When playing tennis, I was taught that my opponent would find it difficult to hit an angled groundstroke from the center of the court. An angle opportunity only presents itself for your opponent if you create it for him. This holds true whether hitting groundstrokes or volleys, and is especially relevant in doubles where the court is wider then in singles. This is why we say, “Down the middle solves the riddle.”
Therefore, if you don’t have a penetrating serve, it is a good practice to serve down the middle. If you have an average serve and serve to the outside of the court, your opponent has an angle to hit down the line or cross-court. A middle serve neither creates an easy angle for your opponent to return down a net player’s line nor creates an opportunity to make the server run wide. It in fact creates an opportunity for your partner to hit angle volleys off stray returns through the middle.
Unless you have a strong, penetrating wide return, it is also good practice to return through the middle. An average wide return creates angle for your opponent to hit down the line past your partner, or cross-court past you. When receiving, hitting the return near the middle is a tougher proposition, but not impossible. The way I open up the middle return is to demonstrate a willingness and ability to return or lob down the line early in a match. This tactic generally freezes an opposing net player, and stops them from poaching or covering returns hit through the middle. Once the opposing net player is trained to pay attention to the line, the middle return is generally open to exploit, and creates an opportunity for my partner or me to angle a volley winner.
The next time you go out to play doubles, don’t work to create angles for winning shots. Play more balls near the middle of the court, and let your opponents create the angles for you.
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