Where to Place Your Dinks: Targets and Trajectories to Unsettle Your Opponent

First published October 21, 2026 Last revised October 21, 2026 3-minute read

An article from the La Cuisine en Douceur editorial team.

Overhead view of the kitchen area with several targets marked by cones to guide dinks. — **Choosing Your Target.** Dinks land in the opponent's kitchen, often crosscourt to lengthen the trajectory and cut the risk of a fault, then down the line to catch them off guard. Aiming low and at your opponent's feet limits their attacking options. Mixing up directions wears down the defense without taking excessive risks.

Notepad ready? "Where to Place Your Dinks: Targets and Trajectories to Unsettle Your Opponent" starts here. You'll know how to pick a target for your dinks and vary directions to create errors. We'll go through the terms to keep in mind, what drives the mechanics and the route to take in practice.

The Terms to Keep in Mind

Let's run through the vocabulary.

Double Bounce

The double bounce rule requires the ball to bounce once on each side after the serve before volleys are allowed.

Look at this specific case: the returner lets the serve bounce, then the server lets the return bounce before they can volley.

Check out Double Bounce if the term trips you up.

What Drives the Mechanics

Rule to lock in: varying your target (forehand, backhand, different spots in the kitchen) can force your opponent off the kitchen line or make them lift the ball, which gives you a ball to attack.

Rule to lock in: the most vulnerable areas in pickleball are the ankle, Achilles tendon, elbow and wrist; acute injuries (falls, changes of direction) can cause meniscal tears or ACL injuries. Note it before moving on.

The Route to Take in Practice

Go step by step, no shortcuts.

Aiming at your opponent's feet and varying your placements is a Pickleball Canada tip for provoking dink errors.
For a drop, aiming at the middle of the court is the default choice: it's the lowest part of the net, with a longer kitchen, and it limits your opponents' angles.
Varying dink locations is key — advanced players rarely dink more than 2 or 3 times in a row to the same spot, to break their opponents' rhythm.
Mass General Brigham recommends warming up with dynamic stretches (butt kicks, lunges, upper-body rotations) before playing.

Decision Markers

Ask yourself these questions before deciding.

The crosscourt drop goes over a relatively low part of the net and has the longest stretch of kitchen, but it's harder for the partner to intercept.
A drop down the line is the high-risk choice — it goes over the highest part of the net and targets the shortest section of the kitchen, but it can put your opponent under pressure.

Danger Zones

Fix your aim on this point: dinking repeatedly to the same spot helps your opponent find their rhythm.

Cross-Court or Down the Line?

To be exact, in the study, 61.1% of injuries involve ages 65-80; the average age is 64, and women suffer 69.1% of fractures.

Keep these measured benchmarks in mind: pickleball injuries in US emergency departments rose 22-fold between 2013 (611 cases) and 2022 (13,690 cases), according to a study covering 2013-2022.

To be exact, the most affected body parts are the wrist (12.7%), lower trunk, lower leg, head (11.3%) and knee (7.0%) in the cases studied from 2013 to 2022.

The Cheat Sheet

Copy these markers into your notebook.

Varying dink locations is key.
A drop down the line is the high-risk choice.
In the study, 61.1% of injuries involve ages 65-80.

The Bottom Line, Up Close

We've been through the terms to keep in mind, what drives the mechanics, the route to take in practice and the decision markers. Go back to whatever is still fuzzy. Reread this page before your next session, pencil in hand.

Playing the Kitchen: Dink Strategy in Singles and Doubles — Targets, patience and doubles play at the kitchen line. Your reading plan: what holds it all together and the key concepts explained in detail.
Nailing the Dink Motion: Paddle Grip, Swing and Touch — You'll learn to hit a short, controlled dink with a relaxed grip and a shortened swing. Inside: the method's principle and the terms used here.
Seven Stroke Mistakes That Ruin Your Dinks — You'll learn to spot and fix the most common dink stroke flaws. Inside: what to understand first and what to watch closely.
Dink, Drop, Drive: Telling the Three Pickleball Shots Apart — You'll know how to choose between a dink, a drop and a drive based on your position and the ball you receive. Here are the terms to keep in mind.

Sources cited

How to Dink and Why It's Important For Your Success in Pickleball – USA Pickleball —
Pickleball Injuries and Prevention — Common injuries (tendinopathies, sprains, wrist fractures) and prevention tips: dynamic warm-up, equipment, strengthening, technique. Source last visited: 2026-10-13.
The Three Ds of Pickleball: Dink, Drop, Drive – Pickleball Canada —
Where to hit your drops – USA Pickleball —
Increasing Incidence of Pickleball Injuries Presenting to US Emergency Departments — 10-year analysis of pickleball injuries in US emergency departments: falls, fractures, wrist, age of the injured. Source last visited: 2026-10-13.

The rules cited are based on the text of the Fédération française de tennis, which holds the delegation for pickleball in France, and on those of USA Pickleball; in competition, always check the rulebook in force.

This site doesn't replace the advice of a doctor or a physical therapist: if you have persistent pain in your elbow, shoulder or wrist, see a health professional.