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General strategy
Doubles shot selection diagram
See also: Doubles: partner of person
hitting the ball must yield court space to opposite team
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General doubles strategy
Subject: Re: court coverage in doubles
Date: 24 Feb 2000 05:48:17 GMT
From: (Blue8682)
Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com
Newsgroups: alt.sport.racquetball
I would just like to make a comment about a few MUSTS in doubles:
1. When you're partner is shooting the ball, get off the damn wall and move
near center court!
2. When your partner serves the ball, get the hell out of the service box.
3. When your cross court opponent is shooting the ball, you are supposed the
cover the pinch, so move the hell up!
4. When your partner is shooting the ball, don't stand in front of your
opponent, it'll just cause a hinder. Let your damn opponent stand in front of
you!
5. Likewise, when you are on defense, get in front of your opponent, otherwise
you won't see the damn ball!
Balance, Timing, and Splatting
Subject: Re: court coverage in doubles
Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2000 01:48:03 -0800
From: Alex Glaros
Organization: www.surfermall.com
Newsgroups: alt.sport.racquetball
References: 1 , 2
Assume that the receiver is on the right side of the court. His cross
court opponent is shooting the ball. The receiver has moved up front to
cover the pinch.
How far from the right side wall should the receiver be?
Thanks,
Alex Glaros
Subject: Re: court coverage in doubles
Date: 26 Feb 2000 05:45:30 GMT
From: (Fred Welfare)
Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com
Newsgroups: alt.sport.racquetball
References: 1
>His cross
>court opponent is shooting the ball. The receiver has moved up front to
>cover the pinch.
>
>How far from the right side wall should the receiver be?
5-8 feet from the right wall in the service box. Consider the shooter's
options:
down the line pass, cross court pass, outside-inside pinch or splat,
inside-outside pinch in the near or far corners, a jam shot up the middle.
This covers most possibilities. If the defense takes up a position too close
to center court, the cross court passes and the jam are the only alternatives
left. The defense wants the offense to attempt to pinch in this situation as
it becomes an easy rekill, the pass will delay the rally and possibly work.
So, to dictate the shot, the defense should appear to leave the front court
open, and then move in when the shot is taken. A smart shot is however to
shoot a jam to the up or front man's backhand which may yield a weak get and a
set up. If this backs him up, the pinch is opened. The thing is to recognize
the pattern of the defense, that is, to vary the defense, otherwise, the
defense will get a few rekills and then nothing. The main idea of the play is
to fake your opponent out. The reason why the frontman must stay off the wall
is to utilize his forehand, he is always a righty. If he moves too far off the
wall, a wide angle pass will get by him and th get by his partner may put him
in the way.
BTW, if you are covering a rekill in the front court and your opponent is also
in the front court, don't try to rekill, it's time to pass.
Your pass should catch the sidewall behind the service zone. Of course, your
partner is in middle court and not on the damn sidewall!!!!
It's in my heart.
Frederick Welfare
Subject: Re: court coverage in doubles
Date: Thu, 24 Feb 2000 01:07:30 -0500
From: William Gargan
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com
Newsgroups: alt.sport.racquetball
The droll truth is neither front-back nor side-side is
right. Fixed patterning is doomed to failure.
The best technique is rotation. It is a complex formula --
rather hard to describe simply -- that has positions
determined on a relative basis.
For example, if Opponent A is on the right side, about to
shoot -- one partner must cover the front (more or less
middle at the front service line) to get the pinch and the
other covers the right side pass and the wide angle pass.
Requires lots of non-verbal communication and a huge amount
of court sense. Partnering experience is the best . . .
Bill Gargan
On Thu, 24 Feb 2000 01:06:35 GMT, John Budnik
I rarely play doubles but a friend that plays mainly doubles
asked me to
enter a tournament with him. In preparation for the event we
played last
night and he insisted we split the court fore and aft. I
took the back
and he played up front. Is this normal? I've never played
that way. I
thought it was usual to split the court left and right.
Needless to say
I was always out of position and when we split it left and
right he was
often out of position. I don't seem much future in this
team.
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
Subject: Re: court coverage in doubles
Date: 24 Feb 2000 14:44:27 GMT
From: (Steve)
Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com
Newsgroups: alt.sport.racquetball
References:
1
blue said:
>I would just like to make a comment about a few MUSTS in doubles:
>
>1. When you're partner is shooting the ball, get off the damn wall and move
>near center court!
>
>2. When your partner serves the ball, get the hell out of the service box.
>
>3. When your cross court opponent is shooting the ball, you are supposed the
>cover the pinch, so move the hell up!
>
>4. When your partner is shooting the ball, don't stand in front of your
>opponent, it'll just cause a hinder. Let your damn opponent stand in front
>of
>you!
>
>5. Likewise, when you are on defense, get in front of your opponent,
>otherwise
>you won't see the damn ball!
Nice comments!
I'd add: if your partner goes up front to cover a pinch on your side (say you
return serve on the left and your partner covers a pinch in the left front
corner), move deep right-center, so that you can cover a drive down the side
your partner just vacated.
Steve
Team E-Force
Steve (SEFSTRAT)
webpage: http://members.aol.com/sefstrat/index.html/sefpage.html
Date: 1999/12/09
Doubles strategy question:
I recently started playing doubles with an experienced group of players,
I find that I have a hard time with doubles shot selection when I'm in
back court, even when I have what would otherwise be an easy set-up.
I can execute any shot, but the defenders will station themselves pretty far up in the front court, side to side, and seem to understand the formula for covering any of my offensive shots: wide-angle pass, pinch, cross-court and DTL pass. They catch the wide-angle pass before it hits the side wall as they are closer to the front wall than I'm used to seeing my opponents in singles.
My partner, one of the rotating guys from this group, will make points by hitting a drive down the middle between the defenders, when the opportunity avails itself, but other than that, I can't think what I can do to improve my chances for scoring a point when I'm in back and they're in front.
Since they're so far up in front court, should I jam them with a high drive to get a weak return?
Is there some way to keep working on them till they're out of position, then make a killshot?
Can somebody just spell the strategy out for me?
Thanks,
Alex Glaros
Subject: Re: Doubles strategy question
Date: 10 Dec 1999 01:41:07 GMT
From: " self "
Scott wrote in article
> Hey Alex,
>A well placed ceiling shot
that moves a front court guy to his weak side in the back of the court will
either generate a point, or a weak return leaving you a better kill
opportunity with them behind you. Patience
. . . . .
Dang. You are killing me, Scott: That is *exactly* my advice as a
sometimes-frustrated / sometimes-exhilarated reluctant doubles player, myself.
When you are playing a good doubles team, often the best strategy is to move them around front to back, and secondarily to also try to get the R player to cover L, and the L player to the R. Now, this is no ironclad guarantee of a win on each point you try it on; but doubles is often about patience. If you just stand by and allow the up front player scoop up what he can get to, and also let the back player clean up on the left-overs, it can be frustrating to try to get an effective shot of your *own* in there somewhere. Rhythm-breakers are what can help: i.e., I don't play the AWB myself, but my partner does, and he
can throw it in sometimes to break the pattern of an effective front-and-back team.
Remember, doubles is an entirely different game, and many times sending the ball upstairs rather than taking a poor kill attempt, while an opponent is 'poaching' up front, is the right (but admittedly difficult) thing to tell yourself to do.
Greg "Patience Hell, I'm gonna KILL sumthin'" Stoner
Subject: Re: doubles strategy and rules quesiton
Date: 04 Sep 2003 02:02:22 GMT
From: (Dano 1 fit)
>We have a "friendly" doubles group. Several members have
learned to cut of
>shots from a front court offensive position and to hit soft 'pinchs'.
The
>quality of these is improving; but many still have have a lot to be
desired.
>
Hey Dan
When given the chance, hit ceiling balls straight down the line ...this
moves
the opponent out of center court and allows you and your partner to converge
on
the front court soft shots that they're executing...that is if they're
even
able to cut that shot off....
On the other hand when given the proper chance, hit solid down the line
passes
about waist high...if they cut this shot off its very difficult for them
to
direct the ball down into any type of reasonable kill area..what you'll
eventually find is that the guys will start to lag back into a deeper
position
and will open up more opportunity for you and your partner....STAy away
from
trying to kill the ball when these guys poach in the front court.....you've
got
to work them out of there.
For years in southern CA Brian hawkes and bill Sell won many events and
beat
many tough teams because Brian was a master at cutting any shot off in
the
front court and controlling the rallies...this came from his outdoor play
where
cutting the ball off was required...My partner and I were able to beat
them
using the strategy I mentioned....
>. From a rules perspective how high a quality of shot must the offense
hit
>in order to prevent a hinder?
>
>3. From a rules perspective how soon after the ball is struck does
the
>hitter have to yield to the new defense moving their position to re-play
the
>shot?
>
Hey dan ...once you start moving the defense out of center and front court
with
the shots I mentioned you shouldn't have problems....
Practice
Down the line ceiling balls from both sides and down the line passes that
hit
waist high and barely come off the back wall
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