Important Doubles Tips that you Don't Already Know (and a surprise myth)

[@anhvu3780]

1. Great adjustment to the "I" formation. Lets call it the Italic "I" formation 2. It is true that the back player is the key for success. I am usually that guy and when I play well (i.e. no errors) my team usually win. This changed my belief that the net/attacking player is the anchor. Half of the time I got passed/hit by the ball is b/c my back player give them a floater. 3. About anticipating which side the opponent is going to hit, he is talking about 4+ level or those who know how to play double. For weaker opponents, little foundation, or bad technique, they would spray the ball everywhere and you cannot read it. Having good position will help you still. Another awesome video. Thank you.

[@lisarobertson7011]

very thorough explanation - thank you

[@michael1electricianquiroz338]

Like the lesson.. will try to apply in my doubles men’s league this week ..great illustration

[@blondie1499]

Great information Jeremy!! Please keep these videos coming. Love the whiteboard since I'm such a visual learner. This is the exact situation that I ran into yesterday with getting passed down the alley while at the net and my partner put the blame on my shoulders...but I knew it was just a damn good shot and that it was the perfect setup for the down the alley shot. Plus the opposing player has a very precise placement with this shot and will defintely take it, if the opportunity presents itself. I'm a newer player but fast and athletic and pretty quick at the net....and I wasn't able to get to that well placed ball...so it really helps to know what to look for and have a better strategy when facing an opponent in the back who has a great passing alley shot!!

[@FundamentalTennis]

Cheryl Scott thank you Cheryl! And thanks for watching. So happy to hear u found it helpful 😁

[@jaquevius]

Awesome info

[@Fernwald84]

I think the rule you state, Jeremy, of a good offensive shot being returned cross court and a weaker shot could be returned down the line, cross court or right at the net player is a bit less useful because of the possibility of the lob. A lob could be hit either off an offensive shot or a weaker shot. At the club level in particular, hitting a topspin lob over the net player off of a weaker incoming shot can often result in a winner if the backcourt player can't take it in the air. If the offensive shot pulls the receiver wide, this opens up the possibility of a cross court lob which means the ball is traveling away from the backcourt player. All this depends, of course, on whether the receiving team in question likes to lob, but I think it is an important issue to consider.

[@FundamentalTennis]

George Oberlander hi George, thanks for the comment. If the players are 3.5 or below then they will have a ton of trouble with anticipation as they still struggle with anticipating the incoming ball and where the ball will go. These anticipatory skills are for intermediated and above as many lower level players won’t know what’s a quality shot and what’s not. If you play against a player whom lobs a lot (assuming you don’t know how to prevent the lob or you don’t have the tools to prevent the lob i.e short slice) then you can adjust your positioning accordingly. If player often lobs crosscourt to baseliner then I suggest net player move towards the “T” right as the baseliner is about to hit to try and intercept the ball (like a backward poach) If baseliner lobs line a lot then the net player can “hover” meaning go back net near the service line. OR fake forward then move back as the opponent swings forward. If the back court player is pulled wide as you say and the opposing baseliner is in the correct position then the crosscourt lob will come directly to them. The fact remains if the baseliner hits a quality shot the ball will usually come back down the center of the court (crosscourt). When the baseliner hits a poor shot then the ball will often come back at the net player or somewhere down the line. Let me know if you have any questions or comments 👍

[@TheDrakulie]

Question that doesn't get asked but very important is... What happens if the returner rips a return right up the middle ? when you moving to either side, that return is very tough to hit good volley out of ? Also what do you think of just standing right there in the middle, and not move to either side after your partner hits a good serve ?

[@FundamentalTennis]

Jin Jin to answer your first question it would be great because then the ball would come right into your strike zone. To answer your 2nd question, that is a neutral positioning. Your not in position for a wide serve (based on the courts geometry) so your leaving the alley area open a bit too much. Your in good position for a body serve and your not close enough to the middle of the court for a T serve. Keep in mind quality of shot and patterns of the opponent.

[@bryanstephenson9050]

My tennis group frequently has weaker players mixed with stronger players, so where should a stronger player stand in the net-position, when a weaker player is serving: From your above video; the stronger player should anticipate an aggressive Down-The-Line blast at the net-player- But should this net player stand closer to the net for a reflex dump-volley, or, stand further back (near "No-Man's-Land'), to allow more time for a half-volley?

[@FundamentalTennis]

Bryan Stephenson hi Bryan, great question. Like all tennis questions the answer is it depends. First I definitely recommend shading with the ball since they are likely to receive an easy serve. How far back you start depends on how often the returner hits it your way. But mainly how fast your hands are/how early you read the ball as well as how hard the returner usually hits the ball. If u have fast hands u can of course be closer to the net. If u have slow reflexes it may be better to back up some. If returner hits slow u can be closer to the net. If returner hits fast you may want to back up some. Keep in mind that backing up makes it easier for the opponent to hit it by u as you won’t be cutting off the angles. Being further back will cause u to hit lower volleys and more difficult volleys. Being close to the net gives u higher volleys and better court coverage. The only disadvantage to being closer to the net is u have less time. I prefer you be very close to the baseline then at the service line if u do in fact feel u need more time. Hope this helps.

[@DeneNorton]

I often have the situation where my servers partner insists on parking themselves right up to the net and over covering the sideline. So basically they are saying to the receiver if you hit exactly in my direction I’m going to have an easy volley, but they leave themselves way open to a lob if I as the server try to come into the net on my side, or they leave a lot of territory open down the middle. What can I as a server do to combat this?

[@FundamentalTennis]

Dene Freeland hello Dene, this may seem like an obvious answer but you need to talk with your partner and use words like “we” or “us.” Stay away from the word “you.” You don’t want them to feel like your picking on them. Explain to them WHY it’s important to make the change. Practice this stuff before getting into a match that counts. Doing a doubles lesson would be great for this. You can also have a pro talk to you and your partner about this. Hope this helps.

[@chtomlin]

I guess this good positioning for beginners who don't follow the ball, but pretty early on a good dubs player's initial position will mean very little since they will move in relation to location of the serve combined with pre-planned coverage. The initial position is more about how they intend to cover what they plan to cover.

[@FundamentalTennis]

Chuck T. If your referring to iformation , the SP off center initial position is good for all levels. You’ll see pros do this most of the time when doing the iformation for the same reasons I discussed 👍