I don’t play ping pong often, but when I do, I place my index finger on the face of the paddle with a finger-up grip. So perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that this habit of extending my finger north of the grip carried over to pickleball.
Many pickleball players view this as an unorthodox or even improper way to hold the paddle, but I’ve stuck with it for some time now, and it’s been effective, specifically at the non-volley zone line.
However, the grip comes at a price.