Which Side Should a Left-Handed Player Take in Padel?

Most pairs choose sides by habit, or by who prefers which corner. When one of you is left-handed there is a better reason to decide, and it comes down to a single question: which shots end up pointing at the middle of the court.

The middle is where most balls go. It is the biggest gap, the safest target for your opponents, and the area you will be asked to cover most often. So the sides should be picked around it.

Lefty on the left puts two backhands in the middle

Standing on the left side, a left-handed player has the middle of the court on their backhand side. Their right-handed partner over on the right also has the middle on their backhand.

That leaves the busiest part of the court guarded by both players' weaker wings. Nothing is wrong with either player, the geometry is just working against them.

And it costs you pressure, not just defence

The problem is not only reaching those balls. It is what you can do with them once you get there.

Balls taken on the backhand from the middle come back softer and with less angle, so the pair struggles to apply pressure from the very area that should be their strongest.

Swap sides and both forehands face the middle

Put the left-handed player on the right side and the right-handed player on the left. Now both of them have the middle on their forehand.

It is the same two players and the same skills. The court simply presents your better wing to the busiest area, on every single ball that goes down the centre.

One condition worth knowing

This works because your partner is right-handed, which is the usual case. Two left-handers get no such bonus: one of you will have a backhand on the middle whichever way round you stand, so pick sides on preference and overheads instead.

With a mixed pair, though, it is close to free. Same players, same shots, better geometry, decided before the first point.