Doubles Strategy for Newer Players

The big idea: get to the kitchen line

In doubles, the team that controls the net usually wins the rally. Standing just behind the kitchen line lets you volley the ball before it drops, take time away from your opponents, and hit down at their feet. Standing at the baseline means you have to hit up, from far away, over a net that is waiting to stop you.

Almost every strategy below is really about one question: how do we get both players to the kitchen line, and how do we keep the other team away from it?

Where to stand at the start of a rally

When your team is serving

Both of you start at the baseline. The server has no choice, and the server's partner should stay back too. Because of the two-bounce rule, the return has to bounce before your team can hit it — so if the partner rushes forward, a deep return will bounce behind them and leave them stranded.

When your team is receiving

The receiver stands at or a step behind the baseline, ready for a deep serve. The receiver's partner starts at the kitchen line, already where the team wants to be. After returning, the receiver walks forward to join them.

The third shot

The serving team's first real shot after the return is called the third shot, and it is the hardest shot in the game, because the opponents are at the net and you are at the baseline. There are two main options.

The third-shot drop

A soft, arcing shot that clears the net and lands in your opponents' kitchen. They cannot volley it down because it is dropping below the height of the net, so they have to hit up — and that gives your team time to move forward. It is the shot coaches talk about most, because it is how the serving team earns its way to the net.

You will miss a lot of drops while learning, and that is fine. Aim for height over the net rather than skimming it; a drop that lands mid-kitchen is far better than one in the net.

The drive

A hard, low shot, usually aimed at the feet of the player who returned (they may still be moving forward). Drives are useful against opponents who are slow to get set, and many players hit a drive and then a soft drop on the fifth shot. The danger is that a drive at players already set at the net comes straight back at you.

A good rule for open play: drive when the returner is still on the move, drop when both opponents are already at the line.

Moving up together

The space between the baseline and the kitchen line is called the transition zone, and it is where most points are lost — balls land at your feet and you have to hit awkward half-volleys. Move forward in steps when your shot gives you time, and stop and get balanced (a small split-step) as your opponent hits.

Move with your partner as if you are connected by a rope a few metres long. If one of you is at the net and the other is back, a ball between you or at the back player's feet is very hard to defend.

The dink game

Once all four players are at the line, rallies often become an exchange of dinks: soft shots that bounce in the opponents' kitchen. Dinking is patience, not passivity. You are waiting for someone to pop the ball up high enough to attack.

• Dink crosscourt more often than straight ahead. It travels over the low middle of the net, gives you more court to aim at, and gives you more time.
• Keep it low and unattackable. A dink that bounces at your opponent's ankles is better than one that wins outright, because it cannot be punished.
• Attack the ball that sits up. When a dink comes back above net height, that is your cue to speed it up — at the opponent's body or feet, not the sideline.
• Do not speed up a low ball. Hitting hard from below the net usually sends the ball up, which is exactly what your opponents are waiting for.

Aim at the middle

"Middle solves the riddle" is a pickleball cliché because it is true. A ball down the middle between two opponents creates a moment of hesitation over who takes it, gives them the smallest angle to hit back, and reduces your chance of hitting wide. When in doubt, aim between them.

Talk to your partner

Most collisions and "I thought you had it" moments disappear with a few words:

• "Mine" / "Yours" — call balls down the middle early.
• "Bounce" — tell your partner to let a ball go that looks like it is going long.
• "Switch" — when one of you is pulled across and you need to swap sides.

A common agreement is that the player with their forehand in the middle takes middle balls. Agree on it at the start of the game rather than mid-point.

Mistakes almost everyone makes

• Hitting everything hard. Power wins some points but loses more. Control and placement win games.
• Standing in no-man's-land after the serve or return instead of either staying back or getting to the line.
• Watching your own shot instead of resetting your feet and paddle for the next ball.
• Lobbing too often. A lob over a player at the net can work, but a short lob is an easy overhead for them. Use it sparingly.
• Holding the paddle low. Keep it up in front of your chest at the net — most fast exchanges happen at that height.

Using open play to improve

Open play is the best place to practise these habits, because you play many different partners and opponents in one session. Pick one thing per session — returning deep, attempting the drop, dinking crosscourt — and focus on it even when it costs you a few points. If your group uses balanced matchmaking, the games will tend to be close, which is exactly when good habits pay off.