Over rotating
Do not over-rotate. I’ve said this once and will say it again. Over rotating will lead you off-balance and put your opponent in an advantageous position right away. You just want to rotate enough to deflect the punches and come back in with a counter. When you over-rotate, you miss the counter cue and might lose your balance. So that’s a big No-No.
Not maintaining eye contact
The crux of shoulder roll revolves around studying your opponent’s movement. Thus, tracking the direction from which the punch is coming in is extremely important. You can only achieve this by maintaining constant eye contact helping you sense the direction from which the punch is coming. If you don’t maintain proper eye contact, you’d hardly be able figure the direction let alone the punch.
Tiring the mind through Guesswork
Trust me when I say this, Shoulder roll works against any punch. Thus, instead of trying to focus on what your opponent might throw, try focusing on the angle from which he is to throw. Don’t keep your mind occupied with things that don’t matter. At the same time, have a counter planned as soon as you track the angle.
Using shoulder roll against lighter punches
Shoulder roll is effective when an opponent throws the power punches. Thus, it works against hooks, jabs and crosses or combinations but isn’t effective against a jab. Since your opponent is not fully committed, using a shoulder roll doesn’t really make much sense as it won’t be fruitful. Thus, there’s no room for using your opponent’s momentum against him/her.
Not inculcating pivoting
It’s okay if you don’t pivot but it’s excellent if you do a pivot. When you add pivoting when rolling your front shoulder, you gather the momentum. Thus, when you’re coming back at your opponent with a counter, your punch packs more power than usual. Many beginners don’t emphasize on pivoting at first. Even advanced level boxers can miss out on this. But it’s the little intricacies like these which make all the difference.