TennisOne - Creative Doubles Patterns

I bet you play competitive doubles. Due to popular adult leagues, doubles has evolved into a grassroots game of its own. Most women play competitive tennis play doubles. Even juniors who don’t play much doubles in USTA tournaments, often encounter doubles in high school and later in college.

Today the classic doubles game of two net rushers represents only one style of doubles. The Bryan brothers are an excellent example of the classic power team. Some net rushers play less power but more angles and finesse shots. Leander Paes and Martina Navratilova paired up to play classic finesse (and athletic!) doubles.

But today, many touring pros – especially in the WTA -- often stay back at the baseline. Powerful baseliners with two-handed backhands are a common breed – even though we also see many remarkable one-handed backhands (e.g., Henin-Hardenne, Mauresmo, Federer, Blake, Ljubicic, Gasquet). Power baseliners trust their groundstrokes more than their volleys. These players will hit hard crosscourt until a net player sees an opportunity to poach or a baseliner decides to come in. Finally, there is a fourth style -- frequently seen at the club level -- where both players (often pushers) rely on consistency and stay back or move up together and occasionally poach.

Whatever your style, good doubles play almost always involves one of two things: 1) setting up a winning shot, usually a volley, or 2) consolidating position, offensively or defensively. Many doubles points evolve from the first three shots: serve, return, and either a) poach, b) server closes, or c) server stays back.

Aside from the basic close-in or stay back by the server, there are a number of plays you can use to set up a winning volley. Let’s explore some of these more unusual, creative patterns. Using these patterns can create more volley opportunities and keep your opponents guessing. Let’s see what there is!

The planned poach starts with the traditional one up and one back. The server team communicates and agrees to switch before the point. The planned poach is good for the server’s partner who does too much watching and not enough volleying. Something has to be done! If the receiver almost exclusively returns crosscourt, the planned poach becomes an excellent play. You should use the planned poach generally off first serves as the receiver often has more options on the second serve. The server should try to place the serve at the body or down the center.

The planned poach is shown in Figure 1. To make this play successfully, the serving team must communicate well. The server's partner must commit to covering the crosscourt return. The server should be aware of covering the half of the court vacated by the server's partner. When played correctly, the planned poach gives the server's partner a couple extra steps to volley most crosscourt returns.

Second, if you are the server’s partner, you should time your movement across just before the receiver hits the ball. Cut across just as the receiver begins to swing forward or just before the ball reaches the receiver. Sometimes, you might look silly if you move too early and your opponent goes down the line but that doesn’t mean give up on this pattern, just time it better.

If the receiver goes down the line rather than crosscourt, the poacher should continue going across and the server covers the line. Changing directions back just confuses the play. In addition, if the crosscourt is too good, you should continue with the pattern on that point. It is important to be persistent with this pattern even if you get burned a few times. Some teams abandon the planned poach after a couple down-the-line or crosscourt angle winners. These returns often can’t be reproduced consistently off a solid first serve. If you are winning 3 out of 5 planned poaches against equal opponents, that’s very acceptable. No play wins 100% of the time.

If you still can’t use the planned poach to reach the wide volley, you have another option: the I formation. In the traditional I formation (see Figure 2A), the servers’ partner straddles low on (and often kneels down) the center line. The server also stands close to the center to place the serve down the center to try force the return up through the middle. It is generally used best with a fairly good first serve.

To make the traditional I formation work, the serving team needs excellent communication and the serve must be placed down the center or at the receiver’s body. The I formation is often better than planned poaching if the net player is not as quick and the serve is fairly effective. The serving team must communicate before the point which way the players will move. With a big serve, the I formation can be intimidating and may confuse a hesitant receiving team.

A limitation of the traditional I formation is if the serve isn’t effective or well-placed, an accurate return can create problems. The traditional I formation actually doesn’t bisect the angle of the service return. Instead it bisects the physical court. Camping out on the center line only bisects the service return angle if the serve is accurately placed down the center line (see yellow line in Figure 2A). Otherwise, good receiving teams often elect to return down the line. The green arrows in Figure 2A show possible returns from a wide serve and from a body serve. Since the server’s partner sets up camp on the center, she is a good 6-7 feet farther away from covering the line than in a normal starting formation. Some good receiving teams will also hit hard through the center of the court since the net player tend to move away from the center after the serve.

An often superior version of the I formation, but rarely seen, is what I call the half-I. In the half-I formation (see Figure 2B), the server’s partner stands slightly (.e.g, 2-3 ft) off center. If the serve is through the center of the court or at the receiver’s body, the half-I formation – not the I formation – better bisects the return angle (see yellow line in Figure 2B). It allows more flexibility in the serve placement. Unless your team can place the serve right on the center line, the half-I formation makes more sense than the traditional I formation.

You are almost definitely already familiar with the one up and one back starting formation for the receiving team. The one up, one back formation is shown in Figure 1 where the receiver’s partner stands on the service line. In addition, you are most likely familiar with the two-back formation where the receiving team stands behind the baseline. The two-back formation is used when the receiver has difficulty returning crosscourt especially if the serve is very big. The two-back formation, shown in Figure 2A, allows the receiving team to defend well after a poor return. Typically the two-back is used as a response to a big first serve. On the second serve, the return is easier so the receiver’s partner can take up the regular position at the service line. Finally the two-back is good if your team has excellent groundstrokes but weak volleys.

The two-back formation has two limitations. First, it is difficult to attack from and often takes longer to get into an offensive formation. Second, the two-back allows short, touch volleys to be played by the server’s partner.

Shown in Figure 2B, the 1½ back formation is more versatile. In this formation, the receiver’s partner typically stands anywhere from a couple feet inside the baseline to about half-way between the baseline and service line. On a weak return, the partner may move back to the baseline. On an excellent return, the receiver’s partner can get inside the service line quickly. Finally, the 1½ back gives a better chance to run down short or angle volleys. The 1½ back formation is used more often on the professional tour than the less flexible two-back.

This rarely-used pattern is used by the receiving team. It requires partners who know each other well and is best used (for right-handed players) when the receiver has a big forehand from the deuce alley. If the serve is wide into the deuce court, the receiver can choose to go down-the-line. On the wide return outside the court, the ball is often moving back into the court and not as risky as the down-the-line from well inside the court where the ball often moves to outside the lines.

On any wide serve, both the receiver and partner should drift over. The typically bad down-the-line return is made when the receiver’s partner does not slide over with the receiver. That leaves a gap between the receiving pair which the server’s partner can frequently exploit. The receiving team drift is a matter of good team work. It requires excellent communication and court sense. Bob and Mike Bryan actually have code words for this play and others like it. If the partner does not drift properly, the receiver should almost never return down-the-line. It just exposes the partner’s lack of coverage.

If the second serve is mediocre, the receiver can often drive a big forehand down-the-line which pressures or stretches the server’s partner. Many two-handed backhand players have trouble covering the aggressive down-the-line. There is a good chance the server’s partner might cough up a mediocre volley (or outright miss) which sets up the receiver’s partner who closes in. If your opponents frequently poach, you and your partner should consider using this formation once per receiving game (if you have fairly good forehands). The return may be aimed down the alley or slightly at the net players backhand. You may also want to use this pattern if the server’s partner is not a particularly good volleyer.

After the serve, the receiver’s partner moves to the center line. The receiver’s partner then moves forward in anticipation if the return looks strong. You may also wait a split second longer to see if the volley is weak. You should be able to read the server’s partner. If so, the receiver’s partner can pick off a poor shot by the server’s partner. This move is what I call the counter-poach. Your opponents will think twice before poaching and will feel pressured to make more good first serves. Used occasionally, it works well provided: 1) the serve is wide but not forceful, 2) the return is well-driven, or 3) the receiver’s partner shifts correctly. If the pattern breaks down, it is usually because of failure to execute the last two.

The counter-poach is best to use when the returns are relatively better than the serves, the serving team doesn’t react or volley well, and they over-anticipate the crosscourt return. It is an excellent play for many collegiate women’s doubles teams. Women with big forehands can go 1/3 of the time down-the-line with the partner moving to pick off the weak backhand volley. My teams that used this pattern correctly probably won 50-60% of the points which is a great percentage for breaking serve.

If you don’t have a big reliable forehand or your opponent reacts well to make the alley volley, then don’t use this formation. In addition, if the receiver’s partner doesn’t shift properly or volley well, you may want to limit its use. Make sure your team understands how to play this pattern before trying it otherwise it can look really bad at times. Finally, it is most useful off the second serve or early in a game (e.g., love-all or 15-all).

The last twist on doubles formations is what I call Australian poaching. This play naturally emerges from using the rarely seen Australian formation shown in Figure 4. Some of the doubles teams I worked with have used it with moderate success. You sometimes see it on the WTA Tour but almost never on the ATP Tour. It is still a good idea at the club level. Use it if your serving team has good forehands and the opponents have weak backhands. Or use it if your serve doesn’t force a weak crosscourt return. Basically it is a forehand to backhand mismatch.

The Australian formation is when the server and partner stand on the same side (usually the ad court) to create a two-forehand advantage (for right-handed players). It allows the server's partner to cover the crosscourt return without much movement. That tempts the receiver to take the riskier down-the-line option which is covered by the server. Tempting the down-the-line return is a good idea if the backhand is weak. Most tennis players have stronger forehands than backhands. Do not serve in the center as it becomes easier for the receiver to move the ball away from your serving team.

After a down-the-line return, the server slides over and can hit a forehand to the receiver’s backhand. The server’s partner can poach off a forehand volley. If the receiving team poaches, it is off a backhand volley. So if you like two forehands versus two backhands, the Australian formation is terrific. It is not a great play if the server’s partner has strong volleys as it often takes the initial volley chance away.

A frequent variation on the WTA Tour is Australian poaching played by the receiving team as shown in Figure 5. For right-handed players, the serve and return are from the deuce court. If the receiving team plays a forehand lob or drive return over or around the server's partner, the serving side switches. The server slides over to play the backhand groundstroke. The down-the-line rally continues and the receiver’s partner can move forward and try to poach on a forehand volley. The server’s partner would have to poach on the backhand volley. There are actual match statistics which show this formation favors the receiving side (which I will present in a later article).

This pattern works well if: 1) the serve is returnable and the receiver can make a good lob or pass down-the-line, 2) the server’s partner likes to poach on the forehand volley making the normal crosscourt return difficult, 4) the server has a weak backhand or 5) the receiver has a strong forehand. The last three are frequent situations so it often comes down to how good the serve and return are.

If you like the forehand-backhand match-up, the Australian poach off the return is a great play. You still, however, have to weigh the accuracy of your return and the strengths of your opponents, especially if left-handed (or you are left-handed).

These formations do not make up most of doubles play. Conventional doubles, whether played with two net rushers or the modern one up and one back, are the most frequently played formations and make up most of doubles points. Never abandon your fundamental game. But using variations makes doubles more fun by adding a little spice to your game. Not to mention that if you are losing with a traditional formation, try throwing a couple wrinkles into the game!

Doug Eng EdD PhD coaches men's tennis at Tufts University. During the summer, he directs at the Tennis Camps at Harvard. He has received divisional Pro of the Year honors from the PTR and USPTA and several national award.

Doug completed the USTA High Performance Coaches program and frequently runs educational and training programs for coaches. Doug also writes and speaks on tennis and sport science.