So am playing in a tournament later today - it's rather casual but my partner is someone who has a weak clear and she can't catch flicks very well. I'm worried opponents will abuse this and flick to her every time. Should I tell her to stand in the middle of the court? OR stand at the very back when serving, and just move up to catch low serves, telling her to do cross lifts so that I'll catch the straight smash? These are obviously less than ideal situations but wanted to know what you guys thought of how to play with a weaker player at the front.
Standing in the very back of the service court doesn't make a lot of sense; short serves would be very hard to retrieve. But sure, like every other badminton player, your partner will have to pick a position as close to the net as possible but far enough from the net so she can retrieve flick serves. If her footwork and shot skills are not that great, then that must be a bit back. The woman standing farther to the back is totally normal in mixed doubles at all levels. Why don't you try it with her before the tournament or during tournament warmup? As part of a normal pre-tournament warmup, I'd always play 20 realistic serves against each other, going through the full range of serves. With this partner, just try to find a balance on where she should stand.
