Serve Game Analysis: Adam & Jacob vs. Providence Hall

First of all, I will fully admit that Adam and Jacob were far more experienced players than their Providence Hall opponents so you can't base conclusions surrounding good doubles strategies and tactics on this match alone. That being said, I think there are still some valuable data points and lessons to be learned here.

We're going to take a look primarily at Adam and Jacob's service games, looking at just a few of the numbers and discussing some of the big takeaways from it.

One note: all of the numbers below (except where noted) exclude points that ended in a double fault.

Formations

Adam and Jacob ran two different formations throughout this match: I-formation and standard.

Standard Formation

Standard Formation: Where the server's partner stands in the service box on the opposite side of the server.

Here is a look at the numbers:

Points played in standard formation: 23
Points won in standard formation: 18

Already it's not hard to see why Adam and Jacob won this match 6-0, 6-0. They won 78 percent of their service points when in the standard formation. That's remarkable!

I-Formation

I-Formation: Where the server's partner is crouched on or near the center service line when the server is serving.

Adam and Jacob did not use this formation as frequently as standard formation, but the numbers are pretty revealing:

Points played in I-formation: 9
Points won in I-formation: 8

They won 89 percent of points played in I-formation! While this is certainly a small sample size, especially considering it was against only one inexperienced opponent, that is still a very intriguing number to see.

The Lesson

Don't be afraid to try something different! Way too often in high school tennis, doubles players just trot out and line up in the same positioning for every single point when there is so much opportunity in other formations and styles of play. Adam and Jacob were even more dominant in I-formation than in standard formation during this match, and in their match two days later, they played a whole set in Australian formation and didn't drop a service game then either. (Sorry, no video or data from that match.)

So the next time you're on court for some doubles, try a new formation!

Serve and Volley

Adam and Jacob also ran two basic plays during the course of this match on their service games: Serve and Stay Back and the Serve and Volley.

Throughout the match, they also played just four points where the server's partner poached (ran from their position to the opposite side in an attempt to pick off a return). They won two of those points, so that tells me that 1) we need more data, and 2) we should practice poaching more.

Serve and Stay Back

Serve and Stay Back: After hitting the serve, the server remains at the baseline to receive the next shot.

The vast majority of high school tennis players stay back after the serve. In this match, Adam and Jacob did it exactly half of the time.

Points played with serve and stay back: 16

Points won with serve and stay back: 13

As you can see, this play worked an overwhelming majority of the time during this match. But what happened when they served and volleyed?

Serve and Volley

Serve and Volley: As a continuous part of his service motion, the server follows through and approaches the net immediately after hitting the serve.

This is so rare in high school tennis these days (and honestly, it is becoming rarer at many levels). But why? Let's look at the numbers from this match:

Points played with serve and volley: 16

Points won with serve and volley: 13

For Adam and Jacob in this match, the numbers are identical! 

The Lesson

Many players, especially younger players, are very tentative to approach the net. Sometimes it is a lack of confidence in net skills, sometimes it is a fear of getting passed or lobbed, and sometimes because it feels riskier, players lose one point and magnify it in their mind or use it as a reason to say, "See! I told you I shouldn't go to the net!"

In reality, there is no reason to fear approaching the net, especially in doubles! It is incredibly difficult to consistently hit winning passing shots and lobs over two opponents at the net. So get up there and give it a try! I promise, good things will happen!

The Importance of Serves and Returns

Serves and returns are the most important shots in tennis. This match certainly illustrates that.

Again removing double fault points, Adam and Jacob played 32 points on their serves and won 26 of them. That's 81 percent of service points won!

However, Adam and Jacob did double fault 5 times, which means they gave away nearly 14 percent of points on their serve. Getting the ball in is half the battle! Having effective serves after that will win you a lot of points. In this match, Adam and Jacob clearly had serves that were far superior to their opponents' returns and it gave them an incredible advantage.

Beyond that, matches become a lot easier to win if you have a good return of serve as well. In this case, Adam and Jacob had an opportunity to return 31 serves and won 23 of those points (74 percent). That is a rare number, and you can't expect to be quite that successful on a regular basis, but it does illustrate an interesting point...

Any advantage you can give yourself on both serves and returns improves your chances of winning! That's why we practice those shots every single day!

Great match, Adam and Jacob!