KOPYA NG SALIN 🔗
WEBVTT
00:01:15.780 --> 00:01:17.940
Hey everyone, welcome to the show.
00:01:18.180 --> 00:01:22.340
This week I had an interview lined up and it kind of fell through.
00:01:22.500 --> 00:01:36.100
So I am recording this strategy episode for you to honor my word from last week and stay consistent or stay more consistent with the podcast and try to continue to release these weekly episodes.
00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:52.980
So what I've done is I've put together some of my favorite questions that I've had recently from a tennis tribe members and then B a clinic I did a couple of weeks ago with a USTA team that is headed to nationals.
00:01:53.219 --> 00:01:56.180
So we're going to talk about four different topics.
00:01:56.340 --> 00:01:59.620
Number one is how to choose return sides.
00:01:59.780 --> 00:02:08.819
Number two is how do you avoid hitting your partner in the back of the head when you are the server or during a rally?
00:02:08.980 --> 00:02:11.300
And then three and four are my two favorites.
00:02:11.620 --> 00:02:20.259
During a match, how do you focus on your opponents when you're so worried about your own game and watching the ball?
00:02:20.580 --> 00:02:27.620
And then number four is when is it time to change strategies on the doubles court during a match?
00:02:27.860 --> 00:02:30.660
So these are going to be really fun topics.
00:02:30.900 --> 00:02:33.220
I think you're going to learn a lot from this episode.
00:02:33.699 --> 00:02:38.340
And like I said, I wanted to uh get this out to you before the weekend.
00:02:38.580 --> 00:02:46.580
So before I get to topic number one, which is return sides, uh, quick announcements and updates on the doubles camps and rally trips.
00:02:46.819 --> 00:02:54.819
So the Dallas Fort Worth Doubles camp, October 24th and 25th, it only has eight spots available, and only three of those are left.
00:02:54.980 --> 00:02:56.980
So this is a very personalized camp.
00:02:57.139 --> 00:02:59.939
You're going to spend eight hours on the court with me.
00:03:00.100 --> 00:03:02.500
We're going to do a strategy presentation.
00:03:02.900 --> 00:03:03.939
Lunch is included.
00:03:04.020 --> 00:03:07.220
There's some really cool player gifts that you're going to get as well.
00:03:07.460 --> 00:03:08.980
And it's very personalized.
00:03:09.060 --> 00:03:12.900
So I'm going to be filming your play on the court.
00:03:12.980 --> 00:03:15.379
We're going to be analyzing some of your strokes.
00:03:15.699 --> 00:03:24.019
And by the end of it, I'm going to be able to share with you some of the best tactics and strategies you can use once you go back home and start playing in your league again.
00:03:24.180 --> 00:03:30.180
And then also drills you can use when you go back home to continue to improve your game.
00:03:30.340 --> 00:03:36.900
So this is going to be very different than any clinic or camp that you've done before.
00:03:37.220 --> 00:03:41.860
Also, I have a camp coming up in Miami, November 14th and 15th.
00:03:42.100 --> 00:03:43.540
I've talked about that as well.
00:03:43.699 --> 00:03:47.139
We've got a morning group with only two spots remaining.
00:03:47.220 --> 00:03:49.540
And then the afternoon group is a little more open.
00:03:49.620 --> 00:03:52.660
We've had, I think, four or five people sign up so far.
00:03:52.740 --> 00:03:56.500
So we've got maybe 10 to 12 spots left.
00:03:57.220 --> 00:04:08.019
I will link to all of this in the show notes, which includes a detailed agenda of each camp and then also recommended hotels if you are traveling from out of town.
00:04:08.259 --> 00:04:10.019
And then the rally trips.
00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:16.180
We've partnered with the Dallas Open actually to create four different options for you.
00:04:16.259 --> 00:04:24.420
So three of those options are one night, two-day trips, and then there is a weekend option that is three days and three nights.
00:04:24.579 --> 00:04:27.459
And you're going to do some tennis drills with me.
00:04:27.620 --> 00:04:31.139
I'll do a strategy presentation, and then we go to the Dallas Open.
00:04:31.220 --> 00:04:37.139
And this is different than anything we've done before because we've partnered with the tournament itself.
00:04:37.459 --> 00:04:46.740
We're going to be sitting in a VIP suite that is all-inclusive, food and beverage, including alcohol, on center court.
00:04:46.819 --> 00:04:48.819
So this is going to be a really cool trip.
00:04:48.980 --> 00:04:52.180
And the hotel is walking distance from the tournament.
00:04:52.420 --> 00:04:59.139
And it's a fun area with uh restaurants and shopping and all that sort of stuff, um, all within walking distance.
00:04:59.300 --> 00:05:01.939
So I'm going to link to that in the show notes as well.
00:05:02.100 --> 00:05:06.819
If you want to do a shorter two-day, one-night stay, that's great.
00:05:06.900 --> 00:05:10.500
If you want the more extended rally trip, that is an option as well.
00:05:10.660 --> 00:05:12.819
So I'm going to link to all that in the show notes.
00:05:12.980 --> 00:05:15.699
I hope that some of you can join me.
00:05:15.780 --> 00:05:21.300
Um, these in-person events have become, like I've said in the past, a big part of what Tennis Tribe does.
00:05:21.459 --> 00:05:26.019
And honestly, I get a ton of joy out of them because I love spending time.
00:05:26.259 --> 00:05:45.460
Um, I love spending time behind the microphone talking to all of you, but I also love meeting you in person and interacting uh in person and um getting to work with you kind of hands-on so that we can um continue to improve your doubles game and have fun watching the best doubles teams and tennis players in the world.
00:05:45.700 --> 00:05:46.740
So let's dive in.
00:05:46.900 --> 00:05:47.860
Return sides.
00:05:47.939 --> 00:05:49.060
This is a really big topic.
00:05:49.140 --> 00:05:57.060
It's something I've covered in the past, but um, you know, with all of my lessons, I'm constantly kind of
Load full transcript
tweaking my language and changing my mind on stuff.
00:05:57.300 --> 00:06:02.100
So um it's been a while since I've covered this and I wanted to talk about it again.
00:06:02.340 --> 00:06:06.980
So recently I was working with a USTA team that is headed to nationals.
00:06:07.300 --> 00:06:12.180
Some of the teams were asking me, you know, we're not sure which side we should return on.
00:06:12.500 --> 00:06:18.100
So sometimes the return side you choose doesn't make a huge difference.
00:06:18.260 --> 00:06:31.220
If both of you are solid from both sides, you don't have any glaring weaknesses in terms of forehands and backhands, uh, whether that's at the net or ground strokes, then it may not matter a whole lot which side you return from.
00:06:31.300 --> 00:06:34.900
But that's typically not the case in club level doubles.
00:06:35.140 --> 00:06:42.580
So one of the things that I think is underrated or underconsidered perhaps is the volley.
00:06:42.819 --> 00:06:47.300
So we're talking about return sides, and you wouldn't think, okay, why does the volley matter?
00:06:47.379 --> 00:06:49.140
We're talking about returns, right?
00:06:49.379 --> 00:07:00.340
The reason the volley matters is during the point, if you are at the net and you have your weak volley in the middle of the court, your partner has to win the point by themselves.
00:07:00.580 --> 00:07:16.819
So if you're the returner's partner and you're not getting involved in the point on a consistent basis, then you need to change something and you need to uh probably switch return sides to get your stronger volley in the middle of the court.
00:07:16.980 --> 00:07:18.420
So, what does that look like?
00:07:18.580 --> 00:07:25.620
For these teams, I try to divide them up into a baseline player with a net player.
00:07:25.780 --> 00:07:31.700
Um, one of the best WA teams to study who does this really well is Paulini and Arani.
00:07:31.780 --> 00:07:33.860
Sarah, Arani, Jasmine, Paulini.
00:07:33.939 --> 00:07:38.660
Um, Paulini hasn't been playing as much doubles recently, but I've done a lot of lessons on them.
00:07:38.900 --> 00:07:43.460
And Arani is the role of the net player for this team.
00:07:43.540 --> 00:07:47.140
And then Paulini is the role of the baseline player for their team.
00:07:47.300 --> 00:08:10.819
And they do a really good job of using different formations and setting up through their just return sides to get into their ideal positions, which is Arani at the net in the ad court with her forehand volley in the middle, and Paulini at the baseline in the deuce court rallying with her forehand to set up Arani.
00:08:11.140 --> 00:08:15.620
So that is how I try to set up a lot of my club level doubles teams.
00:08:15.780 --> 00:08:18.340
I figure out, okay, who's my baseline player?
00:08:18.420 --> 00:08:21.540
I'm gonna put you on the deuce side, and then who's my net player?
00:08:21.620 --> 00:08:30.420
I'm gonna put you on the ad side so that you have your forehand volley in the middle, and you can clean up any weak balls from the opposing baseline player.
00:08:31.140 --> 00:08:33.460
Now, there's exceptions to this, right?
00:08:33.539 --> 00:08:35.059
What if you have a lefty on the court?
00:08:35.220 --> 00:08:37.939
What if you like your backhand volley more than your forehand volley?
00:08:38.019 --> 00:08:40.419
In that case, you want to maybe play the deuce side.
00:08:40.659 --> 00:08:45.059
So the key with this is to just consider what volley you have in the middle.
00:08:45.139 --> 00:08:51.139
If one of you has a volley that you absolutely hate, I would try to make sure that that's not in the middle.
00:08:51.379 --> 00:08:56.500
Now, having said all that, prioritize making returns, right?
00:08:56.580 --> 00:09:05.700
If you are trying to get your stronger volley in the middle, so you're going to play the ad side, but you just can't make a return from the ad side, then it doesn't help, right?
00:09:05.860 --> 00:09:07.620
Because you're losing all your return points.
00:09:07.779 --> 00:09:21.059
So we are still going to prioritize making returns, but at the club level, I find most of us, unless you're getting to a higher and higher level, probably four or five plus, most of us can return from both sides.
00:09:21.299 --> 00:09:24.580
If you hate your backhand return, you can still return from the add side.
00:09:24.659 --> 00:09:28.580
Just shift it a little bit to your left and hit more forehands, right?
00:09:28.899 --> 00:09:33.379
If you want to hit more backhands, you can hit return from the due side by shifting to your right.
00:09:33.539 --> 00:09:37.700
So adjusting your court position will allow you to hit more of your favorite shot.
00:09:37.860 --> 00:09:44.580
But again, I want to consider that volley because I want you winning these return points as a team.
00:09:44.819 --> 00:09:48.019
The baseline player shouldn't be winning these points on their own.
00:09:48.179 --> 00:09:50.339
That's not a very good double strategy.
00:09:50.500 --> 00:09:52.339
We want to win these points as a team.
00:09:52.500 --> 00:09:55.139
And that net player needs to be involved.
00:09:55.379 --> 00:10:03.219
So think about that when you're talking about um or trying to figure out return sides uh with your next doubles partner.
00:10:04.419 --> 00:10:16.019
So, next question: when the server's partner is moving more towards the center of the court while at the net, how do you avoid hitting him in the back of the head or his back on serve?
00:10:16.339 --> 00:10:20.019
So this is uh a little bit of a different question.
00:10:20.259 --> 00:10:31.219
Um, it sounds like the server is having trouble um getting the ball past their uh partner at the net, right?
00:10:31.539 --> 00:10:36.980
So this doesn't seem like a movement thing, it seems more like a positioning thing to me.
00:10:37.219 --> 00:10:45.459
Um the server's partner should not start moving towards the middle before the ball
crosses the net, right?
00:10:45.860 --> 00:10:51.620
Um so if you think about it, I toss the ball, I hit my serve, the ball crosses the net.
00:10:51.779 --> 00:11:01.059
When the ball crosses the net, then the server's partner will start their movement either towards the middle or towards the double sally, um, depending on which play was called.
00:11:01.139 --> 00:11:03.860
Hopefully you're moving towards the middle a bit more.
00:11:04.579 --> 00:11:08.819
But what about if their position is closer to the middle of the court?
00:11:08.899 --> 00:11:12.659
This actually happened a couple weeks ago with that same USTA team.
00:11:12.740 --> 00:11:18.019
One of the players was worried about getting hit, so she stood way over by the double sally.
00:11:18.740 --> 00:11:20.819
And there's two things I would say.
00:11:20.980 --> 00:11:23.539
Number one is duck.
00:11:23.860 --> 00:11:25.219
Um, pretty simple.
00:11:25.379 --> 00:11:35.939
But if you need to get down on a knee or in a crouched position or kind of into a squat to duck and avoid your partner uh hitting you in the back of the head, do that.
00:11:36.019 --> 00:11:38.659
You'll see the pros do it when they use eye formation, right?
00:11:38.740 --> 00:11:40.500
They try to stay really low.
00:11:40.659 --> 00:11:44.579
Um, the second thing is sometimes you just get hit in the back.
00:11:44.740 --> 00:11:48.179
And how important is this match to you?
00:11:48.419 --> 00:11:52.579
Is it more important that you don't get hit in the back of the head or is it more important that you win the match?
00:11:52.740 --> 00:11:56.099
And that's something I asked um this lady that was headed to nationals.
00:11:56.179 --> 00:12:01.139
I said, is it more important that you win nationals or that you avoid getting hit in the back?
00:12:01.299 --> 00:12:02.500
And it's an honest question.
00:12:02.579 --> 00:12:13.779
If she just doesn't want to get hit in the back and it's not worth it, then continue that tactic of staying closer to the sideline, and you're going to be less likely to win nationals, right?
00:12:13.860 --> 00:12:19.219
You're going to be less likely to win that match because you're positioning yourself out of the play.
00:12:19.379 --> 00:12:26.579
To poach from there, you have to move so early that you're going to leave the line open and not disguise your poach, which I've talked about in the past.
00:12:27.779 --> 00:12:31.219
So the other thing you have to think about is timing with this, right?
00:12:31.459 --> 00:12:36.579
So the timing of the movement of the net player is the crucial thing here.
00:12:36.819 --> 00:12:41.779
So they've got to time it with the opponent's swing, not with anything else, right?
00:12:41.860 --> 00:12:44.659
With the opponent's movement, body language, and swing.
00:12:44.740 --> 00:12:46.819
That's how you're timing your poach.
00:12:47.139 --> 00:12:51.699
So based on their swing, you shouldn't be moving before your partner hits.
00:12:51.860 -->
00:12:57.459
And if you are moving towards the middle and the ball's behind you, again, you need a duck.
00:12:57.779 --> 00:12:59.299
So a little bit of a different question.
00:12:59.459 --> 00:13:01.379
Hopefully that answers the question.
00:13:01.539 --> 00:13:06.099
Um, for uh, this was from a tennis tribe member, I believe.
00:13:06.179 --> 00:13:09.699
Um, but if you have more questions about that, definitely reach out to me.
00:13:09.939 --> 00:13:13.219
So, next, these are the last two, and I I love these questions.
00:13:13.379 --> 00:13:23.860
Um, the first one, during a match, I find it hard to think about how my opponents are playing as I'm focusing on my own game and watching the ball.
00:13:23.939 --> 00:13:25.699
Do you have any tips for this?
00:13:26.099 --> 00:13:35.539
Okay, so the first thing you can do is start to study doubles teams from the sidelines.
00:13:36.019 --> 00:13:42.339
So if you show up to your match early and you're stretching on the side and getting warmed up, watch one of the doubles matches.
00:13:42.419 --> 00:13:50.099
Even if it's people you don't know, it doesn't matter who it is, watch one of the doubles matches and study one of the teams and ask yourself, how would I beat them?
00:13:50.259 --> 00:13:51.860
How would I serve that player?
00:13:52.019 --> 00:13:55.379
How would I try to return to avoid that net player?
00:13:55.539 --> 00:13:56.980
Um, what are they doing well?
00:13:57.139 --> 00:13:58.659
What are their weaknesses?
00:13:58.899 --> 00:14:09.779
And as you start to work that muscle from the sidelines, because it is a lot easier to do this from the sideline or from behind the fence, then you'll be able to implement it on the court a bit easier.
00:14:09.939 --> 00:14:11.539
So I would start there.
00:14:12.179 --> 00:14:22.099
And then once you're on the court, one of the things that that you asked or you mentioned is I'm focusing on my game and watching the ball.
00:14:22.419 --> 00:14:28.259
So too many of us, and we talked about this last week, too many of us watch the ball too much.
00:14:28.579 --> 00:14:34.179
When you're off the ball, and that is when your partner is hitting, you should not be watching the ball.
00:14:34.339 --> 00:14:36.579
You should be watching the opponents, right?
00:14:36.659 --> 00:14:39.539
So this is one of the big things about playing at the net.
00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:43.939
But even if you're at the baseline and your partner is hitting, you shouldn't be watching the ball.
00:14:44.179 --> 00:14:45.379
Your partner's got it.
00:14:45.539 --> 00:14:55.539
Watch the opponents, and that is going to give you a lot of information as to where they like to move based on what's going on during the point, right?
00:14:55.860 --> 00:15:02.099
And that'll give you everything you need to know about your movement and your shot selection and what you should be doing.
00:15:02.179 --> 00:15:04.259
And you can communicate that with your partner.
00:15:04.740 --> 00:15:06.899
So don't watch the ball too often.
00:15:07.059 --> 00:15:09.299
You're only watching it when it's coming at you.
00:15:09.459 --> 00:15:14.419
Okay, when it comes off the opponent's rackets and it's your ball, it's coming at you.
00:15:14.659 --> 00:15:21.779
And then the last thing I would say, again, when we're out on the doubles court, we are so focused on ourselves.
00:15:22.019 --> 00:15:25.860
We really want to play well, we don't want to let our partner down, we want to win the match.
00:15:26.019 --> 00:15:31.219
And ironically, having that mentality makes you less likely to win.
00:15:31.539 --> 00:15:41.539
Because if you're going to be a good doubles player, if you're going to be a successful doubles player strategically, you have to realize that you're the fourth most important player on the court.
00:15:41.779 --> 00:15:44.500
The two most important players are the opponents.
00:15:44.659 --> 00:15:48.500
You've got to focus on them and getting them to play bad.
00:15:48.740 --> 00:15:57.139
And then focus on your partner and help them play good, get them in the right positions, get them on the right return side, like we talked about earlier.
00:15:57.299 --> 00:16:03.459
And then if you do that, do those things right, you'll probably play a little better, anyways, and you'll probably win the match.
00:16:03.620 --> 00:16:08.659
And even if you don't, you'll still probably win the match because you got three out of the four things right.
00:16:08.980 --> 00:16:13.379
So our top priority by far is to get our opponents to play bad.
00:16:13.539 --> 00:16:15.779
So we've got to quit focusing on our own game.
00:16:15.860 --> 00:16:27.459
We've got to quit watching the ball when we're not uh the ones that that are hitting or when the ball's not coming at us, and we've got to have our eyes on the opponents and focus on them and analyze their game throughout the match.
00:16:27.699 --> 00:16:33.699
You know your own game, you know your capabilities, you're not gonna learn anything new during this match, right?
00:16:34.579 --> 00:16:37.939
So you're the fourth most important player on the court.
00:16:38.259 --> 00:16:39.860
We have to remember that.
00:16:40.419 --> 00:16:45.139
Last thing, when, last question here, when is it time to change strategies?
00:16:45.299 --> 00:16:54.500
It's nice to have a game plan going into a match, but when the match is not going well as you'd hoped, when is a good time to change to another strategy?
00:16:54.819 --> 00:17:06.579
Um, this is a really good question, and it's something that I have changed my mind progressively on over the years, and the answer is earlier than you think.
00:17:06.900 --> 00:17:11.779
Um, I think people wait way too long to change a strategy.
00:17:11.940 --> 00:17:26.339
So, what I like to do is experiment very early in the match and test out their forehand return, their backhand return, um, test out different types of returns for myself, um, test out, you
know, can they make this shot down the line?
00:17:26.500 --> 00:17:28.180
Can they make it cross-court?
00:17:28.339 --> 00:17:33.140
Um, how do they, what type of height and spin and pace do they hit with their forehand and backhand return?
00:17:33.380 --> 00:17:35.779
And that will dictate my strategy.
00:17:35.940 --> 00:17:48.099
But if we get into the match, and let's say we lose the first set 6'3 or 6'4 or even 7'5, a lot of teams will say, we're fine, we just need to play better.
00:17:48.259 --> 00:17:49.779
Now that's not a strategy.
00:17:49.940 --> 00:17:52.099
We just need to play better is not a strategy.
00:17:52.259 --> 00:17:54.019
How are you going to play better?
00:17:54.339 --> 00:17:58.339
Like if you say you're gonna raise your energy, okay, well, how are you gonna do that?
00:17:58.500 --> 00:18:00.579
Are you gonna jump around between every point?
00:18:00.660 --> 00:18:03.059
Are you gonna give your partner a high five between every point?
00:18:03.220 --> 00:18:11.700
There are intangibles to this, it's not all about strategy, but you have to have a plan to actually play better.
00:18:11.860 --> 00:18:23.379
Um, I think most players or most teams don't make any adjustments after they lose a set 6-3 and 6-4, and they think they just need to play better and they end up losing 6-3, 7-5, right?
00:18:23.859 --> 00:18:29.139
So I would consider which part of your game do you need to play better?
00:18:29.379 --> 00:18:31.139
So is it your serves or returns?
00:18:31.619 --> 00:18:35.299
And then whose serves specifically, whose return specifically?
00:18:35.619 --> 00:18:38.259
And if it's your returns, you can change return sides.
00:18:38.579 --> 00:18:41.940
If it's your serves, figure out okay, do we need to be poaching more?
00:18:42.180 --> 00:18:45.059
Do we need to play two back on a second serve?
00:18:45.299 --> 00:18:47.779
Do we need to use different serve formations?
00:18:48.099 --> 00:18:50.420
What is it about the serve?
00:18:50.740 --> 00:18:51.940
Is it to the deuce court?
00:18:52.019 --> 00:18:52.980
Is it to the ad court?
00:18:53.220 --> 00:19:01.220
You want to get really specific with this and make adjustments to the specific games and specific types of points that you're losing.
00:19:01.379 --> 00:19:06.180
And again, you should make these adjustments a lot earlier than you think you should.
00:19:06.740 --> 00:19:08.980
All right, so that's it for this episode.
00:19:09.139 --> 00:19:10.180
Hopefully, this was helpful.
00:19:10.259 --> 00:19:14.420
Um, I'm gonna try to do more of these kind of short uh QA episodes.
00:19:14.500 --> 00:19:21.299
I've, you know, most of you give me pretty good feedback on the strategy episodes, and they are the most downloaded generally.
00:19:21.379 --> 00:19:25.779
Um, so I want to, you know, give y'all more of what you want to listen to.
00:19:25.940 --> 00:19:27.379
Um so hopefully this was helpful.
00:19:27.539 --> 00:19:29.539
Reach out if you have any questions or any feedback.
00:19:29.700 --> 00:19:38.740
And I haven't in a while asked for this, but if you do enjoy the podcast, if you could leave a review on Apple Podcast or wherever you listen.
00:19:38.819 --> 00:19:39.859
So thank you for listening.
00:19:40.019 --> 00:19:41.379
I will talk to you all soon.