Why Your Doubles Game is Easy to Undermine... And What You Can Do About it
Here at The Previdi System we are often amazed at what passes for doubles strategy and tactics. Everyone tells us they want to win more, raise their rating and go to Nationals but the way they are playing and approaching the game of doubles belies these good intentions. We’re here to help you become the player (and team) everyone fears.
Recently Matt and I had the pleasure of being on the faculty at the 2019 US Tennis Congress https://www.tenniscongress.com/. It is the largest event of its kind in the country: A five day camp for adult competitive players supervised by a world class faculty. We worked closely with twelve players, meeting daily for doubles instruction.
Before we went to camp we received information about our group of players; strengths, weaknesses, specific goals and the type of coach with whom they best connected. The final question asked was, “What kind of player and style gives you the most trouble?” We were amazed to find that every player-- to a person-- recorded the same answer. In their words, they disliked and lost to: lobbers, pushers, players who used slice, players who didn’t hit hard, players who disrupted their timing and rhythm. They used terms like “junk”, “inferior”, “unconventional”, “moon ballers”, “unorthodox”, “unenjoyable”.
Many of you may feel the same way. We know and understand. But to be successful, you will need a style of play that will be effective against all types of players. Here are some thoughts and questions to help you understand what we’re talking about:
- If everyone is bothered by and loses to the same type of player, wouldn’t it be sensible to play more like them? Maybe then everyone would hate playing you! Opponents would go into a match already anticipating problems and difficulty. Remember, The Art of War: “Every battle is won or lost before it’s ever fought.”
- How resilient is your game if all it takes to undermine you is lobs, slice and soft shots? Could your practice time be better spent?
- It is very difficult to attack the open areas of the doubles court unless you use touch and finesse. How can you develop these qualities?
- In order to force errors, weak shots and set up the net player, we need to make our opponents move and be uncomfortable. Hitting everything hard and deep does not achieve these goals. What are the other options?
Those are the problems all players face. Here are the solutions:
- The average point in doubles lasts 3.2 shots. That means everything you practice and every drill you do must include both the serve and the return of serve. Become flawless at the execution and tactics of the first two shots for your team.
- Hitting returns deep and coming to the net is not smart doubles strategy. SAL (Short, Angled and Low), lob returns, and hard returns at the net player will undermine your opponents strengths and expose their deficiencies. Practice them every time you are on the court.
- When coming to net as a team (which you should do on every point), it’s imperative that you use a staggered positioning. We call this Hunter-Helper. The deeper your shot is, the farther back your stagger should be.
- Learn to use the continental grip and underspin to generate low balls, angled balls, touch lobs and touch volleys. These shots will undermine your opponents plans and strengths.
The best news is that we have drills, videos to teach you the drills, practice plans and articles at www.theprevidisystem.com . Our program, The 90 Day Doubles Diet is a comprehensive plan for you and a partner, you and your team, or you and your coach to master all the necessary tactics and skills to impose your will on any opponent. Head to the website and check out a free sample of the 90 Day Doubles Diet. Then use discount code prev19 to receive 35% off the regular price. Remember, you will have access to everything on the website including all future material.
One Time, One Price, Our Entire Program
One Time, One Price, Our Entire Program!
