More on Shifting as a Unit in Tennis Doubles

Over the past couple weeks I've been asking players what they think about the adage that doubles partners should shift left or right as unit, "as if roped together." I'm still not sure where this is coming from, but I'll take a stab at this misconception here and go into it a little deeper in the November-December newsletter.

First, like so many bits of bad advice, I think this one started out as good advice but was taken out of context, and the next thing you know, everyone is saying it's generally true.

But if you ask people how this is so, you'll find that none can give you one good reason. Typically, they cheat with the fallacious argument known as the "appeal to authority." It goes like this: "It's true because So-and-So [insert famous name here] says so."

I don't care who So-and-So is. Even if it's me ;-) So-and-So is fallible. And people who know what they're talking about can give give valid reasons for what they say.

Yes, there are times when you and your partner should both shift the same direction, leftward or rightward as a unit. These times usually occur when you are in a side-by-side formation, like the Both-Up Formation or the Both-Back Formation. But it can happen when you are in the Up-and-Back Formation too.

Nonetheless, more often than not, you and your partner should shift opposite directions, diverging or converging.

Here's the most common scenario. Both teams are in the Up-and-Back Formation. Before you say that isn't common at higher levels of play, think again. Many points, even at the top of the game are played in this situation. And almost every point at least begins this way.

Picture it: you have your deuce-side baseliners exchanging crosscourt drives. That's because they try to keep the ball away from the opposing net player. In this rally, some of those crosscourt shots fly at sharp angles.

Result? The Angle of Return gets nasty. When you hit a sharply angled shot, you give your opponent an even sharper Angle of Return. This means that, if you don't watch out, you are going to see a winner come back at a wicked crosscourt angle.

It's the most common error in doubles: a baseliner hits a sharply angled drive crosscourt (one that draws the opposing baseliner wide of the alley to play it) and then recovers THE WRONG WAY - toward center (leftward), instead of shifting out wider (rightward) to cover that nasty Angle of Return.

But now look what your net partner must do at the same time. He or she must shift the opposite direction (leftward) to cover the line down their alley the opposing baseliner has.

This is correct. Your team's shot has given the opponent a sharp and broad Angle of Return, and you two are spreading yourselves thinner to cover it.

This is the single most common scenario in doubles, and it blows right out of the water the adage that you and your partner should always shift the same direction as if roped together.

You can't dumb this down to any rote rule to memorize and follow. You have to learn to visualize the Angle of Return. Once you can do that, your instincts kick in, and you intuitively move the right direction.

I think many people are mislead by that adage because they're thinking in terms of words and instructions instead of visualizing what is going on. They probably are reacting to talk of the gap in the Up-and-Back Formation. Consequently, they probably think that you and your partner are far apart in it and that the opponent will be able to hit between you if you move opposite directions, spreading farther apart.

Wrong. Not in this case. Laterally, you and your partner are no farther apart than you are in the Both-Up or Both-Back Formations. So, from straight on, it's no easier to put a shot between you. And that opposing baseliner in the example above is NEVER going to get the ball between you from there. Your baseliner would have to be down on the next court to make the hole between you big enough!

The gap/hole in the Up-and-Back Formation is an ANGULAR gap. Only an opposing net player kitty-cornered from your net player has a line of fire through it. So long as you keep the ball away from that opposing net player, the gap is no problem.

Like I said, I'll have a little more on this in the newsletter. The website introduces the topic of positioning and the Angle of Return, and the Strategy Guide completely covers it.

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