Padel shots: the bandeja, the víbora and the lob

The three overhead padel shots every player learns after the basics are the bandeja, the víbora and the lob. The bandeja is a slow, controlled overhead hit with slice that keeps you at the net. The víbora is its faster, attacking cousin, hit with sidespin and usually aimed at the back glass. The lob is the high ball that sends the other pair back and buys you time. This guide to padel shots explains what each one is for, when to choose it, and the embroidered designs we drew for each.

Padel shots at a glance

Padel is played in pairs on a court closed in by glass walls and metal fencing, and most points turn on one question: who holds the net? The pair at the net attacks; the pair at the back defends and waits for a chance to come forward. Overhead shots decide that balance.

When a lob sails over your head, you have three choices: smash it, play a bandeja to stay at the net, or hit a víbora to go for the point. When you are the one pushed back, a good lob is often how you swap places.

The bandeja: the tray

Bandeja is Spanish for tray: the racket face stays open and flat, as if you were a waiter carrying one. It is a slow, controlled smash, usually played when the other pair's lob is too good to hit hard. Struck with slice, it lands deep and stays low off the glass, so it is hard to attack, and you keep your place at the net. It rarely wins the point on its own. Its job is control.

Our Bandeja figure catches the racket up and back with the ball high, a pleated skirt under a zigzag top, stitched in six thread colours.

The víbora: the viper

Víbora means viper, a name taken from the ball's snaking flight. It is a faster, more attacking overhead, hit with sidespin and slice through a more active wrist, usually from a stronger position closer to the net. Aimed at the back glass, it comes off the back wall sideways, often towards the side wall, which makes it hard to read.

Because the timing is finer, coaches warn against forcing it when you are badly placed: a víbora from the wrong spot hands the attack to the other side. In the Víbora figure the racket is out to the side with spin on it, the ball still in the other hand.

The lob: buying time

The lob is the shot that changes who controls the point. Played high and deep over a pair at the net, it pushes them back so you and your partner can move forward, or it slows a fast exchange so you can recover. The risk is the short lob, which hands the net pair an easy smash. In our Lob figure the racket is low after the swing and the ball is already high over the net.

The smash, and two softer shots

The smash is the best-known overhead and usually an attacking one, but power is not always the right choice in padel: spin and placement matter more, and a weak smash gives the other pair a chance to counter once the ball comes off the glass. That is exactly why the bandeja and the víbora exist, as safer, more precise ways to deal with a lob.

Two softer shots are worth knowing too. The chiquita is a slow, soft ball that just clears the net towards the opponents' feet, forcing them to lift it so you can move up; avoid it when you are pinned deep. The contrapared, Spanish for against the wall, is a defensive answer to a lob: you hit the ball into your own wall so it rebounds high and deep over the net. It needs height and depth, or it becomes a gift.

Bandeja or víbora: how to choose

Think of them as one shot at two speeds. Choose the bandeja when you are stretched, the lob is deep or a smash feels risky: it keeps your position and resets the point. Choose the víbora when the lob drops a little short and you are well set: it puts pressure on the back glass and can finish the point. Many players learn the bandeja first, because a safe overhead matters more than a fast one.

The glass is the reason these shots exist at all. To see how the walls, the serve and the scoring work, read our guide to padel rules.

Padel shots, stitched

Each figure in People of the Game is one moment from a sport, machine embroidered at the centre of the chest of a tee, crewneck or hoodie, or on the front of a cotton tote, within a 10 × 10 cm area. The faces are blank on purpose, so the player can be you or your partner. Padel has four figures, Bandeja, Víbora, Lob and Padel Bag, and six more designs, from the crayon glass wall of Off the Glass to the court seen from the stands in Plate II. See them all in the padel collection. Every piece is made for you after you order, and shipping is free.

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