Tip of the day
In mixed doubles, your job as the supporting player is to manipulate your dinks so your partner gets easy attacks. Start your dinks right at the opponent's feet, then roll one wide to pull her off the kitchen so she pops it up or feels pressure.
If the opposing man keeps poaching the middle, dink behind him so he has to scramble back and reach. Watch his weight, not the woman across from you. The instant he leans in to poach, that is your cue to speed up or dink down his line.
The man should take the middle and play aggressive, while the woman stays selective and picks her spots, since the man across usually has more reach and power. Make your dinks deeper to bait a weaker opponent into a low-quality speed up your partner is ready for.
When you get attacked, take a step off the line and expect the man to reach in. If the ball is low, reset it crosscourt back to the woman, where there is more room to drop it and less reach to take it out of the air.
Stay fluid with your position. Drop back to defend, but get back to the line the moment you hit a ball that lands low. On thirds and drops, target the woman or go behind a crashing man, and talk with your partner about who takes the middle before the match starts.
Key points
Roll your dink wide to pull the opponent off the kitchen and force a pop up.
Dink behind the opposing man when he poaches so he has to scramble back and reach.
Watch the man's weight shift, not the woman, to time your speed up down the line.
Reset low balls crosscourt to the woman, who has less reach and more court to cover.
Talk with your partner before the match about who takes the middle and the thirds.
Deal of the day
Meme of the day
AI is crazy 🤣
That’s it for today! As always, thank you for reading. 🙏
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Happy pickling,
Paul
