What Is a Dead Dink? The Gift Shot You Should Be Attacking Every Time

Think of a dead dink like a gift. Your opponent either made a mistake or gave you an opening. The question is: what are you going to do with it?

One of the Internet's top teaching pros, Kyle Koszuta, has some advice on one of pickleball's most underrated offensive weapons: the dead dink attack.

Here's the deal: if you're not hunting these balls, you're leaving points on the table.

Love pickleball? Then you'll love our free newsletter. We send the latest news, tips, and highlights for free each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

What Exactly Is a Dead Dink?

Let's start with the basics. A dead is simply a dink that sits high, gives you time and space, or basically screams "hit me."

You know the feeling when you're in a dinking rally and suddenly the ball floats up a little higher than usual? No spin. No low-angled attack. No aggressive topspin.

That's your moment. That's the dead dink.

Koszuta breaks it down simply: if the ball sits high or your opponent gives you time and space to make a decision, you need to do something with it.

Either speed it up or take an aggressive dink. The logic is straightforward but often overlooked by recreational players. If you don't capitalize on that opportunity, you might not get another one like it during the point.

The Modern Pickleball Mindset: Aggression Wins

Today's pickleball landscape is no longer just about keeping the ball in play and waiting for your opponent to make a mistake. Modern pickleball is about applying pressure, exerting your will on the court, and forcing your opponent into uncomfortable positions.

When you get a dead dink, attacking that ball is non-negotiable.

Koszuta demonstrates this with live court footage, showing how he positions himself offensively and keeps the pressure mounting.

The goal isn't always to end the point immediately. Sometimes it's about putting your opponent off balance, making them react rather than act.

• If they pop it up, great, you put it away.
• If they block it, you've still shifted the momentum in your favor.

Pro Michael Loyd’s ‘Two-Thing Rule’ for Hitting High-Percentage Pickleball Counters

At any given moment, you should only be concerned about the two most likely shots your opponent can hit. That’s it. It sounds complicated at first, but it’s actually liberating.

The Dink PickleballThe Dink Media Team

Speed It Up or Go Aggressive: Your Two-Pronged Attack

The beauty of the dead dink attack is that you've got options. You're not locked into one response.

• You might speed up the ball directly at the player in front of you
• Or you might take a really aggressive dink to a different part of the court to catch them off balance.

Think of it like this: you're not just reacting to the dink. You're making a conscious decision to seize control. That's the difference between playing pickleball and playing it well.

The pros understand this instinctively. They see a high ball and they're already thinking about how to weaponize it.

7 Pickleball IQ Tips to Outsmart Every Opponent

Stop just hitting the ball. Start thinking about why you’re hitting it, where it’s going, and what your opponent is expecting.

The Dink PickleballThe Dink Media Team

The Pressure Principle

What Koszuta is really teaching here is a broader principle about pressure in pickleball. The game rewards players who can identify soft spots in their opponent's defense and exploit them. A dead dink is essentially a gift. Your opponent either made a mistake or gave you an opening. The question is: what are you going to do with it?

By consistently attacking dead dinks, you're sending a message to your opponent. You're telling them that you're not going to let them off easy. You're going to make them pay for every mistake.

Over the course of a match, that mentality compounds. Your opponent gets tighter, more cautious, and more prone to errors.