In the late 1920's and early 1930's, George Lott was to doubles in tennis what Bill Tilden was to singles—namely, the world's best player.
He won the U.S. men's doubles championships a total of five times with three different partners. He won the French doubles championships with still another partner, with whom he eventually won the first of his two Wimbledon doubles championships. In mixed doubles, he added three more U.S. championships and a third Wimbledon title. He also starred for the U.S. in Davis Cup play and toured for years with the Tilden pro troupe.
His fame as a doubles player was such that in time he became the standard by which all doubles players were measured. And as renowned an expert as U.S. Open tournament director Bill Talbert has rated Lott and Australian great John Bromwich, unquestionably, as the greatest pure doubles players of all times. en What was it that made Lott, and later Bromwich, so extraordi-' >> nary? Was it their overwhelming serves? Their devastating overheads? Their bullet-like forehands and backhands? Their unerring placements? Not at all.
“Lott and Bromwich were the great masters of the game of doubles,’’ said Talbert, in that “they were primarily playmakers. In other words, they utilized thought, study, court craft, stroke variety, finesse, spin, tactics, fakes, teasers, anticipation and well-planned maneuvers to force their opponents either into making a weak return or leaving an opening. All these masters needed as a partner. . . was a rangy, power player to take maximum advantage of every opening they established.”
That's an analysis that Lott not only agrees with but it's a philosophy of doubles play that he still, today in his 70's, teaches at
DePaul University, where he's currently the tennis coach; at the Nielsen Tennis Center in nearby Winnetka, Ill., where he’s the tennis coordinator; and at junior and adult tennis clinics,.which he still finds time to run during the summer monihs.
George Lott has written numerous articles for TENNIS on the strokes and strategies so essential to an overall better game. But here, for the first time in book form, is a distillation of the secrets of winning doubles play that he learned as a player half a century ago and has taught so successfully to others ever since.
“But I already play singles pretty well,’’ you may be saying to yourself, “so why should I need any special help in doubles?’ I put that question to George when we first started our work together, and he answered:
“Good singles play requires excellent technique, good power, fleetness of foot and considerable stamina. While these are all useful attributes for a doubles player, they are, to a degree, not quite so necessary. What is necessary is a head on your shoulders and the ability to use the brain that resides there. A good doubles player must use his head.
“Il have won a good many doubles titles, ranging from U.S. national junior championships to Wimbledon and Forest Hills doubles championships—more than 40 major titles in all, largely because my partners and I were able to outsmart our opponents. A thinking doubles team can often beat a team that is better equipped in terms of stroking ability simply through cunning and cleverness.
“That's what I hope to show in this book—that you, me, practically anyone can win at doubles by using his head. That's ‘why | call doubles the thinking player’s game. The more you analyze your own actions and those of your opponents, the better your doubles play will become.”
Let me add that this is not a book which will turn you into a doubles champion overnight. But read a few chapters and you'll find, I'm sure, a number of key ideas that you can quickly incorporate into your own game. My favorite is the short return of service into the opposite alley. It's a simple tactic, easy to execute, but one that gives my opponents fits and tires them out in the bargain. And there are many more ideas like that here, ideas you can pick out and put to work for you just as they've worked for George Lott over the years.
Remember, though, that doubles is a game to be enjoyed. Or as George himself is fond of saying, ‘Doubles doubles your fun.”
Of course, if you win, too—and this book will help you do that— well, so much the better.
When baseball immortal Willie Keeler was once asked the secret of his amazing batting success, he shifted a large cud of tobacco from his right cheek to his left and said: “T hit ‘em where they ain't.” His grammar may have been weak, but his logic was inescapable.
And the same applies to tennis.
It means, in short, that the most useful attribute you can develop for doubles play is the ability to disguise your shots. Why?
Because the more you can disguise them, the less time your opponents will have to decide what you are doing and respond accordingly. And that will give you the edge you need, very often, to “hit
The three most important shots you will hit in this context are the forehand drive, the lob and the soft chip or dink shot, each of which must be hit with almost the same motion to achieve maximum effect.
The advantages of a good drive are obvious—it will be your workhorse stroke when you are returning serve or find yourself forced to play from the baseline. A good lob will come into play when your opponents are up close to the net; it will drive them back to the baseline and give you a chance to get back into the point. The advantages of a soft chip or dink shot, which I consider my specialty, are so numerous that I'll be discussing them later in great detail. For now, let me say this is the one shot that is most likely to send your opponents scrambling around the court—that is most likely to set up a weak return which you can then put away in short order.
All three of these shots you probably have in your arsenal right now. If not, you'll have to get them if you ever hope to achieve your full potential in doubles. They're not really so hard to perfect, though. You can probably master them—and learn to disguise them, too, if you haven't already—with the help of one of the many good instruction books on stroke-making now on the market. If you can't, you may need the help and advice of a competent tennis teaching professional. If so, I most heartily recommend that you get them. The time and energy you invest in these strokes will pay off many times over in personal satisfaction and future on-court success.
That's the first step in developing a winning doubles game. The second is learning to play in harness with your partner, whoever that might be.
When I was at the peak of my game, people were always asking me how I managed to win so many doubles titles—what was the secret of my success. The answer I usually gave was that I won because | had good partners. In those days, I was trying to appear modest. But now that I've had plenty of time to reflect on the subject, I'm certain that was true. A doubles team, I'm convinced, is only as good as its weakest link.
At the tournament level—or any level, really—it means an ideal doubles team should consist of a tactician, a player who plans each point and sets up most of the winning situations, and a
“closer,” a stronger player who can be counted on to hit a slashing volley or a blistering overhead whenever it’s called for. In theory, at least, the strengths of a doubles pair like that will complement each other and offset any individual weaknesses.
Unfortunately, in real life it rarely works out that way. Often you have to take what you can get. But that said, there are still certain qualities you should look for in choosing a doubles partner, especially if you hope to make it a Jasting alliance.
The most successful and enduring partnerships I've found through the years are not those of players with complementary skills but those of players who have similar skills. And for a very good reason; they usually work together so much better. Sotryand » get yourself a partner with a game similar to yourown, but make » sure it’s someone you can get along with pretty well. And when you find such a partner, try and practice with him as much as you can until you get to the point where each of you knows pretty much what the other will do in a given situation. Good doubles players should be able to play together and understand each other with a minimum of verbal communication—and no acrimonious postmortems.
In time, you may find ways in which you can be helpful to your partner—and he or she to you. One of you may catch something the other is doing wrong and that can easily be corrected. Make suggestions, but commands never. And never, never argue with your partner; don't even have a heated discussion, or you'll soon find your game disintegrating. Complete harmony is essential, and a single pat on the back at an appropriate moment, if not a cure-all, is more productive by far than a thousand recriminations.
What happens if your partnership doesn't work out? Well, you should discuss the situation with your partner and try and reconcile your differences. But if you can't, it’s best to split up then and there and look for someone else. And when you find that someone, stick with him; you'll both be better for it.
On occasion, of course, you'll find yourself playing with a doubles partner whom you'd never have chosen on your own, given the option. You can still have fun, though—and maybe win, too—if you follow the principles I've outlined here and try to work together as a team as best you can.
It isn't always easy. But that’s what doubles is all about— teamwork. That's the keystone of a winning doubles game—the wellspring from which all else flows.
Doubles is such a fast-moving game it's impossible to reduce its requirements to a simple set of rules that will guarantee success on every occasion. There are, however, some basic principles of doubles play you should learn and remember—and try to put into play whenever you're on court. I call these the Six Axioms of Doubles Play. They are:
Use the whole court; Look before you hit; Plan your moves in advance;
Look at your court through your opponents’ eyes; Don't get set in your ways, and Make the best use of your partner. All of these, as you can see, and if you want to be good, require that you think.
Of course, you can always go out and blast away at the ball— the way you do, perhaps, in singles. That doesn't take a great deal of thought, and you may get away with it a time or two in doubles. But once you move up in class—to where you're playing someone who knows the game—it's the quickest way I know to lose. The screeching drives you hit across the net will come back like bullets, and the bullets you hit in return will come back like cannonballs—
» or little dink shots just out of reach. No, you can't win that way; you have to use your head.
Look at the top doubles teams around today—Bob Hewitt and Frew McMillan, Bob Lutz and Stan Smith, Tom Okker and Wojtek Fibak. Sure, they can hit with power when they have to—or when they close in for the kill. But they win consistent!y—and the operative word here is CONSISTENTLY—not by overpowering their opponents but by out-thinking them, out-dinking them and generally running them ragged. In short, by following, consciously or otherwise, the six keys to better doubles play. Follow these precepts yourself and while they may not turn you into a champion, they ll certainly make you a better player—and that I can guarantee.
3 a Server's Partner by 7 = &, “ &
2-1. A doubles court is nine feet wider than a singles court, the extra width being in the alleys at either side of the court.
One of the biggest mistakes that beginning doubles players make is that of trying to hit most of their shots down the center of the court—for safety. Their opponents quickly catch on, if they know anything at all about doubles play, and those “safe” shots down the center are soon converted into sure winners. The sad fact is that the so-called ‘‘center-court theory,” which often works so well in singles, just doesn't work at all in doubles.
On the other hand, a doubles court is wider than a singles court by 4% feet in each alley—or a total of nine feet (see Figure 2-1). That's a lot of space—an extra third of a court—and it's up to you to use it and take advantage of it whenever the opportunity presents itself.
One of the drills I like to use in teaching a beginner just how big
2-2. The crosscourt service returm short and into the alley will give the server trouble whether he rushes the net or stays back.
a doubles court is, is having him stand at one baseline and try to hit the ball crosscourt into the opposite alley right at the service line. Most players start out hitting short—they're atraid of hitting the ball out-of-bounds. But they soon find they have to hit the ball pretty hard to get it to go that far, which is only natural. The distance the ball has to travel is only a little less than the distance from baseline to baseline.
So aim for the alleys whenever you can, and swing out. Remember, though, you're not trying to hit an outright winner— you re merely trying to open up the court. If you can do that, and only that, very often you will set up a situation where your next shot will be a winner. If one of your opponents has been pulled out of position, then somewhere on the court there has to be an open spot where you can hit a winning volley or passing shot.
2-3. If the server (A) is pulled wide for his first volley, a hole opens up for the receiver's partner (B) to place a winning volley.
A crosscourt drive to the opposite alley at the service line—such as that used in the drill mentioned above—also makes a great return of serve (see Figure 2-2). If the server is rushing the net, he will be pulled wide and, more than likely, have no choice but to respond with a weak half volley. That will give your partner a chance to intercept the return, if he’s alert. He will then have a huge hole between the server and his partner in which to place a winning volley (see Figure 2-3). If the server has chosen to stay back, a crosscourt return to the alley will pull him even wider and again set up your partner for an easy winner (see Figure 2-4).
Of course, the server's partner may move over to cover the center. If he does, though, you can take the return yourself and probably hit a passing shot down the open sideline (see Pi igure 2-5). Tt s easy—if you'll just use the whole court.
2-4. If the server (A) volleys crosscourt, the receiver (B) can come in and hit a passing shot down the alley past the server's partner.
Since a tennis court is an awfully big place (it consists of more than
1,400 square feet of court surface on each side of the net), your opponents, however big and rangy, will always be surrounded by some wide-open spaces. So when you're deciding where to hit your next shot, you must check those open spaces and see if you can't hit a ball into one of them—or “where they ain't.”
You may not be able to place the ball exactly where you want to place it every time and, even if you do, your opponents may be able to run it down. But by hitting the ball into an open space, whether it's between your opponents (see Figure 2-4) or down one of the alleys (see Figure 2-5), you're forcing your opponents to work for whatever they get. Anyone can hit a ball that’s handed to him on a plate, but it takes skill to chase down a ball and return it .
2-5. Should the server (A) stay back and hit a return down the alley, the receiver's partner (B) should hit a volley between his opponents.
Thus, hitting the open spots will win you a lot of points, but you should also take into account a couple of significant exceptions.
First, if you're up at the net and one of your opponents hits a ball that's still on the rise when it gets to you, look for an open space to hit your volley. If there are none, move in on the ball and hit it as hard as you can straight down at your nearest opponent's feet, where it will be very difficult for him to return (see Figure 2-6).
Second, your opponents may be crafty enough to set up a trap for you. They may give you what appears to be a nice gap down the center of the court, but then, when you go to hit a passing shot between them (see Figure 2-7), one of them will scoot over and cover the hole just as you hit the ball. He can then intercept your shot with ease.
O.K., it's a nice trick, and maybe it'll work once. But the next
2-6. When you are close to the net and one of your opponents (A) hits a rising ball, volley the ball down (B) at your other opponent's feet.
time, instead of hitting a passing shot, hit a lob that sails deftly over the trickster’s head. That should be the end of that (see Figure 2-8).
Axiom Three: Plan Your Moves in Advance The game of doubles in tennis resembles a game of chess. You have to plan what you're going to do ahead of time to make it work—to set up your opponents for the kill. Fred McNair, chief strategist for the McNair-Stewart team, is a great believer in this and actually draws up a game plan whenever he and his partner are competing in a big match.
Before playing Raul Ramirez and Brian Gottfried, for example, McNair’s checklist might include a couple of notations such as:
“Play Gottfried in back court; play Ramirez at net.” That's because Gottfried has a more punishing volley, whereas Ramirez has the
2-7. Your opponents may set a trap for your passing shot (A) by closing the gap (B) at the last second. As an alternative, lob.
better ground strokes. McNair’s plan would also include a basic strategy that he and Stewart would hope to follow, but it would allow for alternate courses of action in the event that their original plan went haywire.
Your own planning need not be so detailed, but you should have a fairly good idea of what you would like to do and how to go about it, whoever you're playing. And to make your planning work, you'll need patience—the patience to wait for the right opening to make a winning shot, for the right ball to follow up to the net, for the right time to pressure your opponents into a service break so you can win the set.
In the 1930's former U.S. National Doubles champion John Hennessey and I used a simple, planned routine that won us many points. We found the plan very effective against two canny
2-8. When the other team covers the net well, remember that there is space behind them, so lob over their heads.
Frenchmen, Jacques Brugnon and Henri Cochet. Hennessey would serve to Brugnon while I would stand, apparently unconcerned, very close to the net—so close that Brugnon would be tempted to return serve as a quick lob over my head (see Figure 2-9). But, at the point where Brugnon had committed himself to hitting the ball, 1 would retreat rapidly so that I could take the lob with a winning overhead. This plan would work nine times out of ten and so give us nine points, and often the match.
Always have a plan of action and try to make it work—don't change your mind in mid-course. I often see inexperienced players attempt to poach—running over to cut off a return of serve—but stop halfway (see Figure 2-10), thus ending up with two players on the same half of the court. If you are going to poach, go the whole hog. Run right over into the opposite court, even if you miss -
2-9. By standing too close to the net, the net player may tempt the receiver into trying a quick lob but the net player, prepared, moves back quickly to hit an overhead.
Good planning also means good communication. If you intend to serve wide, for instance, to take advantage of an opponent's weak backhand, let your partner know so he can be ready to move over to cover against a possible return down the line. A quick word between points is all it takes.
Good planning should further include the selection of a captain before each match. In play, the captain should say only two words— ‘Yours!’ and “Mine!” and those words are law.
Axiom Four: Look at Your Court Through Your Opponents’ Eyes This is difficult. It's a physical impossibility for you to see your own court during the course of play in exactly the same way your opponents see it. Nevertheless, you and your partner should constantly ask yourselves: “Where would the ball have to go to beat
2-10. If you are going to poach on a returm of serve, go the whole hog. Don't stop halfway like player A here.
us?’ That is where your opponents are going to put the ball, if they re smart—and that's the spot you'll cover, if you're smart. And here again, teamwork is essential.
In doubles play, you and your partner are each responsible for half the court. However, your “halves” are determined not by the center service line but by the ebb and flow of the action. If you are pulled wide, then your partner should move over closer to the center line (see Figure 2-11) so you don't leave a gaping hole for your opponents to shoot through. When you're at the net, you might go so far as to imagine that you're tied to your partner by a rope about half a court-width in length. If your partner drifts to the left to follow the ball, so do you (see Figure 2-12). You have to move together laterally to cover the court.
2-11. When one player (A) is pulled wide, his partner (B) should move over to cover the center of the court.
Viewing the court through your opponents’ eyes can also help you spring an occasional trap—like setting up an open space precisely so your opponents will hit into it (see Figure 2-7). You weave a web and the fly will pop straight into it. Of course, you will move at the last second to cut off your opponent's shot. And by putting yourself in your opponents’ position, you've saved yourself some work and, let's hope, won the point.
This technique of looking at things from your opponents’ viewpoint can be used at almost any stage of the game. Suppose you re returning serve and you have a relatively weak backhand. Where is your opponent most likely to place his serve? Why, certainly, to your backhand. So you can prepare a little earlier. Or, if it's his second serve, you can move left a little (see Figure 2-13) so you can run around your backhand and hit a more effective forehand.
2-12. When one player moves laterally to cover the court, his partner should drift over also, as though the two were joined by a rope.
A good general always tries to figure out the enemy's next move. You can do the same if you look at the court through your opponents’ eyes.
One of the worst things you can do in doubles is to follow predictable patterns of play. Never follow your serve to the net—always hit to an opponent's backhand—that sort of thing. Once you've stereotyped yourself, your opponents will know exactly how to handle you and that's the end of the match.
A case in point: One of my students consistently returns serve to the deuce court directly at the opposing net player. The net player, who quickly learns to expect this return, gets set for the shot and invariably pops an easy volley right between the receiver and her
2-13. When a server consistently aims at your weaker backhand, move over to the left at the last second so you can take the serve on your forehand.
partner (see Figure 2-14). Now if that receiver would mix up her returns—some crosscourt short to the server, some down the line past the net player, and toss in a few judicious lobs—just think how much more effective her return of serve would be.
Another way of expressing this axiom is by saying, “Always change a losing game.” If you're trailing badly, why not change your style of play? After all, what more do you have to lose? And sometimes a change of tactics, even if not executed well, will put the other team off their game and help you to regain the upper hand.
John Newcombe and Tony Roche, one of the all-time great doubles teams in tennis, are masters at the art of varying their play. Newcombe is basically a power player, but when things start to fall apart, especially against an aggressive server, he switches
2-14. When the receiver consistently returns down the line, the net player can prepare early to hit a volley between the two opponents.
- instantly to short chip-shot returns or delicate lobs just over the net player's head. Roche, for his part, might switch to a kick serve for his first service or, when he’s the receiver, to shallower returns. The object is to keep the other team guessing—and sneak up on them before they know what's hit them.
One of the most important decisions a doubles team has to make is,
“Who plays where?” Why is this so crucial? Because in good doubles play you're expected to win your own serve; but if you expect to win the match, you have to break your opponents’ serve.
So at the outset you have to decide which of you—you or your partner—has the better return of serve in each court.
In conventional doubles strategy, that’s usually thought to be
2-15. A player with a good backhand return of serve should receive service in the ad or backhand court.
the power player, the person who's supposed to close out most points. He is automatically assigned the ad or backhand court. That leaves the deuce or forehand court to the tactical player, the person who's supposed to set up most points. It has been my experience, however, that power players are just as apt to lose a point as to win it, soI can't agree with the conventional wisdom. In fact, I've always played the ad court myself, even though I've always been considered a tactician or touch player and not a powerhouse.
I prefer to play the ad court for the simple reason that I've always had a good angled crosscourt return of serve off either forehand or backhand (see Figure 2-15). | could put my returns into the alley on the opposite side of the court where they were most likely to give a server trouble. And if there's one member of
2-16. Left-handers should not always play the ad court. If your left-handed partner (A) has a fine backhand, let her play the deuce court.
- your team who can do that, too—or is most likely to—he belongs in the ad court whatever else his style of play.
Nor do I hold with the conventional wisdom of putting a lefty in the ad court whenever possible. I know I'm bucking the tide here. Many so-called “experts” will tell you that a lefty in the ad court will be able to return most serves on his forehand side, and he and his partner will both have forehands down the alley, giving them greater reach. But when | played with John Doeg, a great lefty back in the 1930's, he always took the right-hand court and was glad to.
Why? Because he had a fine backhand crosscourt return of serve, while his forehand was a disaster (see Figure 2— 16). I might add that we won the U.S. National Doubles Championships two years in a row playing that way, so we must have been doing something right.
The Serve is a Winning Stroke The serve is, beyond any shadow of doubt, the single most important shot in doubles. How well—or how badly—you serve will determine whether you win or lose your service games. In doubles, if you consistently lose your service games, you will lose your matches. Therefore, you must win your own service—as, ‘indeed, must your partner—and that means you should develop a reliable one.
Remember, too, that the serve is not merely a way of starting the point—you can win points on your serve in doubles just as you can in singles. So 1 always regard the serve as a weapon to begin the destruction of your opponent. When you serve, do so with the intent of forcing a weak return, especially on your first serve.
A third tip to keep in mind is that the serve is the one stroke with which you control almost all the variables. No one is hitting the ball to you or forcing you to run to make a return. You decide when, where and how you are going to hit the ball. That bears thinking about before you serve and I don't mean just before the match _starts, | mean think before each and every serve. Figure out
- what kind of serve you are going to hit, where you are going to place it and what you will do after you've hit the ball (assuming
, that it's a successful serve). I'll say more on this subject later.
The Two Goals There are two principal goals to aim for with your doubles serve. They are: Get your first serve in and get yourself a reliable second serve. Sound easy? It takes thousands of practice serves to be able to come close to those goals and it's going to take some hard work on your part, too. But the end results are well worth the effort. In my tournament matches I rarely double faulted because | could depend on my second serve. And I rarely lost my own service games, not because I had a big serve, but because I could usually get 80 percent of my first serves in. Those should be your goals, too.
3-1. A three-quarter-speed spin serve will give the server (A) enough time to go from the baseline to a good volleying position.
Get Your First Serve In I know how satisfying it is to blast a big, booming serve right by a helpless opponent. You like it and the gallery will love it, but Ihave only two words to say on the subject of big boomers in doubles— low percentage. If you are going to win your serve, you'll need a high percentage serve. I recommend a speed about threequarters of that of your fastest serve, hit with sufficient spin to bring the ball down deep inside the service box. That's a high percentage serve that you can rely on when the going gets tough.
This three-quarter-speed spin serve will do a number of things for you. First, the serve will go deep—the speed will see to that.
Most beginning players hit their serves with a forehand grip (above) in which the palm of the hand is behind the racquet handle. To hit a serve with spin, you should use a backhand grip (below) in which the palm of your hand is closer to the top of the handle.
3-2. The best serving position is midway between the center mark and the singles sideline.
Second, the serve will reliably come down inside the service box— the spin will help that. Third, the serve will give you enough time to rush the net behind the ball (see Figure 3-1)—a faster serve could be returned so quickly that you'd never have enough time to get into position for a volley.
If you are going to hit a serve with spin, check your grip first. Eventually, you must learn to serve with a backhand grip (see photos). That is the best grip to put lots of spin on your serve. If you are hitting the ball flat with little or no spin, chances are you are serving with a forehand grip. You'll find the change to a backhand grip difficult so I suggest you make the alteration gradually. In-
3-3. You can move closer to the center mark when serving in the deuce court to a player with a weak backhand, as shown here.
- stead of taking the full quarter turn between the forehand and backhand grips, try a grip halfway in between for a start. That will add spin to your serve and yet not be too uncomfortable initially. ’ Then, as your confidence develops, move your grip all the way round to a true backhand position.
The only way to make these modifications in your serve is through practice. Get a bucket of balls and hit serves for 20 minutes or so a couple of times a week—more often if you have the time and the court. Experiment with the serve to see what you can do with slice or topspin. Making changes to your serve will be hard at first—tough enough that you probably ought to seek advice from a
34. In the ad court, serve wide from near the center of the court to a player with a poor backhand so he won't have enough time to run around and hit a forehand.
good teaching professional so you don't develop any bad habits during your practice sessions.
A reliable second serve is one you can get in at least 99 percent of the time and one your opponent cannot move in on and hit a blistering return from. Your second serve should differ from your first in only one very significant respect—plenty of spin. A good second serve will either have plenty of topspin or be a three-quarter-speed slice serve to both guarantee that the ball drops into the service box and to bounce in such a way that your opponent will have a hard
35. If the receiver stands too near the center mark, the server should hit a wide slice serve.
time making an effective return.
For topspin, you should hit the ball with a racquet head that is moving up as contact is made with the ball. That calls for an action
» with lots of wrist snap and a full follow-through. Although you will be hitting only a three-quarter-speed or slower serve, you must swing hard at the ball to get enough spin on it. The harder you swing—with the proper action, naturally—the more spin you'll be able to put on the ball. And you must swing right through the ball so that your racquet comes around in a big swing and ends up pointing at the fence behind you.
Most intermediate players who cannot put enough spin on their
3-6. A wide serve to the deuce court can sometimes allow the receiver to hit a passing returm down the alley past the server's partner.
second serves do not follow through sufficiently. If a baseball pitcher tried to throw an overhand curve but stopped at the top of his action, the ball would not carry any spin. The pitcher's spin comes from his wrist action and follow-through. So it is with the tennis serve. Wrist snap and follow-through will give you spin by making the ball slide across the racquet's face.
Variety on your second serve will also help. Mix up your topspin serves with a good medium-speed slice serve, wide to your opponent's weakness. A slice serve that breaks wide will often pull your opponent out of court so that you or your partner can hit for the open space you've just created. Even though your goal on the
3-7. In the deuce court, you can serve either down the center (A) or wide to the corner (B). Down the center is usually best.
_ second serve is reliability, do not become stereotyped—keep your opponent guessing so he cannot take advantage of a possibly weaker second serve.
Where to Stand Your best serving position is approximately halfway between the center mark and the alley (see Figure 3-2). This applies whether you are serving into the deuce or the ad courts. From this position you can serve to either side of the appropriate service box or even directly at your opponent. By taking up a similar position each time you serve, you will not be telegraphing your intentions in terms of
3-8. When the receiver returns down the center, the server's partner should drift over and volley the ball away from the opponents.
where you intend to place your serve.
The only exceptions to this central serving position occur when you are facing an opponent with a particularly significant weakness. For example, if your opponent has a nonexistent backhand, then it will pay you to serve to that backhand. Thus, in the deuce court (assuming that your backhandless opponent is right-handed), you should stand close to the center mark so you can serve down the center of the court (see Figure 3-3). In the ad court, you would also stay close to the center but serve wide into the ad court to prevent your opponent from running round his backhand
(see Figure 3-4).
3-9. A return crosscourt to the oncoming server should be volleyed crosscourt away from the opponents.
E By serving from midway between the center mark and the alley, you will be in the center of the area you have to cover. You will also be in a position to run directly up to the net (Figure 3-2).
So whether you stay back after serving or decide to rush the net, you will be in the best position to reply to the receiver's return of serve.
Just as your position as a server might tell the receiver whether you intend to serve down the middle or wide, you can sometimes take advantage of a receiver who positions himself incorrectly. For example, if the receiver stands close to the center mark in the deuce court—perhaps to discourage you from hitting to his back-
*. 3-10. When serving wide in the deuce court, be prepared to run up quickly for the wide return short into your alley.
hand—you can take advantage of his fatal move by serving a very wide slice (see Figure 3-5). However, beware of a trap, since a wide serve may be exactly what the receiver had in mind; he will move as you serve, ready to return your wide serve with a forehand down the alley past your net man (see Figure 3-6). As we said before, doubles is a thinking man's game!
Where to Place Your Serve The placement of your serve is a decision you will face every time you come up to serve in a match. And each time the conditions will differ slightly—you may be ahead, your serve might be off,
3-11. If you follow a wide serve to the net, the receiver may try a topspin passing shot between you and your partner.
* your opponent may be unusually strong on his backhand today, or whatever. So when you come up to serve, you must stop for a moment, put together all the information at your disposal, make your decision, then go ahead and do it. I cannot give you a set of hard and fast rules for every possible situation, but 1 can give you a few ideas for the more common situations—the rest is up to you and your experience.
Most of the following remarks apply to right-handed servers and receivers (everything will be reversed if you're a lefty). First of all, let's consider serving into the deuce court. Basically, you have two choices: to serve down the center to your opponent's backhand
3-12. A serve down the center in the ad court will be easy for a right-handed receiver to retum but will cut down on the angles available to him (A-B).
(A) or wide to his forehand (B) (see Figure 3-7). Since most of your opponents will be weaker on the backhand, a majority of your serves should go down the center into the deuce court.
If you serve down the center, virtually all the returns will be crosscourt toward you, the oncoming server (I am assuming that generally the server will follow his serve to the net). Should the receiver try to hit the ball down the middle, your partner can drift over and smash the ball with a volley away from your opponents
(see Figure 3-8). If the ball flies crosscourt to you as you come up toward the net, volley the ball back crosscourt towards the player who is farthest from the net (see Figure 3-9). That way, the ball
3-13. A wide serve to the ad court will often produce a crosscourt retum that can be volleyed easily by a net-rushing server.
* will be dropping if the receiver is trying to rush the net. It is much harder for the receiver to volley up than for the net man to volley down.
Should you decide to serve wide to your opponent's forehand, you now have a much more out-of-the-ordinary situation to deal with. You must be prepared to run up quickly to take care of the short shot wide into your own alley (see Figure 3-10). Your opponent can also hit a topspin drive deep to the position that you have just served from (see Figure 3-11). The server will have to be especially alert, and fast, to volley that kind of return. Thus, by serving wide to your opponent's forehand, you lose a little of the
3-14. A good receiver will run up to hit a shallow serve, probably into the server's alley where he'll have difficulty getting to it.
edge that serving gives you. Of course, if your opponent has a weak forehand, then by all means batter away at it in the hope of forcing weak returns that your net man can put away.
When you are serving to the ad court, your choices are more equal between the down-the-center serve and the wide serve. A serve down the center to your opponent's forehand will reduce the angles that he can get on his return and so be easier for the serving team to deal with (see Figure 3-12). A serve wide to your opponent’'s backhand will open up the court more for him but, unless he has a very good backhand, chances are he won't have the ability to take full advantage of those openings. Most likely, a wide serve
3-15. The server's partner should stand near the center of his service box a little closer to the alley and a little closer to the net.
to his backhand will produce a crosscourt return, away from the servers net man. A net-rushing server should be able to volley such a return easily (see Figure 3-13).
A word or two about depth is in order here. No matter where you decide to place your serve—hit it DEEP. About two feet inside the service line is just right. A dolly drop of a serve in the middle of the service box is just asking for the receiver to come running up and hit the ball over to your alley for an almost certain winner (see Figure 3-14). Or he might return the ball neatly to your feet where you have little chance of making any sort of return at all other than a defensive half volley. Hitting a short serve is handing the point to
3-16. When the served ball bounces to the right of the server's partner, he should be ready to drift over in that direction.
your opponent on a plate. Continue to hit short serves and your opponent will soon have your head on a plate, too. All your serves must be deep.
You should also mix up your serves. Variety is the bane of the receiver's life. If you can alter speed, spin and placement every time you serve, the receiver will rarely outguess you—in fact, he'll become very frustrated. A major reason for John Newcombe’s success as a doubles player is his ability to vary his serve, despite his well-deserved reputation as a power server. Newcombe can speed up or slow his serve at will. He can add slice or topspin as necessary and he can put the serve exactly where he wants it.
3-17. If the server's partner anticipates a crosscourt return and moves too soon, she may be passed down the alley by a competent receiver.
The Server's Partner Just because the server has the advantage in serving, the net man should not idly stand by. If your partner is serving, you, as the net player, have to be ready to make a few split-second decisions and move fast. The latter responsibility is most important. The net player should always move the moment the receiver touches the ball and be ready to cut off the return whenever possible.
When your partner serves, you should be near the center of your court, slightly closer to the alley than the center and slightly closer to the net than the service line (see Figure 3-15). Wait, poised on the balls of your feet, with your racquet up and out in
3-18. On a shallow serve, the server's partner should move up a few steps to volley but be ready to hit an overhead if the receiver tries a lob.
front of you, ready to swing into position. While waiting, watch the receiver intently. In fact, one of your jobs is to study the receivers continuously throughout a match so that you can better anticipate their returns—and do something about them.
Don't watch the server—that's a good way to get a ball in the face. Watch the receiver and be ready for the bounce of the ball in the service box. If the ball bounces to your right (see Figure 3-16), be ready to move to your right and cut off the return. If the ball bounces to your left, be ready to move to the left. Don't make your move, however, until the receiver is committed to hitting the ball. If you move too soon, you run the risk of being passed down the line
3-19. When the server's partner has anticipated correctly, he can move back to take most lobs in his half of the court.
_ (see Figure 3-17). Move as the receiver hits the ball.
If the server hits his serve deep, the net player should hold his position, but on a shallow serve the net man should move up a couple of steps to hit down with his volley — but not so much as to invite a lob over his head (see Figure 3-18).
The net player can sometimes force the receiver to take a particular action. For example, by crowding the net, the net man may tempt the receiver into hitting a lob. If the net player correctly anticipated the lob, he can move back quickly and hit a smash (see Figure 3-19).
3-20. The Australian serving formation places the server and his partner on the same side of the court so the net player can volley a crosscourt return.
The Australian Formation You will remember that one of our doubles axioms is to vary your game, especially in a losing situation. Very occasionally, you may wish to alter your serving formation to handle a particular receiver. The most common alternative serving formation is the Australian, so-called because it was first used by post-World War I Aussie doubles teams.
In the Australian formation, the net man plays on the same half of the court as the server, ready to play against a receiver who persistently returns crosscourt short into the alley (see Figure 3-20). The intent of the formation is to dissuade the receiver from hitting a crosscourt return which can now quickly be volleyed by the net man. If, as expected, the receiver tries a shot down the line,
3-21. When the Australian serving formation forces a down-the-line service return, the server must move over far enough to reply to the return.
_ the server, who crosses over after serving, will intercept and return the shot (see Figure 3-21).
Generally, the Australian formation will force a weak return from the receiver since he much prefers the crosscourt return. So the server will be able to return the down-the-line shot quite easily.
The Australian formation can be used in either court, depending on the ability of the receiver, but it is most often used in the ad court against a player with a strong backhand. If the Aussie formation works, you should vary it with a more conventional position just to keep the receiver on his toes. In fact, you should not overuse the Aussie formation—don't become stereotyped—because the other team will soon become wise to it.
Aim for Consistency The return of serve is a very critical shot in doubles play. Assuming that you consistently win your own service games, your objective in doubles is to break the serve of your opponents. In fact, in top-level doubles play, you will often see that only one break of serve occurs in each set but it is all that’s needed to win the set. So you must have a reliable return of serve to break your opponents’ serve. 5 The key word is “reliable.” The first order of business when returning serve is to simply get the ball back over the net every time. Returning serve without hitting the ball into the net or out of court is the tennis equivalent of pitching a no-hitter—but harder! Try to get at least 90 percent of your returns over the net and you'll rarely lose a match.
When John Hennessey and I won the U.S. National Doubles title in 1928 against the then Wimbledon champions Henri Cochet and Jacques Brugnon, in the first set Hennessey made no errors and I made only two. I doubt that anyone has come close to that
- particular record in either doubles or singles. But that experience shows consistency can beat opponents who are supposed to be stronger than you.
Of course, it's not enough to merely get the ball back when you are facing opponents who can play the game and, make mincemeat out of your weak returns. If you poop back floaters that your opponent can pounce on, youre not going to break your opponent's serve. You should be able to return serve in a way that will give your opponents some difficulty. Use your return of serve as a preparatory or setup shot that will perhaps force your opponent to hit up so you can move up to the net and land a winning volley.
So you must plan your returns of serve, just as you plan your serves. Naturally, you will not know until the server hits the ball whether he is hitting to your forehand or backhand or with sidespin or topspin. However, each time you prepare to receive serve, you should have plans in your mind and be ready to execute those plans to win the point. It will help if your partner has a good idea of
4-1. In most circumstances, the receiver should wait for the serve on the baseline or a few inches behind it, close to the singles sideline.
your plans, too. I'll say more about that later.
Finally, a principle that applies to all your shots is especially important for returning serve. You should be quick with your feet and slow with your racquet. By that I mean you should get into position and prepare early—be quick with your feet—but don't make any hurried shots—be slow with your racquet and hit the ball deliberately and with confidence. Ken Rosewall is a master of this technique—he is lightning fast on his feet and hits the ball with a steady, controlled stroke. Consequently, his strokes are always hit solidly but, more important for doubles, they are consistent. Rosewall knows he can depend on certain shots when the going gets tough.
Although he does not play much doubles, Jimmy Connors has one of the best service returns in the game today. He gains much of
4-2. If the server moves wide, the receiver should position himself in the center of the server's possible angles of serve.
his advantage from attacking the ball by meeting it early and moving quickly into the net. That's a very worthwhile objective but one that's hard to attain for the weekend tennis player. If you are going to develop a good return of serve, stick to consistency and give the serving team as much difficulty as you can without re-ducing your percentage of successful service returns.
Where To Receive Serve Positioning yourself to receive serve is largely a matter of matching the server's possibilities to your own stroking strengths. A server may frequently aim at your backhand, because he knows that that is a weaker shot for you. On the other hand, you may wish to take most of the serves on your strong forehand, so positioning yourself
4-3. If you have a good retum of serve, your partner should stand almost in the center of her service box, in the normal net position.
for the serve is a question of weighing up the odds of facing a particular server.
For a first serve, stand on the baseline or a couple of inches behind it, close to the singles sideline, assuming that the server is serving from midway between the center mark and the singles sideline (see Figure 4-1). If you are equally strong off both sides, you should be standing about midway between your opponent's possible angles of serve. If the server moves wider, you can adjust your position accordingly (see Figure 4-2).
Some players move back a little when facing an exceptionally strong server. I do not advocate that. If the serve has any spin at all, by moving back you are giving the spin more time to take effect, thereby making the serve more difficult to return. In fact, when you
4-4. The dinked crosscourt return to the alley is an effective return of a serve aime? down the center into the deuce court.
are up against a server who can put a lot of spin on the ball, I'd suggest you move in a little and take the ball as early as you Ca": before the spin has a chance to pull you wide. However, takir!9 the ball early requires keen anticipation and absolute confider'ce your stroke and is something that will come as your game improves. Don't push it!
On the second serve, you should move in a step or two d the server hits the ball. Very few servers have a second serve that $ as good as the first, so you should take all the advantage you caf get. Jack Kramer was one of the few top players with an exceptionally hard second serve. Kramer's secret was to put plenty of topsp!2 on his second serve so that he could be sure of getting it in. HoWeVer. he still hit the ball very hard, so the combination of speed and spin
4-5. When the server has to scramble for a return to the alley, the result is often a weak reply that can be volleyed by the net player for a winner.
made for a lethal second serve.
Moving in on a second serve will get you closer to the net. Chances are that the server will stay back on a weak second serve so you will be able to follow your return to the net and perhaps make a winning volley with your next shot. As I said before, the return of serve is a preparatory shot—you are trying to set up a situation where you can later make a winning move or force your opponents into error.
When you receive serve, your partner's position is dictated by your prior planning and the ability of your opponents. If you have a good return of serve that stays low over the net, perhaps to the feet of your opponent, you should be prepared to go to the net. In that case, your partner should stand in his normal net position (see
4-6. The down-the-line retum off a down-the-center serve in the deuce court is a low percentage shot that will often be volleyed by the opposing net player.
Figure 4—3). However, if your return is not very good, or if you are facing a particularly strong server, your partner should stay back on the baseline ready to cover his half of the court.
Many beginning players feel more comfortable if they stay back when their partner receives serve. If so, you can stay back and only go up to the net when the right opportunity occurs. When you have the stroking skills and enough experience, you will un-doubtedly want to go to the net as much as possible , since that is where doubles matches are won. But if your opponents are not net-rushers, there is less reason to always make a beeline for the net
On second serve, | do think that the receiving team should be ready to take command of the net, so the receiver's partner should take up the usual net player's position.
4-7. The down-the-line return of a wide serve to the deuce court can sometimes catch the . net player by surprise.
Returning Serve in the Deuce Court In the deuce court, you can expect most serves to come down the center to your backhand (if you are right-handed). Your most effective return of this serve is a dinked shot crosscourt to the opposite alley (see Figure 4-4). This shot will be well out of the reach of the opposing net player unless he is an exceptionally fast poacher. This dinked return will also force the server to run hard to make the return. Chances are he will hit a weak reply that your net partner can volley for a winner (see Figure 4-5).
The dink shot to the alley is quite difficult; if you find it too hard, I'd suggest you try a crosscourt return aimed on the feet of the oncoming server. If you can hit this shot with a little topspin, so much the better. The topspin will help bring the ball down faster.
4-8. A crosscourt retum to the alley off a wide serve to the deuce court will be tough for the oncoming server to reach.
The idea, of course, is to force the server to hit up so that you or your partner can move into the net and volley the ball down. A good crosscourt return to the server's feet will often force the server into attempting a half volley—a shot hit immediately after the ball has bounced, and one that is difficult to hit well.
Your least effective return is down the line (see Figure 4-6). Not only will the server's partner be right there waiting to volley your shot, but you will also have to hit the ball higher than for a crosscourt return (the net is six inches lower at the center than at the net posts). Thus, chances are the ball will still be rising as it reaches the server's partner. If he has any skill he'll put the ball away promptly.
If the serve is to the forehand corner of the deuce court, the
4-9. A server who is slow in getting to the net will have problems returning a crosscourt drive to his feet.
receiver has a wider range of possible returns open to him. The forehand down-the-line return becomes easier because there is a greater chance of passing the net player at this angle, and because the receiver will usually be hitting a stronger forehand return (see Figure 4-7).
The best return, however, is still the crosscourt shot to the opposite alley (see Figure 4-8). This is the shot that will give the server the most trouble. Unfortunately, a forehand crosscourt from the alley has more time to travel than a backhand dink from close to the center of the court, so there is more risk of a successful poach.
An almost equally effective return is the low crosscourt drive to the feet of the approaching server (see Figure 4-9). Because this
4-10. A drive retum to the server's feet can sometimes be cut off by an alert net player.
shot is also open to a good poacher and the ball has to be hit hard to reach the opposing service line, you should hit a low, fast ball that will be difficult to poach.
Returning Serve in the Ad Court If the serve is to the backhand corner of the ad court, your best return is to hit a backhand drive to the feet of the server (see Figure 4-10). Use a little topspin to bring the ball down in your opponent's court and keep the ball low over the net to discourage the net player from poaching.
An alternative to the drive return is the chip shot to the opposite alley (see Figure 4-11). If you have a good sliced backhand, this is
4-11. A wide serve to the ad court is often best returned to the opposite alley.
not a difficult shot. Many Australian players, such as John Newcombe and Ken Rosewall, use this slice or chip return in both singles and doubles play. Not only does the server have to run hard to get to the ball, but a right-handed player will be forced to hit a tough backhand volley or even a half volley.
Unless the net player is too close to the center of the court, the down-the-line backhand return is too risky for most players (see Figure 4-12). Such a return is simply asking to be cut off by the net player. But if you have a particularly good backhand, you might try the backhand down the line occasionally as a surprise weapon.
When the serve is to your forehand side in the ad court, your choice of angles is smaller, but the best possibilities are directly to
4-12. A backhand down-the-line return is very risky unless the opposing net player is out of position.
the feet of the server (see Figure 4-13) or to the alley (see Figure 4-]4). | do not think that you should attempt the down-the-line return from the center position unless the net player is badly out of position or completely incompetent.
Remember that the general rule for returning serve is to hit to the unprotected part of the court. If a large open space presents itself, you can ignore the foregoing suggestions; hit the ball to the unprotected part of the court. Of course, you should be ready for the prepared trap where your opponents deliberately leave a large open space for you to hit into and then move to cover the hole just as you hit the ball. If that happens to you, file the situation away in your memory. The next time a large hole opens up for your return
4-13. A serve down the center in the ad court is often best returned as a drive low to the approaching server's feet.
of serve, ignore it and follow your original plan.
You must use your head in returning serve. If a return to your opponent's forehand volley produces a weak reply, then that is the shot to try again. Remember the situation and use it again later in the match. Throughout the match you should watch your opponents’ reactions to your various returns and make your plans accordingly. Just as a server will try to attack your weaker strokes, you can use your service returns to attack your opponents’ newly discovered weaknesses.
The Lob as a Return of Serve The lob is seldom used today in professional doubles play, mainly because the top players usually have excellent anticipation and
4-14. The return to the alley is also very effective off a down-the-center serve in the ad court.
powertul overheads. However, | think the lob has a definite place in the average player's game for returning serve. I'll discuss lobbing in more detail in Chapter 7, but here are a few pointers on using the stroke for returning serve.
When the receiver is pulled wide by a good spin serve, often the only possible answer is a high and deep defensive lob (see Figure 4-15). lf the receiver has to scramble for the ball, the chances of hitting a succesful drive are pretty slim, so the lob is a higher percentage shot in that situation. A deep defensive lob will not only force the opposing team away from the net, but it will also give the receiver enough time to recover and get back into position to cover his half of the court.
A more offensive lob, that is, one that just clears the out-
4-15. When pulled out wide by a spin serve, a high and deep lob will give the receiver time to get back into position.
stretched racquet of your opponent, is useful when your opponents are crowding the net or when the net man makes a mistake in coming too close to the net (see Figure 4-16). Here, you can hit a low lob to keep the net player away from the net. However, the offensive lob is a relatively low percentage shot for most players, so I'd recommend it only if you have good touch or are well ahead. If your offensive lob is short, your opponent will smash the ball back for an almost certain winner.
The Receiver's Partner When your partner receives serve, you are not merely an innocent bystander. Your job is to provide court coverage based on the
4-16. An opponent who crowds the net can sometimes be beaten with an offensive lob that just clears his outstretched racquet.
actions of your partner. This calls for a good knowledge of your partner's reactions to various types of serves and good communication before and after each point.
When you are in position either at the baseline or up at the net, you should watch the served ball bounce and be ready to make your move as soon as your partner hits the ball. For example, if, when receiving, your partner hits the ball crosscourt, you should begin to drift over in that direction (see Figure 4-17). You will cover toward the alley and your partner will cover toward the center of the court.
At the net, you should hold your position until the ball clears the net. If the ball is low and your partner is advancing to the net, then
4-17. The receiver's partner should follow the ball and drift over to cover the open court.
you can move up to be in a more commanding position, ready to volley down on any rising ball (see Figure 4-18). If your partner stays back on his return, be ready to move back to cover a lob over your head.
The net player should also lend encouragement to the receiver. If the receiver is having problems with his return of serve, a moment or two of consultation and advice may be necessary to get him back on track. Often a partner can spot problems that may not be obvious to a player concentrating desperately on the serve. And, if you, as the net player, are making errors, discuss them with your partner—he may be able to alter his returns to avoid putting you in a situation you cannot cope with.
4-18. If the receiver hits a low return to the server's feet, the net player should move up in anticipation of hitting down on a weak reply.
Some Last Words When you return serve, always get the ball back but do so to create situations where youre the favorite. The objective of a competent receiver is to break the opponent's serve and you can do that only by tipping the scales in your favor.
Remember, too, that low percentage shots will not win you many points on return of serve. The player who commits the least number of errors will win the most points. Use the return of serve as a setup shot that will help you win the point with your next stroke or even two or three shots ahead.
But, above all, get that ball back!
ae et Raber resign «ron ieee rane ED
Why Go to the Net? Net play is the key to winning doubles. All other things being more or less equal, the team that consistently goes to the net will win the match. I have seen a few doubles teams who consistently won by playing from the baseline, but whose standard of play was pretty low.
It's a simple fact of doubles life that the team at the net will be ‘able to hit down on their opponents’ shots. If you can hit shots to your opponents’ feet, you'll either win the point outright or force them to make errors. It’s as simple as that. At the net, you will be hitting down and your opponents will be hitting up.
I'm not suggesting, though, that you rush the net after every serve or return of serve. Those tactics are more suited to professional tennis players. Doubles play is a matter of setting up situations that will make your team the favorites to win on a subsequent shot. So your play should be aimed at getting to the net and staying there until you win the point. If you do not have the skills to play a strong, aggressive game, stay back until the opportunity to go to the net presents itself. When the opening occurs, go for it. I'll show you shortly the opportunities to look for.
Many novice players have a genuine fear of playing at the net. Such players may never have tried net play or if they have, they may have missed more volleys than they've hit. Confidence in your ability to play at the net comes with experience. That means practicing your volleys (see Chapter 10) and approaching the net.
If you have a fear of the net, I can only suggest that you practice until you are confident of your volley and then rehearse going to the net with a sympathetic practice partner. Remember to hit your volleys with a short, punching motion.
Naturally, the pace of play at the net is faster than a drawn-out baseline rally, so net play calls for good anticipation, fast reactions and quick movement. Those are abilities that can be improved with practice but they can differ markedly from person to person. If your reactions are a little slow and you are not as fast on your feet as you used to be, don't expect to develop a good net game in a wa 3 5-1. A net-rushing server should try to hit his first volley from close to the service line. ~ * couple of weeks. Play at the net according to your own abilities.
Many older club players find that they enjoy what is basically a baseline game with only occasional forays to the net. However, they do realize they should go to net when the opening presents itself and they do so successfully.
Following Your Serve to the Net Unless you are playing on a very slow court, the simplest way to the net is to follow your serve. Your partner will already be in the proper net position and your service motion will, most likely, get you started moving forward. At the same time, the receiver will be back on the baseline and so will not be able to move up unless he hits a return that keeps the server back.
5-2. On the way to the net, the server should pause momentarily just before the receiver hits the ball and then go in the best direction to intercept the return.
Under most situations, you should follow your first serve up to
- the net so you can volley the return of serve either on or in front of the service line (see Figure 5-1). Run rapidly to get as far as you can before the receiver hits the ball. As the receiver hits the ball, pause momentarily, decide where the ball is going and advance diagonally toward that side to get into position to hit your first volley (see Figure 5-2). I'm assuming, of course, that the receiver returns serve crosscourt toward the server. If the receiver is foolish enough to return serve down the line at the server's partner, then you can continue toward the net and let your partner take care of the return.
Generally, when you hit your first volley you will not be in the best volleying position about halfway between the service line and a) 5-3. When the receiver hits a rising ball, the server can often close in for the second. , volley and hit a winner.
the net. You'll be close to the service line. In that case, your first volley will not be an attempt to hit a winning shot. Be content with hitting a solid volley back toward the receiver's feet. That will force the receiver to hit the ball up. You will then be able to get closer to the net so you can hit a winner off your second volley (see Figure 5-3). The first volley should almost always be a setup shot. You may even have to hit a couple of volleys before you can get close enough to the net to hit down decisively on one of your opponent's shots.
Unless you have a very good second serve, I would not advocate going in after it. Content yourself with getting the serve in, with good depth, if you can, and prepare yourself for the return of
5-4. When staying back after a second serve, look for the short ball that will let you come in and go up to the net.
serve. If the return is crosscourt to you, just get the ball back deep
- again. You should wait for a short ball, one that bounces closer to the service line than to the baseline (see Figure 5-4). Move in on the short ball, hit an approach shot deep to your opponent and continue on up to a good volleying position closer to the net (see Figure 5-5). Now, if one of your opponents hits a rising ball, you or your partner can volley the ball away for a winner. It takes a little longer to win the point off a second serve and the point may take a little planning. However, there is no reason why losing your first serve should put you at a big disadvantage. Work on your planning with the second serve and you can still win the point. Remember the name of the game is to win your service games.
5-5. Make your approach shot deep to the player farthest away from the net so that you have time to move up into a good volleying position.
Following Your Return of Serve to the Net Getting to the net is a much tougher job for the receiver than for the server. When you are receiving, the server is calling the shots so you must wait for the right opportunity to make a move. That's not to say that you shouldn't do a little planning to set up the right situation for getting to the net and closing out the point. Just as the server wants to win his own service games, you, as the receiver, will want to break that service. Going to the net will help you win points or at least force your opponents into committing errors.
As Iemphasized in Chapter 4, the most effective return of serve is crosscourt into the server's alley. That will often force the server to scramble for the ball and hit a relatively weak return (see Figure 5-6). If the return is short, you will have an ideal oppor-
5-6. A return of serve to the opposite alley will often force a weak return or a short ball that will let the receiver come in.
tunity to come in on the ball, hitting it back to your opponent's feet perhaps and then continuing on up to the net (see Figure 5-7).
Once at the net, look for the rising ball and volley it down for a winner, or try to force an error by one of your opponents. All that may sound rather simple, but it isn't. Your opponents are also trying to win the point, so you will have to make some split-second decisions in anticipating your opponents’ moves and deciding your own. It will help your game if you have a plan like the one I've just described in your mind (and in your partner's, too).
Unless you are facing a very weak server, I don't think you should try to follow your return of serve up to the net. But if the server has a weak second serve that just drops into the service box, by all means try to follow your return up there. If the server faults
5-7. When a retum bounces close to the service line, the receiver should come in and continue on up to the net.
on his first serve, move in two or three steps inside the baseline. When the serve comes, move in and take the ball early (see Figure 5-8). Chances are the server will stay back behind a weak second serve, so you should return the ball deep to the server's feet to keep him at the baseline (see Figure 5-9). Now you can approach the net and be ready to hit a winning volley.
When the server stays back, you can also hit a short chip shot so that the server is forced to run up to make a return. Chances are this return will be weak so you will be able to volley down for a winner.
Your objective in returning serve is to alter the balance of power which, initially, is with the server. If the server does not take
5-8. Prepare for a weak second serve by standing in front of the baseline and then come in and take the ball as early as possible.
advantage of this situation by coming to the net, then you, as the
' receiver, should become the aggressor since the equation is now even. If you can get to the net and force the serving team to stay back, the balance of power is now in your favor and you should win the point.
The Volley Net play is very demanding of any tennis player, whether you are a seeded professional or a weekend sport. It calls for some rapid reactions and a practiced volley. Being able to rush the net is no good if you can't handle the ball once you get there, either because your reactions are too slow or your volleying is not up to scratch.
53-9. Returning a weak serve to the server's feet will give the receiver time to come up to > + the net.
You must be able to volley confidently to win points at the net.
I'm not going to tell you how to hit a volley in this book—suffice it to say that your volleys should be short, crisp strokes hit with authority. If you can't hit a volley confidently, plenty of tennis books are available to instruct you. Better still, a few lessons from a good teaching professional would surely help you improve. Or you might simply devote more time to practicing your volleys during regular practice sessions or during your warm-ups.
When you volley at the net, your objective is to keep the ball low and force your opponents to hit up. This means that you do not have to hit hard volleys all the time. Of course, there will be
5-10. Whenever a hole appears between your opponents, hit a deep, authoritative volley into it.
opportunities when a hole appears on your opponents’ side and you can hit a deep volley through it (see Figure 5-10). But, especially when all four players are close to the net, I recommend that you hit your volleys with control and precise direction. Take a little speed off your volley so it drops as it crosses the net. That way, you Il force your opponents to hit up even if they are very close to the net. Frequently, you will be able to take a little off your volley and then move in closer to the net to volley the next ball away (see Figure 5-11).
You can also use this softer volley technique to set up a winning situation. For example, hit a softer, angled volley away from your
<a 5-11. A volley that drops as it crosses the net will usually force your opponent to hit up. ~ + opponents to force one player into the alley (see Figure 5—12). This will have the effect of separating your opponents and creating a hole through which you or your partner can now hit a deep, much harder volley for a winner. This divide-and-conquer trick is something you should often employ in doubles, but particularly so at the net where it's hard to get a ball past your opponents. Note, too, that you can often hit an angled volley off a relatively low ball, but you will then force a rising return you can put away much more easily.
When you are volleying at the net, there are no rules for who takes which ball. There's no time for an Alphonse-and-Gaston routine—whoever can hit the ball takes it. Neither is there time for
5-12. A relatively soft, angled volley will often pull an opponent wide into the alley, thus creating a hole for a winning volley.
either one of you to shout “Yours!” By the time you've done that and “your partner has responded, the ball has passed you and you've lost the point. If you can get to the ball, get to it and make the shot. Occasionally, both of you may go for the same ball and you'll meet with a clashing of racquets. Even the pros do that from time to time.
Better that you both go for the ball than neither of you try to hit it.
The only cure for this sort of thing is to know your partner well enough so you can depend on each other to take the initiative or hold back as necessary. Good doubles teams develop a sixth sense about taking the ball—practice and more practice together is the only answer.
5-13. When playing at the net, drift over in the direction that you last hit the ball.
Covering the Court When playing at the net, you must be fast on your feet to get into position for the next shot and cover any large openings that may appear on your side of the court. The key to court coverage is to drift with the ball. If you hit the ball to the left, then both you and your partner should drift over to the left (see Figure 5-13). If your opponent hits the ball so as to take your partner over to the alley, then you should also move over even though you are not about to hit the ball (see Figure 5-14).
Not only should you move laterally with the ball but move up and back as the situation dictates. For example, if you hit a volley that goes low to your opponent's feet so that he has to hit up, you can expect a ball that will be rising as it crosses the net, so the two
5-14. If your partner is pulled wide into the alley, move over to cover the center of the court.
of you should move up accordingly (see Figure 5-15). The timing of this kind of move is difficult. If you move up too soon, you may find your opponent hitting a lob over both your heads, forcing you to beat a hasty retreat. So pick your time. There's a point at which your opponent will be committed to hitting the ball—that's when you take a couple of quick steps closer to the net.
Your movement at the net should be like that of a boxer or a ballet dancer. Be light on your feet and use short, quick steps that keep you perfectly in balance. If you wish to move laterally, skip sideways with short steps. If you wish to move up, don't take giant strides. One or two short steps will be enough to get you closer to hit down on the ball.
3-15. A volley that drops to your opponent's feet will let you move in ready to volley the rising ball.
Poaching and Faking The poach—the server's net man running over to volley away a crosscourt return of serve—is a very valuable maneuver in doubles. It is useful both in actuality and as a threat. If the receiver knows he is facing a doubles team which can poach effectively, he will become more tentative with his returns of serve and so either commit more errors or hit weak returns that can easily be put away.
In the basic poach, the server hits into the deuce court and the receiver replies with a crosscourt return that skates over the net close to the center. As soon as the receiver hits the ball, the server's partner starts to run over to where he expects the return to arrive and volleys the return away from the receiver and his partner,
5-16. In the classic poach, the server's partner runs over and intercepts the crosscourt return. Note that the server covers the court vacated by the net player.
usually for a winner (see Figure 5-16). At the same time, the
* server, instead of following his serve to the net, moves over into the court just vacated by his partner so he can cover any possible down-the-line return.
When he is poaching, the net player should make his move and stick to it, even to the point of keeping going and missing the ball completely. A sharp server will still have time to react and cover the ball. The server, of course, should be aware that his partner is about to poach. Some players resort to using hand signals behind their backs to key a poach. | don’t think that's necessary. A quick word between points is enough—it's highly unlikely that the other team will either hear or understand.
Poaching should not be overdone. If the receiver feels that the dt.
5-17. A fake poach will usually produce a down-the-line return that should be volleyed by . the server's partner.
net man is about to poach, it's a relatively easy matter to hit a hard return down the line that will give the server trouble in making an effective return. So the poach should be used sparingly just to remind the receiver that it can be done.
As I have mentioned, sometimes the threat of a poach is sufficient. If your team has poached successfully a couple of times, you can try out a fake poach. In this, the net player begins to edge over just a fraction too soon so that the receiver is aware of the movement. Often this will cause the receiver to change his mind and go down the line. However, since the receiver does not actually go, he can take the down-the-line return quite easily (see Figure 5-17).
Again, faking is a tactic that should be used sparingly. If your
5-18. The receiving team can often poach on the weak return produced by the first volley of a net-rushing server.
opponents can spot patterns in your play, they will predict them and act accordingly. Of course, you can be extra subtle and even try the double fake. In this play, the net man starts to move, comes back and then finally goes. This play will almost certainly confuse the receiver and produce a weak shot, whether crosscourt or down the line. However, it does call for good timing and good collaboration between partners.
Both the poach and the fake poach can be used by the receiving team also, especially off the weak first volley by a net-rushing server (see Figure 5-18). The procedure is exactly the same and should be planned in advance by the receiving team. Once again, don't overdo it!
As Il emphasized in the previous chapter, doubles is a game that is largely won at the net. When you play at the net you are the attacking team. When you play at the baseline, you are in the defensive position and must react accordingly. Nonetheless, there will be many occasions when you have to play from the baseline.
Treat baseline play as though you were a chess player waiting for the correct opening to make an attacking move. Your baseline play should be defensive while you give your opponents as much trouble as possible. Do not become impatient if you are pushed into a long baseline rally with your opponents. Inevitably, they will hit a short ball you can move in on, hit an approach shot and then go to the net (see Figure 6-1).
While you are waiting for that short ball, just keep the ball in play. Most tennis matches are lost on errors, not won by one team hitting a succession of splendid winners. This is especially true at the club level of play. Hit your shots smoothly and consistently so the ball always goes back over the net.
Keeping the ball in play means you should hit the shots that you can always rely on—shots that have a high percentage of success for you. Don't try any fancy drop shots or topspin lobs. Be satisfied with one of the three basic strokes of doubles—the drive, the lob or the dink. And employ disguise techniques so your opponent cannot easily tell which shot you are about to use. You can do this by delaying the forward motion of the racquet as long as possible.
Naturally, when you are playing back, chances are that your opponents will be up at the net. Since they are very likely to win the point from that position, one of your objectives should be to force them away from it. Whenever you are back and your opponents are close to the net, use your lob and be prepared to close in on the net if the lob is successful (see Figure 6-2). I'll say more on using the lob in the next chapter.
Finally, do take advantage of any opportunity to go to the net.
6-1. When you are at the baseline, wait for the short ball to make your approach shotand > ~+* then advance to the net.
When that short ball comes, move in quickly and be ready to hit a volley with your next shot. Your partner should move up with you as you hit your approach and continue up toward the net. Don't overdo things by getting too close to the net, however—your opponents will simply lob over your heads and you'll have to retreat to the baseline again. Get into a good volleying position inside the service line and wait for your opponents to hit a rising ball that you or your partner can put away.
Remember that the backcourt is the least desirable place to be on a tennis court. Even though many weekend players seem to play almost entirely from the baseline, they cannot do so successfully once they come up against better players. An effective backcourt game is essential for any tennis player, but it is only part of your overall game. You should try to become an all-court player, equally at home anywhere about the court.
6-2. Force your opponents away from the net by using a deep lob after which you can often regain the net.
Since the rules of tennis require that you must be behind the baseline to serve, the server will always start the point by deciding whether to follow his serve or to stay back. This is a decision that should be made before the ball is put into play, not after the ball has already crossed the net. So you should think about the situation before you hit the ball.
For example, if you are playing on a slow surface like clay, where the ball sits up and gives the receiver plenty of time to hit an effective return, your best bet may be to stay back after the serve and wait to go in on a short ball (see Figure 6-3). Get your first serve in as deep as possible and wait just behind the baseline in about the center of your half of the court.
Unless you have a weak partner, chances are that the receiver will return crosscourt to you, the server. Now you have a choice of
6-3. On slow surfaces, it’s often best to stay back after serving. but be sure to get yours | serve in deep.
actions. If the receiver stays back—as he most likely will on a slow surface—then hit the ball back deep to his feet where he'll have the most difficulty returning the ball (see Figure 6-4). This will probably start a crosscourt rally with both of you waiting for a shorter ball to make an approach shot.
Should the receiver make a mistake and, say, edge too far over toward the alley, opening up a space between him and his partner, then aim your return toward that opening. Hit the ball hard with some topspin and, most likely, you will be rewarded either with a winner or at least you'll force an error from your opponents.
If your serve is not very deep, the receiver may decide to follow his return to the net. Now you have both opponents facing you there. The answer here is simple—lob. Just hit an offensive lob over their heads so that one or both of them is forced to retreat to the baseline (see Figure 6—5). If you hit the lob well enough, you and your partner can go up to the net and take charge of the point.
6-4. Your returns from the baseline should be deep to the feet of the player farthest away from the net.
When you are serving and decide to stay back, I don't think
- your partner should stay back with you. Doing so is like waving a flag to the enemy that says, “Look! We're staying back.’ Let your partner take up his normal position inside the service box on his half of the court. Of course, it will help your partner if you tell him ahead of time that you are intending to stay back on the next point, but don't inform your opponents of your plans.
When you stay back after serving, your team will be in the “one-up, one-back" formation, which is often considered undesirable because the big hole between the two players can be exploited by an aggressive net player. It is for this reason that you should never hit to the net player when you are staying back. If you do, he'll put the ball away between the two of you (see Figure 6-6).
Your partner should stay up so he will be in the proper position when you finally do come up to the net. He should retreat only to cover any lobs hit directly over his head.
ee 6-5. Opponents who crowd the net when you are on the baseline can be dealt with by ~~ , hitting an offensive lob just out of their reach.
Staying Back After Receiving When you are receiving you, too, will be starting the point by staying back at the baseline. Unless the server hiis an exceptionally short serve, you will probably stay back after hitting your return. Thus, the receiver has to have a good backcourt game.
Your choices on return of serve were covered in Chapter 4, but what do you do after returning serve? Your actions will be largely dictated by those of the opposing team. If the server follows his serve to the net so you are kept back on the baseline, then your best action is to lob and get the other team away from the net.
If the server stays back, he will probably hit deep crosscourt shots to you with the intention of keeping you from advancing toward the net. Now you have to play the waiting game of looking for the short ball that lands close to the service line and allows you to come in to hit an approach. As receiver, you should cultivate the virtue of patience when facing an opponent who likes to get into a
6-6. From the baseline, never hit the ball to the opposing net man—he will simply volley the ball away for a winner.
long rally. Don't worry, no one can keep up a rally for too long. Just
. keep the ball in play and wait for your opportunity. As you hit each ball, say to yourself, ‘This is my next to last shot.”
When you stay back as a receiver, hit all your shots to the player farthest away from the net unless the net player is exceptionally weak. You will be in the one-up, one-back formation where an opposing net player can easily put the ball away between your team unless you cover the center closely.
Whether you are serving or receiving, your backcourt play should always be consistent. The reason players such as Harold
Solomon and Eddie Dibbs have been successful with their backcourt games is that they always manage to get the ball back and let their opponents make the errors. By all means use variety from the baseline but do not do so at the risk of making an error. Percentage play should be the key to your successful baseline play.
An Underrated and an Overrated Shot The lob is one of the most underrated and underused shots in tennis. If the weekend tennis player could learn how and when to use it, the quality of club doubles would soon show marked improvement—and become more enjoyable for those playing it. By the same token, I think the overhead smash is one of the most overrated shots in doubles play. Too often I see a relatively
, inexperienced player whaling away at an overhead smash and either flubbing the shot completely or hitting it into the net. Hitting a good overhead takes timing and plenty of practice; hitting a successful overhead is even tougher. That's why I want to discuss more thoroughly the subject of lobs and overheads.
Types of Lobs There are three classifications of lobs—the defensive, the offensive and the topspin. The defensive lob is the one you hit when you are pulled out of position and need time to get back into the point. It is hit high and deep to your opponents’ baseline, forcing them to retreat and giving you time to recover (see Figure 7-1).
The offensive lob is used when your opponents are too close to the net. It is a lower shot that just clears one opponent's outstretched racquet and makes him scramble back to make a return (see Figure 7-2). It will often be a winner if executed well.
The topspin lob is an offensive lob hit with excessive topspin. When it lands behind your opponents, it kicks away for an almost certain winner (see Figure 7-3). The topspin lob is very difficult to hit well and the slightest error will result in the ball being returned as a winning smash by your opponents. Very few players have been able to hit this shot well—Vic Seixas, Rod Laver and Tlie Nastase being the only ones who come quickly to my mind. All those players have great touch and very strong wrists with which they can hit winning topspin lobs. For most players, though, the topspin lob is a very low percentage shot and I don't think you should try it unless you have a heavy topspin game.
7-1. Use the defensive lob to get out of trouble and give yourself time to recover. - ~.
The Defensive Lob As I've noted before in this book, my purpose is not to tell you how to hit a tennis ball. I do think, however, that the defensive lob should be an undercut shot—one hit with a little underspin. The underspin will help you control the ball and perhaps prevent you from overhitting it. Remember, too, that you should rarely concern yourself with disguising a defensive lob—rather, you should be concerned about hitting a good shot and staying in the point. So keep the ball high and hit it deep. That means hitting solidly through the ball.
7-2. Use the offensive lob to force aggressive opponents away from the net.
You can use the defensive lob anytime you are pulled wide and need time to get back into position (see Figure 7-4). Hit the lob back over the head of the player closest to the net and start your recovery immediately. If the ball goes over the head of your opponent—as it should, of course—continue your recovery toward the net. Weekend players often assume that a lob will be followed by an overhead smash, so they should retreat to the baseline or even behind it to counter the expected smash. A lob will only be returned with a smash if the lob is too low in the first place so that your opponent can hit the ball before it bounces on the fly. In that
7-3. A topspin lob will kick away after bouncing for an almost certain winner. aes case, you'll be wise to stay back (see Figure 7-5).
If the ball bounces deep, it’s unlikely that your opponents will be able to hit a smash simply because the ball will not bounce high enough. The more likely reply is a forehand or backhand drive. By the time your opponent hits the ball, you and your partner should be in a good position to hit a volley.
I also favor using the defensive lob on a return of service. Whenever you are pulled wide by a player with a good serve, try a defensive lob down the line over the head of the opposing net player (see Figure 7-6). You will either force the net player back to
7-4. Most of your defensive lobs should be hit over the head of the player nearest the net and go deep to the baseline.
the baseline or make the server cross over to return the lob. Either way, you will be gaining enough time to get into an attacking position. And, of course, you will be reminding the net player that he cannot afford to get too close to the net when you are returning serve.
Unless you know the server has a weak overhead, I do not recommend returning serve with a crosscourt lob because he will probably take it on the fly with an overhead smash (see Figure
7-7). So keep your lobs down the line when returning serve. You can also use the lob as an effective reply to another lob. If a
7-5. If your defensive lob is too low, be prepared to stay back to counter your opponent's overhead smash.
deep lob forces you behind the baseline and your opponents start to run up to cover the net, lob the ball back over their heads so that they, too, have to head back to the baseline (see Figure 7-8). This can lead to a long exchange of lobs—Harold Solomon is an expert at this type of endless lobbing—but all you have to do is wait for a shorter ball and come in to attack it. If your opponents are back at the baseline and they hit a short lob, you can either smash it back or let it bounce and hit a powerful forehand drive to your opponent's feet. Then move up for the expected weak return that you
7-6. When you are pulled wide by a good server, try a defensive lob over the head of the opposing net player.
can volley for a point (see Figure 7-9).
Some players are reluctant to use a defensive lob in windy conditions because the wind may blow the ball out. If you are hitting into the wind, there’s no problem—it will give you an extra
’ margin of safety. If you are hitting with it or if the wind is very gusty, some caution is called for. And remember that the wind will be troublesome for your opponents, too. It’s hard to hit a smash off a ball that is being blown off course. So don't automatically assume you can't use the lob in windy conditions—you can.
7-7. A crosscourt lob as a retum of serve will often be smashed back by the opposing Sy server.
The Offensive Lob As its name implies, the offensive lob is used when you want to take charge of the action at the net. The offensive lob is used against a team that is crowding the net. It is a relatively low lob that will go over the racquets of your opponents and cause them to retreat from the net to return the lob. Done well, the offensive lob can be a winner. Done poorly, the offensive lob will be too low and so be smashed right back at you for a winner by the opposing team. Thus, the offensive lob calls for some skill and care in its use. Disguise is vital in executing this type of lob. If your opponents
7-8. When your opponents lob so they can reach the net, return with another lob to make them retreat also.
have any hint you are about to use it, they will retreat so they can smash the lob on the fly. Since most of your offensive lobs will be hit somewhere between the baseline and the service line, I suggest you prepare for the shot just as you would for a forehand or backhand drive. As you swing forward, at the last moment lift up under the ball and send it over your opponents. I favor putting a little overspin on the offensive lob so that the ball does not stand up much after bouncing.
As I've noted before, the good doubles player should be able to hit with almost the same motion: the drive, the offensive lob and
7-9. In an exchange of lobs, wait for the shorter lob and hit an overhead smash.
the soft dink shot to the opposite alley. So work on your offensive lobs until you can hit them with the same motion as your drives.
Most of your offensive lobs will be hit down the line—hitting crosscourt would give your opponents a little more time to react (see Figure 7-10). After you hit the lob, and assuming it is successful, you should move up closer to the net to be ready to volley down on any return that your opponents may make. If you have any choice in the matter, it is often best to place your offensive lobs on the backhand side of the player nearest you (see Figure 7-11).
7-10. Most of your offensive lobs should be hit down the line so your opponents have little time to react.
That way, if the lob is a little low and the other player attempts a smash, chances are the shot will not be very effective. Very few players have a good backhand overhead smash.
The offensive lob is a very useful weapon but one that can easily be overused. Use it when you have a good idea of the playing patterns of your opponents. For example, if your opponents regularly come to the net and close in after each volley, prepare yourself to use the offensive lob. Just wait until the opponents begin to move in close and hit the ball over them. However, if
~ ' 7-11. An offensive lob to your opponent's backhand will be harder to return with a smash. > + the tactic makes them cautious about getting too close, hold off using the offensive lob for a while. Use it sparingly and it will either win points for you or set up situations where you can win on a later shot.
You can also hit lobs off your volleys—the so-called lob volley. The lob volley is a pretty tough shot unless you have good touch, so
I'd suggest you leave that shot to the experts. At best, you might use a lob volley when you are in a very tight spot against two exceptional volleyers. But even that would be a desperate move in my mind.
7-12. If there is an obvious large hole in your opponents’ court coverage, hit your smash into the opening.
The Overhead Smash For most club players, the overhead smash seems like a low percentage shot. How often do you see someone prepare to hit this shot, take a huge swipe at the ball and then either miss the ball completely or hit the ball into the net? The fault is particularly bad among men who feel they have to prove their masculinity by making a devastating play. Unfortunately or otherwise, you must have a reliable overhead if you are to be a successful doubles player. And that means one you can get in 99 percent of the time.
Position is the key to hitting a good overhead. As I've noted the net player.
before for other strokes, you must be fast with your feet and slow with your racquet. Get behind the ball as quickly as you can and then make small adjustments in your position as the ball comes closer and closer. Finally, hit the ball slowly and deliberately.
Don't simply whale away at the ball. Put the overhead where you want it, just as you would with a serve. In doubles, power isn't everything with the overhead—placement is.
The basic rule in placing your overhead is to hit to the wide open spaces. If your opponents are not covering the court, hit to the large hole (see Figure 7-12). Hit your overheads deep unless you
“ 7-13. It's best to hit your overheads toward the deeper player to prevent interception by~ _
7-14. Always try to put the ball away when you have a short lob that falls within the service box.
are close to the net and can get a very sharp angle on the ball to put it away decisively.
When your opponents are doing their job properly and covering the court adequately, you should hit your overhead in the general direction of the deeper player (see Figure 7-13). Keep the ball away from the net man—all he has to do is get his racquet on the ball and you will have a return that might well be a winner.
When the lob is short, add power to your overhead and try to put the ball away (see Figure 7-14). Hit the ball just hard enough to put it away or bounce high enough so that it is unreturnable. It is
7-15. When the lob is deep, be content with hitting an overhead that will go deep and _. keep the ball in play.
just as satisfying to win the point as it is to hit the fuzz off the ball.
When the lob is deep, content yourself with hitting an overhead that is deep and keeps the ball in play (see Figure 7-15). By all means, let the ball bounce and take your time with the shot. Just hope that the next lob is shorter so you can put the ball away. Too many weekend players are hasty in using the smash. Be patient, take your time and hit the ball effectively.
Each player should cover his own half of the court for returning lobs. The only exceptions occur when one player is unusually close to the net and the other player is either forced back or is staying
7-16. When one player has to stay back, switch sides to cover a deep lob and stay there after hitting the ball.
back, for example, after the second serve. In those cases, the baseline player can move over to take the lob and the net player should switch sides to cover the vacated half of the court (see Figure 7-16). Sometimes, it’s useful for the player crossing over to yell, “Switch,” to his partner, although if you are both watching the ball, you will know what to do.
Always practice a few lobs and overheads when you warm up. Not only will the practice help you get your eye in, it will also tell you whether your opponents can handle a lob or an overhead. If you can, you're ahead.
Yi vete mu.
If you compete as a member of a club, high school or college team or if you travel frequently, you will at some time find yourself playing on new and different courts. Although the shape of a tennis court is closely specified, the surface and surroundings are not, so you will soon discover that all courts are not alike. The differences between your usual courts and an out-of-town court ‘may be so slight that your play is not affected. But it’s more likely they will differ and you will have to make some minor adjustments.
If you are going to play away from home, inquire about the courts before you leave. If you are used to playing on slow clay courts, for example, you may not enjoy a tennis-playing vacation at a resort which has very fast cement courts. By knowing what to expect before you go, you will be prepared and may find playing on a different surface a challenging, enjoyable experience.
When you are playing competitively, it's even more important to know the conditions. A completely different surface takes a little getting used to—enough time for you to lose a couple of games or even a set while you are adapting to the new surroundings. In that situation, you should get to the opposition’s courts well ahead of time and perhaps play a practice set so you and the other team members can adjust effectively.
Clay-type Courts Clay courts, where the top playing surface is made from a compacted, finely crushed stone, often dark green in color, are common in the eastern half of the country. They are popular with club players because the pace of play is relatively slow and the loose granular surface is easy on the feet and legs. Because clay courts require frequent maintenance to ensure they are kept in good playing condition, they are more often found in private clubs than in public facilities.
Clay is an excellent surface for the weekend doubles player. The gritty surface tends to grip the ball, slowing it down and making it bounce relatively high. Thus, the pace of play is often
8-1. Rushing the net on clay is risky because the receiver usually has plenty of time to hit | aa a good retum to the server's feet.
quite slow and the players have plenty of time to get to the ball and hit it properly. Clay is not very good for singles play since the surface favors long baseline rallies that can become extremely boring.
On clay you should play a relatively conservative game. Make sure you get your first serve in deep but wait for the right opportunity to go in to the net. Because the ball sits up on clay, the receiver will have lots of time to hit a good return, so if you rush the net after serving, chances are the receiver will be able to put the ball right back at your feet (see Figure 8-1).
When you are receiving serve on clay, you should generally stay back after making your return. You'll have time to prepare properly for your return so you can either hit it back deep to the server's feet or wide into the alley (see Figure 8-2). Don't rush the net until you get a short ball you can follow in and one which will get you into a good volleying position.
8-2. When the server stays back on clay, the receiver has time enough to choose whether to send the ball back to the server (A) or wide into the server's alley (B).
Exercising patience is most valuable when you play on clay. Content yourself with getting the ball back over the net with good depth if your opponents are deep, or low over the net if they are closer to it. Wait for the right opening before you move to the net and don't try to win the point off your first volley every time. You may have a long exchange, even at the net, before you get an opportunity to put the ball away.
Hard Courts You'll need almost the opposite strategy for playing on a hard cement or asphalt court as you do for clay. Cement courts, in particular, are very fast. The ball often stays low, thus favoring an aggressive serve-and-volley type of game. You will find hard courts all over the country but the fastest cement courts seem to be primarily in the West. Playing on such courts can be tough for an
Easterner who is used to slow clay courts.
8-3. On a fast court, a spin serve will pull the receiver out wide and allow the server to ~~ | rush the net.
Doubles on hard courts is a fast game that favors the player with the big serve and the quick volley. The key is to get your serve in deep with some slice that will draw the receiver wide and give you time to get into position to hit a volley off the return of serve
(see Figure 8-3). The points will be over faster than on clay and so the team which gets to the net first will usually win the point.
The job of the receiver is tougher on a fast hard court. The ball will bounce lower and come off the court faster than on clay. Thus there will be less time to prepare for and execute a good return. It's often necessary to shorten your backswing and just block the ball in response, especially if you are facing a strong server. Try to keep your return low over the net so the net-rushing server has a hard time hitting a volley. And, of course, whatever you do, don't hit your return to the net player or you'll lose the point right there.
Chances are you won't be able to go to the net after your return of serve, but you will be faced with both opposing players at the
8-4. When your opponents control the net on a fast court, use an offensive lob to force them away from the net.
net. When that happens, use your lob. Hit an offensive lob if you have the opportunity and get up to the net yourself (see Figure 8-4). Remember to disguise your stroke when you hit such a lob so your opponents are caught unaware.
Synthetic Courts There are so many new synthetic surfaces manufactured today, particularly for indoor play, it's hard to say how a specific surface will play. Some synthetics are carpets that are laid on top of an asphalt court—others are cushiony layers that form the permanent top surface of a court. However, many of these new surfaces seem to have been designed with the average club player in mind. That is to say, the surfaces are for the most part moderately slow, make the ball bounce relatively high and have very good traction for your feet. They're also usually easy to maintain, which is an important consideration for both public and private courts today.
8-5. On grass, your best bet is to rush the net behind your serve and take the first returnTM ~ , as a volley.
Since | can't be specific here about every type of synthetic court you may play on, I'd suggest you check with your tennis professional or the pro at the resort where you'll be vacationing. They will be able to advise you on how the courts play and how you might have to adapt your own game.
Grass Courts Tennis was originally devised to be played outdoors on a grass lawn. Today, unfortunately, grass courts are something of a rarity. In fact, most of the ruling bodies of tennis have dropped “lawn” from their titles, reflecting the demise of the grass court. If you ever have the opportunity to play on grass, I heartily recommend you do so. Playing on a well-kept, sweet-smelling grass court on a sunny afternoon is an all-too-rare pleasure. Savor it if you can before such courts disappear forever.
Nonetheless, playing on grass can be a very tough test of your
8-6. When serving with the wind, put extra spin on your serve to make sure the ball lands within the service box.
tennis-playing abilities. The pace of play is fast, the ball stays low, often skidding across the court, and your footing may be quite slippy if the grass is the slightest bit damp. For those reasons, serve and volley is the usual style of play on grass. Get your first serve in deep and follow it in so your next shot will be a deep volley (see Figure 8-5).
Grass courts often have an uneven surface so it's best to hit the ball before it bounces. Thus, grass-court play places a premium on sharp volleys. Points will be over as quickly as on a fast cement court so your reactions should be rapid and your pattern of play decisive.
Wind and Sun Playing tennis on a windy day can be especially difficult—the wind affects your service toss, lobs can be erratic and balls will often go long or drop short because of powerful gusts. However, you might remember that if the wind is making things tough for your team, the other team is having exactly the same problems. Learn how to handle those problems and you'll perhaps have an edge over your opponenis.
On a windy day, put a little extra spin on your shots. The spin will give you more control and help you keep the ball within the confines of the court. Put plenty of spin on your serve when the wind is behind you. The spin will bring the ball down faster and so lessen the chances of your serve being too long (see Figure 8-6). When you are serving into the wind, of course, try to hit the ball harder so you will still get your serve in.
You might want to stay away from high defensive lobs on a particularly gusty day. If your court has side screens, the wind strength may be less at court level than at 15 feet up in the air. Once your ball gets up there, the wind can take control. An offensive lob, especially with a little topspin, may be useful on a windy day, but even that should be used with care. If you try an offensive lob a couple of times unsuccessfully, wait until the wind drops before you use it again.
The sun can also be a nuisance, especially early in the morning or at the end of the day when it is low in the sky and hard for your eyes to avoid when you throw the ball up to serve. The problem can be solved if one member of your team is a lefty since you can each serve with your backs to the sun. If that option is not available to you, alter the position of your serve so you do not have to look directly into the sun as you toss the ball. Don't worry if this makes your serve less effective—better to see the ball and hit it than be blinded by the sun. 4
Indoor Courts es For those of us who live in the colder parts of the country, indoor =. courts now make it possible to play tennis year-round. In fact, indoor courts have probably done a great deal to popularize doubles and mixed doubles play since the cost of renting an hour of court time during the winter season becomes economical only when shared by four or more players.
Many players are beginning to prefer to play indoors all year. Indoor courts are not only heated in winter, they are airconditioned in summer so indoor play is possible and comfortable. The conditions are consistent: the lighting is the same week in and week out, the temperature is generally closely controlled and the effects of wind and sun are absent.
Perhaps the only disadvantage of indoor play, especially for doubles, is the height of the building. It is all too easy to hit a high lob that hits the roof or a suspended light fixture. The only answer to that problem is to hit your lobs lower and perhaps hit mostly offensive lobs when you have the chance.
Some players find the lights of an indoor court to be a problem when serving. If that is so for you, alter your serving position as you might do when playing outdoors in the sun. Many of the newer indoor courts have indirect lighting where the lights face upward onto a reflective roof so the lights will not be directly in a server's line of vision. If you have trouble with indoor lights, I suggest you look for a club with indirect lighting.
Check Out the Courts Whether you play indoors or out, it will pay to check out an unfamiliar court before playing. Is the surface unfamiliar to you? Are there any obstructions such as lights that might interfere with play? Is the court less than regulation size so there is less room between the sidelines and the fences or between the baselines and the back fences? Does the court itself look in good shape or might you expect to get some bad bounces? A few minutes of observation will help you decide on your game plan.
Whatever you do, try to take advantage of the playing conditions wherever you play. Please do not, as many tennis players do, blame your loss on the court or on the playing conditions. A good player can adapt to almost any situation; make that your goal, too.
A Very Sociable Game Although many of the touring professionals scoff at mixed doubles, I think it’s one of the most pleasant versions of the sport. There are very few sports where men and women can play together in
“intersexual competition” even though their abilities may be different. Mixed doubles can be the social variety you often see in the weekend afternoon games at many tennis clubs, or it can be quite ‘competitive.
Not too long ago, women were considered to be the lesser players when it came to mixed doubles. Many good male players considered a woman's abilities sufficient if she could merely get her serve in and keep the ball in play on those occasions when the ball came straight to her. Fortunately, many women club players today are the equal of their male partners and in more than a few cases they are definitely superior. Where the abilities of a mixed doubles team are pretty evenly matched, there's little difference between mixed and regular doubles.
However, there are still plenty of teams where the tennisplaying skills differ and playing good mixed doubles is often a question of how to use those skills to best advantage. Even when abilities differ, it's still possible to play good tennis and for all the players to have an enjoyable match. How you can do that is what I hope to show you in this chapter.
Picking Your Partner Let me come right out and say that, with very few exceptions, in mixed doubles spouses should not play on the same team. When husband and wife play together, only one small error is needed for tempers to start becoming frayed and the tennis takes an almost immediate nosedive. I'm not sure why spouses are so sensitive to each other on the tennis court—perhaps it's something related to the competitive nature of the sport—but spouses rarely seem to perform well together in mixed doubles play.
So the first essential is to pick a partner with whom you get along well on and off the court. If you are a very aggressive player, you may fare better with an aggressive partner. If you are the easy-going type, perhaps you ought to pick a partner who can laugh with you at your own mistakes.
The second consideration is ability. The best mixed doubles teams are those in which the skills are pretty evenly matched. Your partner should have a reliable serve that won't fall apart under pressure. A competent return of serve ig equally useful especially if you know that you are likely to be facing some strong servers. And, of course, your partner should not be afraid of going to the net when the opportunity occurs. You may not find all those abilities in equal measure in a partner, but they are well worth looking for if you wish to play competitively.
Some Mixed Doubles Tactics Many of the suggestions that I am about to make will apply quite well to regular doubles, but I'm putting them forward here because
I think they are especially important for mixed doubles play at the club level. Even if you have no intention of ever playing mixed doubles, I think you'll find these ideas to be useful when you are playing against opponents of differing skills.
Let the stronger player serve first. I think that this is fairly obvious, since the player who serves first will usually serve more games in the match. If the man is the stronger server, let him serve first. However, if the woman has a strong serve that is more reliable, then she should serve first to lessen the chances of losing a service game early on in the set.
Hit to the weaker player. Again, a commonsense idea since the weaker player will be more likely to make an error. There’san * exception to this one, too. Some weaker players may be quite > adequate at the net so don't hit the ball to the net player unless he’s _ a terrible volleyer. And 1 would also modify the idea of hitting tothe >» weaker player when you are playing purely social mixed doubles, because the idea is to have fun. Sure, you can win the point by blasting away at the weaker opponent, but that way no one gets to enjoy the tennis.
Put the stronger player in the left court. There are two major reasons for this: first, the stronger player will be returning serve on the critical points and, second, he'll be able to take most of the overheads on his forehand. Many women club players are weaker on the overhead than their male partners, so in mixed doubles play I think the man may have to cover most of the lobs. Incidentally, that does mean the woman should be prepared to switch sides if the man runs back to hit an overhead on her half of the court.
Use the lob. This is the counterpart of the principle I've just stated. If the woman has a weak overhead smash, a lob will often produce a weak reply when she takes the lobs in her half of the court. If the man habitually covers lobs over most of the court, then a lob anywhere will force him away from the net and so allow your team to take the initiative and come in. When you are playing against a mixed doubles team where the man insists on taking most of the lobs, you can use the shot to tire him out—just keep on lobbing so that he has to run back all the time. That's attacking a weakness of the team that they may not consider to be a handicap.
Move the stronger player about to open up the court. A relatively difficult but very effective strategy. Although I've suggested that you should generally hit to the weaker player, there are _times when you should deliberately hit to the stronger player to pull him wide out of court so you can then hit into the opening you have created. For example, you can hit wide to the stronger player to force a crosscourt return that can be intercepted by your net player, who should put the ball away by volleying into the hole you ve just created. All you are doing is getting the stronger player out of the way long enough for you to win the point.
Stay back against a determined poacher. This is an answer to the very aggressive male who poaches off a weaker player's return of serve. You'll find that you can often get to the volley of a poacher and hit a defensive lob that will either force him away from the net or, equally likely, have both players scurrying about trying to get to the ball. A couple of lobs will soon keep a net player from getting too close to the net. The farther the net player is from the net, the less likely he will be able to make a successful poach.
Make your play consistent. Especially if you are being overpowered by a player with a strong serve-and-volley game. On the return of serve, just get the ball back with a blocking stroke making sure that you keep it away from the server's partner. Hit only those shots you know you can rely on. Even when you are facing a strong player, the pace of mixed doubles will often give you time to hit a forehand when you are back on the baseline. Keep the ball in play by not trying any fancy shots—leave those to your opponents and they will soon begin to make errors that might well give you the match.
Mixed Doubles Teamwork Perhaps even more than regular doubles, mixed play calls for supportive teamwork. It's very easy for a man to expect as much-"~. from his woman partner as from his regular men’s doubles partner. If his partner can live up to his expectations—well and good. But if the woman is having trouble, her partner should be able to offer some constructive advice. And, likewise, the man should be able to take advice from his partner when his game goes astray.
At the same time, don't make extravagant apologies for any mistakes you may make. An occasional “Sorry” is plenty. Just forget the mistake and get on with the next point. Some tennis players seem to be continually apologizing for their play which then appears to get worse as the apologies become more profuse.
Remember that mixed doubles is primarily a social game. You are playing to get some exercise and have a little fun while you are doing so. If you can see mostly smiles on the faces of people playing in a mixed doubles match, you'll know they're having a good time. Make that your objective, too.
Why Practice? Many good tennis players will tell you that the only way to practice tennis is by playing matches—it's a competitive sport and the only way to get better is by competing more. For a top-level tennis player, that may be true. When | was a member of the U.S. Davis
Cup team, we would practice by playing a five-set singles match in the morning and then another singles or a doubles match in the ‘afternoon. Competition was the best preparation for Davis Cup matches.
However, behind every top player are years of painstaking practice to groove his strokes, to improve his court coverage, to increase his stamina and so on. But very few club players can afford the daily practice that a playing professional puts in on his way up the tennis ladder. Most club players would prefer to play matches rather than “waste” their valuable playing time on practice. I think that's a serious mistake.
A tennis pro will keep his strokes sharp, his reflexes keen and his body in shape by daily match play, but the club player does not have that luxury. If you want to keep your game near its peak, you should do two things—maintain a reasonable level of conditioning for your age and keep your game sharp by regular practice. I'm not going to tell you how to keep your body in shape—there are
_ plenty of books on that subject that do a better job than I could. But I would like to suggest some ways to sharpen your doubles play.
Serve and Return of Serve As I've emphasized throughout this book, the serve and return of serve are the key strokes in doubles. Without a reliable serve and an efiective return you won't have a winning doubles game. So I'd like to suggest a routine that will help both your serve and your return of serve.
Simply serve 20 balls in succession, treating each one as a first serve. Keep a tally of how many of those first serves go in. When you can consistently get 16 out of the 20 in, you are on the way to developing a respectable serve (assuming that you don't just pitty-
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10-1. The serve and retum of serve drill encourages players to develop consistency by Se keeping the ball in play.
pat the ball, of course).
When you are serving, the receiver should try to get the ball back with the same consistency that you are trying for in serving. The receiver should hit the ball back deep to the server without trying to do more than merely keep the ball in play (see Figure
10-1). You should then play out the point so your partners do not become bored watching you serve and the receiver return. Don't keep score, just tally successful serves and returns. After 20 serves, let one of the other players serve and so on.
When you first try this routine, I think you will be appalled ‘to see how few of your first serves actually go in. You might compare, sometime, how many first serves go in during a professional doubles match and how many go in during a doubles match at your club. I guarantee you'll learn a fast lesson.
10-2. An up-and-back routine played up to 21 points will improve net play and build stamina.
Net Play There are many ways of improving your net play, but the routine | like is a game to 21 points with opposing teams either at the net or on the baseline, depending on who won the point. The action can get fast and furious so this routine not only improves your net play, it also tests your stamina.
To keep things going, each team should have a bucket of balls behind the baseline. Start with one team at the net and the other at the baseline. One member of the baseline team puts the ball in play by dropping the ball and hitting a normal ground stroke— regular serves are not used in this routine. If the net team wins the point, they stay at the net and the baseline team puts another ball into play. But if the net team loses the point, they retreat to the baseline and hit a ball to the other team, who should move up to the
10-3. Start your lob and overhead drills with a rally so that the lobs can be disguised as in’ ~ , actual play.
net (see Figure 10-2).
This routine involves a lot of running back and forth so it won't be long before both teams will have their tongues nanging out. Ten or fifteen minutes will be more than enough for most club players.
Score each game to 21] points as with table tennis. You can even introduce table tennis serving rules—one team puts the ball in play for five points, irrespective of position, then the other team starts for the next five points.
The net players should concentrate on hitting deep volleys while the baseliners should keep the ball low over the net so the net players are forced to hit up. This routine will soon show you the folly of hitting a ball high over the net when the other team has control of it.
10-4. Only two players are needed for a half-court drill that will improve your reflexes and develop touch.
Complementary Shots There are many ways of practicing complementary shots—for example, forehands down the line to be returned by backhands down the line—but the one that has the most relevance for
, doubles, perhaps, is to alternate lobs and overheads. Both are essential shots for doubles, yet few players ever take the trouble to practice them. As a result, lobs, and more particularly overheads, are often the two worst strokes in the club player's repertoire.
You can simply hit lobs to be returned as overheads, but | prefer a routine where you start with a rally—let the ball go over the net three times, say—and then hit a lob so the other team has to retreat for the overhead (see Figure 10-3). The advantage of starting the practice with a rally is that you can hit your lob with the
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me 10-5. The Australian two-on-one drill is a punishing workout for the baseline player. ~~» same type of stroke you would use to hit a forehand or backhand drive. In other words, you can disguise your lob just as you would try to do in actual play.
You should hit an offensive lob (see Chapter 7) that goes just over your opponent's outstretched racquet when you hit the shot correctly. In turn, your opponent should try to retreat and hit an overhead before the ball bounces. The overheads should be hit easily so the rally can be continued and more lobs practiced.
Defensive lobs can be practiced in the same way, although disguise is not really necessary for them. Your objective with the defensive lob is to get the ball as deep and high as possible, while the other team should return the ball after it has bounced. Again, try to keep the ball in play for as long as possible.
10-6. A variation of the half-court drill will let you work on your angled volleys.
Two and Three-Player Drills You can still sharpen your doubles play even when you have fewer than four players. Roy Emerson, one of the world's great doubles players, uses a half-court drill to improve his touch at the
‘ net. Only two players are needed and you can practice a variety of shots either at the net or at the baseline.
Emerson's original half-court drill starts with each player on the service line in the same half of the court (see Figure 10-4). One player merely puts the ball in play by dropping and stroking it gently to the other player. The players then attempt a rally by hitting easy volleys or even half volleys if the ball bounces. The idea is to keep the ball going for as long as possible. Keep a tally of how many times the ball crosses the net before the rally stops.
As you improve with this drill, you can make it harder by moving gradually closer to the net so that the pace of the rally speeds up. Remember, though, that you are not trying to beat the other player by hitting the ball hard—just keep it in play. You'll be surprised at what this drill will do for your reflexes and touch while playing at the net.
Another drill, devised by former Australian Davis Cup coach Harry Hopman, is ideal for those minutes when you are waiting for the fourth member of your group to turn up. With this Australian two-on-one drill you will all be well warmed up by the time the latecomer shows. Using two players at the net and one back on the baseline, the baseline player drops and hits the ball to put it into play (see Figure 10-5). The net players volley to move the baseliner about as much as possible. This is a particularly punishing drill for the baseliner, so you should switch positions frequently.
As a variation on the half-court drill, you can take up positions in opposing service boxes and hit angled volleys to each other (see Figure 10-6). Play a game to 21 points with the restriction that the ball must be volleyed or bounced within a service box to be good
(see shaded areas in Figure 10-6). This drill is excellent for the kind of crosscourt volleying that often occurs in doubles play.
On Your Own Given today’s demand for courts, it seems highly unlikely that you ll ever find yourself alone on a court, but if you do, get a bucket of balls and hit serves. Practice both first and second serves and vary your placement to both the forehand and backhand of your imaginary opponent. You can even put a target, such as a small * towel, on the court and see how often you can hit that spot. ia There's an old saying, “practice makes perfect.” Well, that _.~" simply doesn't apply to tennis. There never has been a perfect >> tennis player nor will there ever be one. However, if you practice intelligently, that practice will pay dividends. You will not only become a better player, but your enjoyment of the game will increase immensely.