I often capture video of the pickleball action in my backyard. It is fun, and educational, to watch yourself and your friends play.

Today I reviewed some of my recent backyard matches on video to capture some stats for 2 different levels of players, “novice” and “intermediate”.

The novice matches featured 4 players with DUPR ratings less than 3.0.

The intermediate matches featured 4 players with DUPR ratings between 3.4 and 4.1.

I reviewed an equal number of novice matches and intermediate matches to compile the stats shown below….

Average number of shots per rally:
Novice 4.5
Intermediate 7.0

Percentage of rallies lasting only 1, 2, or 3 shots:
Novice 35.9%
Intermediate 13.2%

Percentage of rallies lasting 10 or more shots:
Novice: 2.0%
Intermediate: 25.0%

Percentage of missed serves:
Novice: 13.3%
Intermediate: 2.5%

Percentage of missed service returns:
Novice: 16.2%
Intermediate: 5.0%

Percentage of service returns where the returner proceeded all the way to the kitchen immediately:
Novice: 28%
Intermediate: 92%