Contents
The ten Swiss tips
- Play as a team.
- Make the first serve.
- Adjust your position constantly.
- Isolate the stronger opponent.
- Play between the opponents.
- Advance to the net side by side.
- Find the gaps.
- Vary the angles.
- Use the pauses to communicate.
- Stay active even when the ball is not for you.
Team positions
The doubles booklet names five set-ups. None of them is “the right one”: each answers a situation, and the coach trains them all.
| Position | Description (doubles booklet, p. 10) |
|---|---|
| Classic | One player back, one at the net in each team |
| Both back | Both partners behind the baseline, the opponents at the net |
| Both up | All four players at the net |
| Australian | Partners one behind the other; after the serve, the net player moves to a side agreed in advance |
| In line | The two net players face to face, the other two face to face at the back |
| I-formation | Not described in the sources read. We leave it out rather than invent a version of it. |
What gives a team the edge
According to the booklet (p. 11), a pair has the edge if it:
- gets to the net quickly;
- plays on one line, parallel to the net;
- covers the court evenly;
- plays to the feet rather than for the outright winner;
- plays through the middle;
- moves at the net within fair play.
The same booklet puts it bluntly: in a match, what matters is not the technical execution of the stroke but its result. In doubles more than anywhere, an ugly volley that lands at the feet is worth more than a fine shot that comes back.
Physically, the doubles demand profile stresses leg speed (short sprint) and arm speed (effective serves), reaction at the net, strength of the shoulder-arm axis and of the postural muscles, with no major deficit in endurance or mobility (see the Physical preparation & load guide).
Communicating and scripting
| Drill | What it teaches |
|---|---|
| “Yes, captain!” | One player per team is captain and calls “Me” or “You” on every ball, clearly, even when there is no doubt, before the ball crosses the net. Progression “Briefing”: agree the tactic before every point and close each point with a ritual. |
| “Interceptions” | Server and returner rally crosscourt; the net players adjust their position and intercept. Move on the opponent’s contact, not before, and poach through the middle. |
| “Spoiler” | The baseliners trade crosscourt forehands; their partners at the net “disturb” the opponents and finish with a volley. Feint, within fair play. |
| “Switch!” | The answer to the lob: the lobbed player leaves the ball to the partner and drops back; the partners cross and change sides. The call “Switch!” comes from the player who takes the ball. |
| “Return of fire” | Serve and return only. The doubles returns listed by the booklet (p. 7): long crosscourt, through the middle, short crosscourt, at the feet, fast and flat down the line, lob down the line. |
The scripted point. Before the point, the partners agree a plan. The booklet’s example (p. 8): deuce court, slice serve out wide, the server covers the line, the net player anticipates the crosscourt return and moves to intercept. The traffic light (red defend, yellow build, green finish) holds in doubles too: that is the drill “Red, yellow, green”, where the teacher puts the team in one of the three situations and the colour is called aloud.
The deciding point and doubles formats
In clubs, doubles is almost always played No-Ad (deciding point). ITF Rules of Tennis 2026, Appendix VI: at deuce, one point decides; the receiving team chooses which side receives, its players may not change positions for that point, and in mixed doubles the player of the same sex as the server receives. Swiss Tennis Interclub doubles are played No-Ad with a 10-point Champions-Tiebreak instead of a third set; FFT formats 3 to 7 use the deciding point (secondary reproduction, see the Rules & match formats guide).
- Order of serving and receiving (Rules 14 and 15): the team serving first in a set chooses its server, partners alternate; the receiving order is fixed for the set. Before a match tie-break, a doubles team may change its order (Appendix VI).
- Training the format. “No-Ad doubles” plays games, sets or matches with the deciding point, with the plan for that point prepared before deuce. “Every game at 30–40” starts each game at 30–40 so both pairs must define their tactic; it is a training form, and no amateur competition read is played over five sets. The booklet also suggests playing one serve only, which removes the safety of the second serve.
Doubles at every age
At red level, doubles is played across the width of the court: two to four small courts fit on one full court. At orange level, on a slightly shortened doubles court; at green, on the official court. The booklet’s forms for the youngest:
- “Table-tennis doubles”: 2 against 2 in the service boxes, partners hit in turn; clear the space after your shot.
- “Flying racket”: one racket per team, passed to the partner after every shot, handle first.
- “Snail doubles”: the first real doubles matches, foam ball then red, orange or green; name the scoring before the first point.
- “Pole position” (six players, three pairs) and “King of the court (lines)” (lines numbered 1 to 4) for u13 and above.
In France, the 2019 FFT Galaxie Tennis grid already writes doubles into the content of the red level (“play in doubles”) and the green level (“in doubles, serve-and-volley … intercept in doubles”).
Frequently asked questions
What about the I-formation?
How many children per court for red-level doubles?
Who chooses the side on the deciding point?
Sources
OFSPO / J+S Tennis, mobilesport practice booklet no. 55 “Tennis – Double” (mobile 4/09, 2009; Bachmann, Meier, J+S Tennis head of discipline): doubles at every age pp. 1 and 3, ten tips p. 2, demand profile p. 3, returns p. 7, scripted point p. 8, positions and traffic light p. 10, team advantages and “Yes, captain!” p. 11, interceptions p. 12, No-Ad and 30–40 forms p. 13, children’s games pp. 14–15. ITF, Rules of Tennis 2026 (Rules 14 and 15, Appendix VI), reproduced in “Rules of the Court 2026” (Tennis Canada). Swiss Tennis, Junioren-Interclubreglement (junior Interclub regulations, JICR) 2026 and Interclubreglement Nationalliga B (ICR NLB) 2026. FFT, “Galaxie Tennis, les évolutions” (2019, readkong copy). FFT formats: TenMatch, “Formats de match FFT : les formats 1 à 7” (16 June 2026, non-federation reproduction). Paak tennis corpus, files 01, 03 and 04, checked in September 2026.