The X4 smash is an attacking finishing shot in padel, designed to send the ball out of the court over the 4-metre back glass after it bounces on the ground in the opponents’ half.
An effective X4 smash relies on the highest possible contact point, striking directly on top of the ball and a vertical downward wrist movement, making the ball travel sharply towards the ground and generating a bounce high enough to send it out of the court.
The aim of this session is to progressively develop the key technical elements of the X4 smash, from the wrist movement and contact point to footwork adjustments, before putting them into practice on high, short balls in match-like situations.
The session consists of a preliminary stage focusing on the racket grip, contact point and ideal hitting zone, followed by five progressive drills. These allow the player to develop each component of the technique separately before bringing them together into a complete, controlled X4 smash.
➡️ This session breaks down the X4 smash technique step by step.
Before starting the drills, the player learns to adopt a continental grip, or a slightly more closed grip at an advanced level, to strike the ball at the 12 o’clock position to drive it sharply downwards, and to recognise a high, short ball in the ideal hitting zone between the net and the first post of the side fence.
1️⃣ The first progression focuses on isolating the vertical wrist movement without a racket, driving the ball towards the ground using the X4 smash action.
2️⃣ The second progression introduces striking directly on top of the ball with the racket, aiming to keep the racket face parallel to the ground, generate a high bounce and finish with a short follow-through, the wrist flexed and the tip of the racket pointing downwards.
3️⃣ The third drill focuses on developing the ability to send the ball over the 3-metre side fence, while maintaining the technique practised in the previous progressions.
4️⃣ The fourth progression allows the player to send the ball out over the 4-metre back glass from a coach-fed ball, using small adjustment steps to position themselves underneath it.
5️⃣ Finally, the fifth progression focuses on applying the X4 smash technique in a match-like situation, moving forwards and adjusting footwork to execute the shot effectively.
✅ Through these five drills, the aim is to progressively develop an accurate and effective X4 smash, with a high contact point, contact on top of the ball and a vertical wrist movement, mastering each key technical element separately before combining them into a complete movement while on the move.
Preliminary stage:
1️⃣ Adopting the correct racket grip
To execute an X4 smash, the player uses a continental grip, which is the recommended starting grip for learning this technique.
At a more advanced level, the player can also use a slightly more closed grip, similar to the one used for a backhand from the back of the court.
2️⃣ Understanding the contact point on the ball
➡️ To execute a successful X4 smash, the player must strike directly on top of the ball, making it travel sharply towards the ground and generating a bounce high enough to send it out over the 4-metre back glass.
To visualise this contact point, imagine a clock face on the ball: 12 o’clock represents the top, 6 o’clock the bottom, 3 o’clock the right side and 9 o’clock the left side.
The player should therefore aim to strike the ball at the 12 o’clock position, using a vertical downward wrist movement to create a steeper downward trajectory.
3️⃣ Identifying the ideal hitting zone for an X4 smash
An X4 smash should be attempted on a high, short ball, in an area sufficiently close to the net.
✅ To identify this area, the player can use the net and the first post of the side fence as reference points: the space between these two landmarks provides a favourable zone for attempting this shot.
The further the player moves behind this zone, towards the back of the court, the more difficult it becomes to send the ball out over the 4-metre back glass.
It is therefore essential to learn to recognise a ball that stays short and position yourself close enough to the net, allowing the smash to be executed under the right conditions.
➡️ These three principles (an appropriate grip, contact with the ball at the 12 o’clock position and selecting a high, short ball in a favourable hitting zone) form the technical foundations to maintain throughout all five progressive drills in the session.
