One of the first questions that your partner will ask you at the beginning of a doubles match is “Do you wanna serve… or should I?”
Most of the time players just mumble something until one of them says: “Ok, you serve first!”
But really, this is a situation that should be treated seriously if you care to compete well in doubles.
I’d say that the stronger server between the two of you should serve first. In this way, if your team wins the game, that puts you in the lead and takes some of the pressure off.
On the other side, if both of you have decent serves, then you would pay a compliment to your partner by letting them serve first. That shows you have trust in them and this helps in building your team’s confidence.
Cosmin Miholca
Certified Tennis Coach
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Exactly right all the way. Was coaching my high school team on this point when my number 1 doubles walked out on the court and decided to have weaker player serve first. “No, stronger server serves first.” “But he wants to serve first this time coach!!” Assistant coach in emphatic voice says, you heard the coach, now do it! 🙂
Good coaching team! 😊
Hi Cosmin, I have a different view. Both, my partner & I, have fairly strong serves. However, of the two of us, I’m a better player ON THE NET, hence, I always ask him to serve first primarily for 3 reasons: 1) Being the start of the match, there’s not much pressure on my partner to hold serve. 2) He being relatively fresh, is able to generate better pace & direction first up. & 3) Most important- being strong on the net, am bale to cut short at least 3 of the 4 service returns. This way- WHAM, before our opponents realise, we’re either even-stevens or leading the board
Hi Bhushan, it’s great to hear your perspective on serving strategy in doubles.
Overall, your strategy seems to rely on your strengths as a player at the net and the ability to quickly gain an upper hand by utilizing your partner’s strong serve.
Your reasoning behind this decision makes a lot of sense, and it seems like you’ve found a formula that works well for you and your partner. Two thumbs up! 👍👍