What Kind of Padel Player are You?
In the padel court, there are different types of menaces and beasts. This lighthearted list of the different types of padel players is a quick refresher so that you’d know what to expect from your teammates and opponents. Do you know which type of player are you? Let’s find out!
El Agarrado or the Seized One
This type of player is a classic! The grip that never takes balls. A simple modus operandi characterizes it: arrive two minutes late to the game. It’s enough time for other teammates to start rallying with other balls, and he appears empty-handed in the most natural and disguised way. When they arrive, they simply smile at their grand entrance, “I’ve done it again.”
But be wary of the upgraded version of ‘El agarrado’:
This is a different breed of court menace. Unlike a typical El agarrado, they bring balls, but they’re more ruthless. They bring old, ancient balls! He continuously takes out the same dusty boat with his typical comment, “mine has 10 games”. Be sure to bring your own balls just in case you end up playing with someone and his dusty set of padel balls.
Goodness Gracious!
These types of people are the best ones to be on the court with! They always pull new balls, even before the usual moment of tension and elusive glances.
Whiny the Pooh
Typical whiners. Ironically these people usually have the best balls in stock. Still, despite this, they always complain about the state of the balls. Screaming “The balls are prolonged” as an excuse for their lack of technique and agility to reach the blows.
If the balls are new, he will blame his lousy game on the balance of his shovel, basically anything but his lack of skills.
Motivator Menace
It’s like having a match with a cheerleader. The enthusiast always encourages you, even if you have failed two hundred balls in a row. Don’t be get too confident, though. These encouraging words don’t mean that you’re winning. This cheerleader opponent will hype you up, and the next thing you know, you’ve already lost the game.
Goody Padel Shoes
This good-natured athlete is the epitome of good manners. You might mistake them for a Canadian because they apologize every time they make a mistake. “Sorry” is heard thrown at the court as often as this person’s service ace. These players are always a good sport and sometimes even too much. They’ll definitely feel bad after completely decimating you in court. But don’t let your guard down. They may be nice, but that doesn’t mean their shots are weak!
Ex-Tennis Player
You can find these types of players in any padel club. The former tennis player is defined by believing himself superior to other players, even if he has not played paddle tennis in his life.
There are good retired ones that just want to play a more straightforward sport. But watch out for those that don’t like getting down their high horses. After this player’s first and scandalous defeat, he leaves the field confused. He carries his wounded pride and swearing against that damn sport called paddle tennis. Often with excuses that he cannot exercise his power and mastery because “here you can only cut the ball.”
Angry Smash Bros
All sports are good ways to manage anger. But this guy, boy, this guy has issues, and you’re about to face them. Unless everything goes well, this guy is always angry. You can always count on these types of players to give you free padel lessons. They do not hesitate to give lessons to their partner whenever he fails a point, with a great deal of aggressiveness and arrogance. Yikes!
If, on the other hand, he is the one who fails, he always looks for excuses with comments such as “when you are on your back, you have to let me know if they go up” or “with your previous blow, you left it to the egg.”
You can catch them at the end of the game shaking hands for not breaking the protocol, but yes, looking the other way.
Silent Snake
This one is even scarier than the one who yells angrily. You can see the spite in this player’s eyes, and playing against them is as much a mental feat as it is physical. Every time you fail a point, the silent exalted begin to swear in a low voice, looking at infinity with a face of hatred, knowing that you realize. There’s just that look, and you’ll know that he wants you to see that, in his opinion, you are a terrible player. You should rethink to lower a few tenths your level in the face of future matches.
Be ready because this player will test your wits, and don’t let them get into your head. That’s exactly what the silent snake wants!
The Hoarder
This one’s very common. It’s like this player went to the court to hit 10 days of cardio he missed at the gym. This eager and competitive player moves with agility throughout the court, including his partner’s side, who does not let him touch the ball.
These are usually young players impatiently trying to learn more, so you have to keep up! And don’t let their scary pace throw you off. You have to be able to keep the game at your own pace.
