I often get asked this question when a student has lost a point. What could they have done better after being the victim of a put-away shot and especially if they were in the proper court positioning? Call it short term memory or just not been aware of the big picture but most of my students do not realize when there was absolutely nothing they could have possibly done.

This is due to the type of shot hit just before they lost the point. Since the shot before, hit by them or their partner was so weak, they must understand the point was already lost. Understanding and realizing the point was lost due to the shot before will help reduce the your frustration level since there was nothing you could have done, especially if your partner hit the shot before.
A common example of falling victim to the shot before is when you are the receiver’s partner standing at the service line and your partner hits a high return of serve directly to the opposite net player only to see the net player hit a winning volley either at your feet or between the both of you. You were in the proper court position but since the shot before was so poor there was nothing you could have done.

If your partner repeatedly keeps hitting shots that you end up paying for, well it might be time to look for another partner!
Now on the flip side of that coin, very often the player responsible for the put away often does not get enough credit or get “the assist” for the eventual winner. A common example of that situation is when you as the server, have just served a terrific strong first serve. The return of serve is hit very weakly right at your partner standing at the net, setting up a very easy put away. Your partner, with very little effort hits a winning volley. Your partner gets all the applause while your great serve goes un-noticed. So as you see, the shot before works both ways.

Understanding the positive and negative aspects of the shot before is a good start to understanding how to play doubles.

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