I have to say, the higher the standard of doubles play, the less advantage there is of playing a cross court clear or cross court drop. In fact, it becomes a big disadvantage if you lose the surprise factor (I.e. Played it more than two times) because then, each time, you have placed the net player in a dilemma and difficult position (unless he's really really good). The player at the back has to play shots that help his partner. Yes, I have had partners at the front who run back even if I play a straight drop shot right in front of them. I just ask them to stay at the net and not run into me. If I clear and they run back, that's not a problem. They run back and I cover the open space. These type of players are not my partners in competitions.
Personally I use cross court drop shots fairly frequently (meaning two or three times a set). But I only ever get advantages from such shots because of the standard of players I partner with and against. I use a lot of variety and only start using cross court drops once I am already causing my opponents problems with my speed and deception. I generally only use it against slower players (veterans) and only if it doesn't expose my partner (if its a winner or if my partner is very fast like me).
One of my coaches that played doubles at international level (guy played against Ivanov and Sozonov), told me that if you play a drop, it should always be more towards the middle, not the edge of the court. Playing too wide can be bad because your opponents should be in a sides position, and that puts your opponents closer to the drop than your partner - that goes for the straight too. If you play a straight drop without being willing to chase it in, and your partner being sufficiently deep to rotate out, it just ends up disadvantageous.
I suppose I partly agree with that. Certainly central drops are a good option and tend to be underused because they're "boring". I reckon of all drop shots, they are the most likely to get your partner involved, and they can cause confusion among the opponents (who takes it?). I think the point about the straight drop is a little overstated, because the partner should generally be positioned towards the straight side anyway. Even if they are looking to rotate out and help you in the rearcourt, their feet will be lined up for the straight drop (and for the same reason, a cross drop could be really bad in this situation). But it's still a good point, and the idea of using more central drops is still good advice.
It wasn't so much exactly middle all the time, but if you play a drop, it shouldn't necessarily go to the outer tramlines. It should come into the court just a little bit, and that will make it easier for your partner to get the reply. This was just what I got told, I don't know that much about doubles I'm a bit useless at it, hence why I got told.
Totally agree, be very wary about dropping to tramlines. Additionally, a drop to the tramlines may go out thus giving the opponent a freebie
More like drops to the tramlines will unnecessarily open up more angles of reply for your opponents, so can possibly risk getting your partner in trouble as he has to cover the whole width of the forecourt.
It's true with all the risks discussed, but I think we'd discussed something similar before. When the risk is higher, the reward could also be higher. This is esp. in light of the fact your opponents would bias in formation to cover more the straight and middle shots.
For those dropshots and smash, aim to where your partner is, If he/she is at the middle, shoot there, on the left, hit there, if she/he is on the right, then hit there to. Many people don't know how to play as the front player, many think they are just a decoration and will only hit those easy kills, so to save trouble from moving forward and have a spat with your partner, just aim to where your partner is. (There are people who no matter where you move, will stay on the middle, or people who stay cross court) Aiming towards a place where your partner doesn't stand means an easy point as a straight block or drive will create....let's say chaos
That makes good sense. You have to ask what benefit you get from aiming to the tramlines / outside line. In singles it's at least making your opponent move more. In doubles it makes life harder for your partner and increases the chance of hitting out.
There's this one player in our group who always picks the net corner that is the furthest away from his partner at the front when he hits a drop from the back. And when his partner can't retrieve the opponent's straight net block or occasional tight cross court net shot, then he'll look at him like "hey that's your shot to get, why couldn't you get it after I made this wonderful drop shot..." FML when I have to partner him...
IMO it matters much, why you choose crosscourt and didn't cleared to the middle for confusing? Why did you get into the trouble to clear and what was the quality of the clear? Let's examine from the front court player: The front player shouldn't look back. He see the clear as the latter guy of all on the court. Your opponent has all the time to get to the cross court clear. Your partner has minimal time to react and move to the right due 2 facts: - He/she see the clear late - Will get all the pressure at the most minimal time when it's get returned flat and at fast pace. For you: - You clear crosscourt and get the most time to react and know the first of all which shot you play - You are mostly free, because the chance of a cross return is pretty low - You get into a real comfortable zone and blame your partner, because you set the pressure. How to solve the problem. Your partner: should stand in the mid court 2-3 feet away from the T. This would make it easier for him/her to move to the right side easier. You: should think about your partners abilities and the whole situation on court. The back court player often blame the front court player and await things which don't fit to his/her abilities and are nearly impossible. Don't get time for yourself while you set your partner under enormous pressure. I think you created this situation due bad previous shot selections. Why wasn't a drive or stick smash not possible? You was really late, right? You should think first about yourself, then talk to your partner and try to find a solution. IMO there is no right and wrong, just good and bad choices. If you played XD your partner was doing everything right and you are wrong, your quality of your shot was bad etc.
Ha, I just came back to this post and found many great advice, like not dropping to tramlines, dropping closer to the front partner, etc. Many thanks! Yes, I have a mindset problem, I think more in singles, and due to laziness and other reasons, I've been picking easy games and developing bad habits...
I think this is often the curse of players who are more serious into singles than doubles. In singles you are really independent, just think about yourself and you must reach every reply. In doubles it is much more complex, two guys are covering a slightly bigger area and a clear can lead immediately to pressure. In singles it is more difficult to get always in good position for a big smash. In MD not really a big deal to fire.
I think the discussion on this thread has been carried to an extreme. While it may be bad to constantly do clears (let alone X-court) in Doubles, or to constant drop X-court, there is value to keep your shots unpredictable. One MUST play some such shots, albeit at a much lower percentages. As I described earlier, it's risk and reward. Esp. when you notice your opponents are out of position. If you keep hitting the same 1-2 shots, you opponents would have a lot easier time to anticipate them and neutralize them. If you watch top level games, X-court drop shots, and smashes are used, even X-court clears played in backhand could be used successfully (e.g. one XD games in semi/final by Praveen Jordan). As to whether tram line is too far, it really depends on the player's control, and the needed margin for error. If your percentage (of making it is low), obviously don't play that tight. I also don't see anything wrong playing clears to the middle in btw the opponents. In fact, it's a good alternative if your opponents are left/right-hand combinations. You could see such tactical shots used in WD at high level.
Yes, you need to think about your partner, but there's nothing wrong in placing a shot to a place your partner can't get to, if your judgement is that your opponents also couldn't get there. How successful this is depends on your practical outcome in your matches.
I agree, but this also depends on the level of play and how serious you play doubles and how you solve the situation when it comes really back. We also don't know the quality of the clear and the exact position of the pair. A cross court clear for a side by side formation in the mid court to the backhand is IMO not that type of stroke which makes a winner just by falling to the ground. Mostly the defending pair get behind the shuttle, if they don't come to close to the net and can play a longline reply with good quality. I play mostly with my MD and my XD partners, so I think more about the abilities of my partners and our relationships. With random partners I wouldn't think that much. Nevertheless I normally try to set up chances for my partners instead of taking all medium pressure away from me and give him/her more pressure than I take at this moment. It would be nice to know what the opponent replied after this stroke. I guess a longline smash or a punch clear and not a crosscourt and if the OP don't get the point or even an advantage with this shot, it's a bad choice.
I don't remember now. It was a random game with a random partner and the level of play wasn't that high. The opponent receiving the shot had basically no round-the-head or backhand skill, hence my choice. I just wanted to explore the line of thought of my partner.
But the choice of your partner in terms of positioning is not related to the level of play or if the opponent has amazing skills or not. We discuss the options of a level MD pair in this situation and why this movement was used by your partner and what would be the other choice and made a comparison.
