How to Apply the Overgrip Like a PRO + 2 Tricks You Didn’t Know

The overgrip is crucial in padel, just like tires on a car, it’s the only point of contact with your hand. Proper placement can improve your control and comfort during the game, indeed it will. Additionally, we will teach you two tricks you probably didn’t know that will help you further perfect your technique.

Placing the overgrip is not just a matter of technique, but also of understanding how it affects the weight and balance of your racket. With each overgrip you add, these characteristics change and, therefore, your playing style; the more you use, the heavier it will be and the balance will drop. Keep in mind that each overgrip usually weighs around 7g.

Join us as we break down step by step how to do it correctly and reveal tips from the world’s best padel players.

Steps to Apply the Overgrip

Start with the Handle

Begin by removing the old overgrip if necessary, if you have one don’t remove it and note where you placed it last time to make it as similar as possible, usually the one that comes factory default is left on. Make sure to clean the handle of any residue or dirt.

Unroll your new overgrip and remove the protective tape from the adhesive on the thinner end if you want to ensure you play your drive with the same side of the racket, whereas others have a different viewpoint as they start from the wider part as it can give a more regular feel when holding the racket.

What is the result of this decision? Starting from the thin part you’ll notice how the overgrip adapts better to the palm of your hand, however, you’ll notice how your racket loses performance faster since we hit more forehands than backhands, thus demanding more from one side than the other.

Finally, start placing it and do so on the adhesive side and in this step, you’ll have to decide how much thickness you want at the base of the handle and for that, give one or more turns, here we recommend that you keep trying until you find your best version. To achieve a thicker handle base, some use the wedge technique, adding the rubber that comes to place at the top of the overgrip, however, it can be placed on the racket cap. This is indicated for those players who want to have their hand well placed on the overgrip and not for those who like to stick their pinky finger out of the racket.

Wrap and Adjust the Thickness

Once you have started wrapping, you should overlap the overgrip turn by turn, if you want it thin it should overlap between 1-2 millimeters and in case you want greater thickness, overlap it in the middle or you can even buy a tennis one.

Secure the Overgrip

Use the rubber that comes with the racket to close the grip turns and/or the sticker that comes with the overgrip to close it.

What to Decide Before Placing It: Texture, Color, and Thickness

Texture

Regarding texture, you will find different options, the most typical being smooth or perforated overgrips, the main difference is that perforated ones last less time than smooth ones, so our recommendation is to opt for them only if your hand sweats a lot.

There are more modern variants like hexagonal overgrips with a honeycomb design to achieve greater contact between the grip and the hand.

Overgrip Color

White overgrips are the most recommended, as they have no pigment to be dyed and this will reduce the sweating of your hand. Have you seen any professional with a colored grip?

Thickness

This is the most typical question, thick or thin overgrip? This answer depends on your playing style, if you want to play with more freedom moving your wrist more, you should use a thin one, this is not recommended if you are not an advanced player, however, if you are more novice or seek more control, or even if you are injured, use a thick overgrip.

Now that you know how to change it, it’s essential to know when, don’t miss the next article:

Cuándo cambiar el overgrip de Padel: 2 trucos sencillos para saberlo

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