner down the middle. Throughout the entire tournament (256 matches) I didn’t witness a single double fault but certain umpires were attentive to the foot fault. It’s worth noting the basic rules for the service:

The server must bounce the ball on his/her side and behind the service line. It cannot bounce above the waist. You are entitled to strike the ball when it is over the line (ie the service or central lines), however your feet must not step on/over the line. Also, you are allowed only one step from the time you bounce the ball to the time you hit it. 

I did see plenty of good sportsmanship where the receiving player would over-rule the umpire if he (the umpire) called the ball out, when it was in. As for the second serve, the sin of double faulting – even at the pro level – means that the server typically pushes the ball over without trying to get to the corners. And for those of you who know me, you’ll know that for amateurs, every double fault means a round of beers after the match. ¡Vamos!

The elements

As the tournament was held outdoor, the wind, sun and heat were certainly a factor. In speaking with a couple of the coaches, it was clear that the teams would check in with one another about how the conditions affected them. It’s worth remembering how communication with one another is vital in order to achieve the best possible result. For example, you might discuss with your partner at the changeover about the direction and character of the wind. In a conversation with Spain’s men’s coach, Juanjo Gutierrez, I learned that as evening fell, the humidity rose and, despite the heat which is often a synonym with a bouncier ball, the lower balls off the back wall would drop faster to the ground. This caught out Juan Lebrón on one critical point during the finals. Dealing with the elements is part of the mental game. It’s worth remembering that your opponents are also dealing with the elements.  

Team spirit

As this was the team World Championships, it was quite interesting to see how the different countries (other members of the team and fans) supported their team. Most countries developed different cheers, none less rowdy and in unison than the Argentines. At the men’s finals I happened to be surrounded by the Argentine women’s team and a few others including Martín Canali, the coach of Tapia. Equipped with two drums, the Argentines had a number of chants that would be sung throughout the stadium. 

When both the men’s and women’s team from one country were at the tournament, most times, they would support one another whenever possible. When the matches were held on the outer courts, the proximity of the courts meant that the sounds and chants frequently spilled over onto the other side, adding an untold degree of distraction for the players. The standout comment, though, was that neither the Qatari nor the UAE team (both only fielding men’s teams) had any concept of traditional chants. In the case of the UAE, this was hardly surprising to the extent that four of the eight players were naturalised Spaniards from the pro tour provided with a UAE passport. It’s also true that the general gestalt of the Qataris is to remain modest in terms of enthusiasm. 

Data please!

Padel, as viewed on Premier Padel’s YouTube channel or Red Bull TV, is generally poor in data. PadelIntelligence.live is one organisation trying to change this. PadelIntelligence analyses whether points were won through a winner, unforced or forced error. It counts assists, whereby one player’s shot-making set up the partner’s winner. And more importantly, it can establish who was the more effective player through the match, helping to understand the ebb and flow of the score, and ultimately pinpoint who drove the victory and/or loss. For example, in the men’s final of the World Championships in Doha, in the thrilling second rubber between Tapia with Chingotto (Argentina) versus Lebrón and Galán (Spain), the data showed that, in the most important points (break points, set points, etc), Lebrón trailed with a total contribution score of -11.9. 

Length of matches

The FIP World Championships, following the scoring of the Premier Padel tour, chose to have deuces (as opposed to golden points). I was watching out for matches longer matches. True to form the length of the men’s matches went from the shortest at 30 minutes to the longest at 2h30. For the women, the shortest was 34 minutes, ranging up to 2h54. In total, there were 256 matches, split roughly equally between the men (129) and women’s (127) ties. Overall, the average match lasted 1h13 for the men and 1h16 for the women. What was noticeable – if not surprising – was that, as the week progressed and the matchups were between teams of closer levels, the matches lengthened. From day 4 to day 6, when the elimination rounds began, the average length of a match rose to 1h20 (+12 minutes) and 1h25 (plus 15 minutes) respectively. A little surprising, all the same, was the percentage of two-set to three-set matches didn’t decrease for both men and women. In fact, the percentage of three-set matches for women decreased from 21% to 13% while for men, it went up from 17% to 29%, indicating that, for the men in particular, the matches were more competitive as the week progressed. 

The journey within a match

It’s worth pointing out how padel – I would argue even more than in tennis – is all about the journey. While tennis and padel share the same scoring (at least for now, since the golden point has been removed from pro padel), padel rallies are systematically longer than doubles tennis in terms of number of shots. In the men’s professional game, this year, the average point lasts 8.1 shots, while it’s 9.4 shots for women.* However, when the tournament is played on a slower court, for example in New Giza, the averages rise, in this case to 9.4 and 10.4 respectively. That said, it’s apparent that the length of pro points has been trending down, especially for the men, with the evolution of the game toward more power and greater definition.

In tennis, meanwhile, for women and men combined, 70% of doubles points are between one and four shots. For the men, the stat is 81% of points between one and four shots.** Just 2% of points last beyond 9 shots. So, going back to the initial point about how padel is all about the journey, there is typically a more serpentine trip in each match, which is especially pertinent in three-setters***. Then, within each match, there is the journey of the set itself, with breaks or not… Within the set there is each game, where the winning team must get four points, or win by two in the case of deuces. If the format is with a golden point (decisive point at 40 all), it’s about winning four of the seven available points. And then, in padel, there is even a journey within each point as points tend to last longer. Thus, it’s not uncommon to see-saw between attacking and defending, where you experience highs and lows. Finally, because of the greater complexity and length of padel rallies, teammates speak much more during the point and about what’s happening in a game between points. These multiple journeys contribute, surely, to the addictive part of padel. And just as fishermen might talk about the fish that got away, the after-padel beer (aka Rule #5) allows participants to relive the journey, the great and horrible shots made etc.

Conclusion

If nothing else, attending a professional match is enough to inspire anyone to keep on learning. And watching the enthusiasm of the national teams with their fans was heart-warming, if sometimes boisterous! This 2024 edition of the World Championships was filled with great and entertaining matches. Yet, the big finale, and the fact that Argentina men yet again came away Champions (for the 12^th time out of 17) will surely make the Spanish men evermore keen to win next time. Congratulations to all who competed and hopefully we will see progress among the minnow nations in the future. Rendez-vous in 2026. 

*Statistics courtesy of Padel Intelligence

**https://www.tennisnation.com/lessons-classes/strategy/tennis-doubles-strategy-and-positioning/

***To wit the scoreline of one match, featuring the Belgians Pysson & Van Mol versus the Dutch pair, Groenveld & Luttikhuis: 1-6, 6-1, 6-0.I