Pickler created The Pickleball Dictionary, which includes all of the common terms, phrases, words, people, and organizations found in, on, and around the pickleball courts. Get your FREE copy of The Pickleball Dictionary today!
PICKLEBALL TERMS THAT START WITH THE LETTER “D”
The pickleball terms, phrases, words, people, and organizations that start with the letter “D” include:
Dan Gabanek – Dan Gabanek was inducted into the Pickleball Hall of Fame in 2019 in recognition of his dominance in the sport from 1988 to 2014. During this period, Dan was ranked #1 in men’s singles and men’s doubles, and he was a four-time national champion.
Dave Weinbach – Dave “The Badger” Weinbach is a well-known pickleball pro with hundreds of medals and championships to his name. He is known for “Spreading the Pickleball Love” across the country.
Dawson’s – Steve and Jennifer Dawson are former tennis pros turned pickleball pros from the State of California. Steve and Jennifer also share their love for pickleball with their son, Callan Dawson, who is also a pickleball pro. The Dawson’s are known for their terrific play on the pickleball courts (including countless medals—Jennifer was the first triple crown winner at the US Open Pickleball Championships in 2017), as well as their ownership and operation of the Bobby Riggs Racket & Paddle Center and involvement in the development of ProKennex pickleball paddles.
Dead Ball – A pickleball that is no longer in play (in other words, no longer a live ball) is a dead ball.
Deep – Generally, your goal on the serve and return of serve is hit the pickleball deep into your opponents’ side of the pickleball court, just inside the baseline, keeping them as far away from the non-volley zone or kitchen line as possible.
Defense – Good defense can keep you and your partner in pickleball points. Sometimes, to win the point, all you need to do is keep the pickleball in between the lines and over the pickleball net one more time than your opponents.
Dekel Bar – Dekel Bar is a pro pickleball player from Israel that converted from a stellar tennis career, which included playing on the ATP tour. Dekel is one of owners of Pickleball Getaways, which combines travel and pickleball for great vacations for pickleball enthusiasts.
Dick’s Sporting Goods – You can find pickleball paddles and pickleball gear at a number of businesses, including your local Dick’s Sporting Goods store. Dick’s Sporting Goods even has its own line of pickleball paddles—Monarch Pickleball.
Digging Out – Sometimes you may accidentally hit a pickleball a little too high, allowing your opponents to hit a put away shot. When that happens, you and your partner need to prepare to try to “dig out” the put away shot and keep the point alive.
Dingles or the Dinking Game – Dingles or the dinking game is a drill that can improve your dinks. To play dingles or the dinking game, set-up on the pickleball court with you and your partner directly across from one another at the Non-Volley Zone or Kitchen Line. Play a game of pickleball using only one-half of the Non-Volley Zone or Kitchen Line. If the pickleball goes outside of the Non-Volley Zone or Kitchen Line, the pickleball is out of bounds and the receiving team will earn one point. Use rally scoring; first to eleven wins! You can also play dingles or the dinking game in doubles to work on the important crosscourt dink, communication with your partner, and your basic dinking strategy.
Dink – Dinking is one of the cornerstones of the sport of pickleball. A dink is a soft shot where the apex (or highest point on the arc of a shot) is on your side of the pickleball court and is one to two feet over the top of the net, which allows the pickleball to be falling at a downward trajectory into the non-volley zone or kitchen on your opponents’ side of the court. A good dink is one that is unattackable.
Dinkers – Dinkers are pickleball players that are exceptionally good in the dink game at the non-volley zone or kitchen line.
Direction – Direction is another way to describe the path of the pickleball. Which way is the pickleball going?
Disguise – To maximize the impact of your shot on the pickleball courts, it is important to disguise your shot, so your opponents cannot anticipate what is coming. The key to disguising your shot is to hit the pickleball out in front of your body. If you let the pickleball get behind you, your shot selection will be very limited.
Distraction – Pickleball is a game of focus, concentration, and strategy. As a result, it is important to zone out the distractions. Focus on that pickleball!
Dominic Catalano – Dominic Catalano is a pro pickleball player and coach in Southwest Florida. He is known for hosting the Dominic Catalano Moneyball pickleball tournaments, as well as announcing various APP pro pickleball events.
Double Bounce – A double bounce on the pickleball court is where the pickleball bounces twice before being returned by a player/team on one side of the pickleball court. A double bounce results in a fault (except in wheelchair pickleball, where a double bounce is a live ball, and a triple bounce would be a dead ball).
Double Hit – A double hit is when a pickleball player hits the pickleball twice with the face of his or her pickleball paddle before the pickleball travels to the other side of the pickleball court. Only unintentional double hits are permitted in the sport of pickleball. Any intentional double hits will result in a fault on the pickleball court.
Doubles – Pickleball is commonly played in doubles (although it can also be played in singles).
Drills – The best way to improve your pickleball game is to drill. It is so important to drill to commit the proper pickleball mechanics to muscle memory and to make your proper pickleball mechanics part of your habits.
Drive – A drive is a shot to send a fastball at your opponents and is similar to a drive in the sport of tennis. Like most other shots in pickleball, a drive is usually more consistent and hit with more power as a forehand shot (rather than as a backhand shot). To learn how to hit a quality drive (both forehand/backhand and top spin/slice), check out Pickler’s online pickleball video lessons.
Drop (or Drop Shot) – A drop is a common shot in pickleball that is somewhat like a long dink. Like a dink, a drop is a soft shot where the apex (or highest point on the arc of a shot) is on your side of the pickleball court and is one to two feet over the top of the net, which allows the pickleball to be falling at a downward trajectory into the non-volley zone or kitchen on your opponents’ side of the pickleball court. The goal of a drop shot is to give you and your partner the opportunity to move in to the non-volley zone or kitchen line. To learn how to hit a quality drop shot, check out Pickler’s online pickleball video lessons.
Drop Serve – A drop serve is an alternate serving method in the sport of pickleball. To do a pickleball drop serve (LINK), you must drop or release the pickleball from any natural height, either by using your hand or letting the pickleball roll off of your paddle, and then hit the pickleball with your paddle after the pickleball bounces on the court.
Drop Volley – A drop volley is a soft shot off of a drive from your opponents that lands into your opponents’ side of the non-volley zone or kitchen and is designed to (1) take advantage of an open short court (in other words, the court closest to you and your partner is open); and (2) invite your opponents into the net. This shot is effective if your opponents like to play near the baseline and do not like to play at the net (i.e. do not like to dink).
Duck – Duck, dip, and dodge those out pickleballs. Avoid the temptation of hitting the out pickleballs and keeping your opponent(s) in the point.
Dura Fast 40 – A brand of pickleball at the center of the great pickleball debate—which type of ball is the best ball?—as it has a reputation to crack or break at times. Dura Fast 40 is a common brand of pickleball at tournaments across the country, and was recently acquired by Onix Pickleball.
DO YOU KNOW ANY ADDITIONAL PICKLEBALL TERMS THAT START WITH THE LETTER “D”?
Do you know any additional pickleball terms, phrases, words, people, or organizations that start with the letter “D” to add to The Pickleball Dictionary? Share with us in the comments below!
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Updated as of November 30, 2020
