Dobbie98 said

Following a recent mixed doubles match, I also realise that your partner must have some awareness around tactics. Even as simple as play the shuttle into the gaps, lift as a last resort. Explaining serving out wide all the time opens up the court too much. The game ended up with us losing 21 – 13 21 -19 but with her 7 unforced errors hitting out two serves in the net & unable to defend the smashes from the lifts she made. Really makes it a challenge to win.

Hi Dobbie

In my view your assessment of your partner is quite harsh. Winning matches is always tough no matter what level you are at. 21-19 is a close game in my book, and not a bad effort!

7 unforced errors is a lot, but shes probably not trying to make a mistake, so its not a tactical weakness, but a technical one (and we ALL have some of those). 2 serves in the net isn’t ideal, but how good is her regular serve? If I served brilliantly but hit 2 in the net I would be happy. If all my serves are too loose but they all went over the net, then that is a big big big problem.

Is she unable to defend smashes because the smashes are coming straight rather than cross court? Are the lifts landing in the back tramlines before the other guy smashes? Lots of things that could be going wrong here!

I’m surprised you say lift as a last resort. Here is my understanding:
If you or your partner is very weak in defence and cannot retrieve any kind of smashes, even off a lift that went onto the back line of your opponent, then lifting is indeed a weakness. However, I find that lifting is the most important part of my matches. I find it is much better to hit a good deep clear than to risk playing an attacking shot when I am out of position – more mistakes come from getting out of position than from defending smashes from someone who is on the back line in my view. At EVERY occasion that I encounter where I am struggling for position, I will hit a clear or a lift. If someone clears to me, the odds are I will clear back because I am happy to see them stood at the back line trying to attack – they will not succeed because they are too far back.

Finally I will say – there are many matches against very good players that I could not win without lifting. Some players are very fast and can intercept shots easily and quickly e.g. if you do a fast lift to the corner, then they often intercept it BEFORE it gets to the back of the court. This means they can hit a full power smash, before I can recover fully, AND they can keep their central position on the court (not moving much). This is bad for me and great for them – its challenging for me to counter attack or get the shuttle safe because they retain such good court positioning. However, if I hit a very high lift, to the back, it doesn’t matter how fast they are, they are now being held up at the back of the court AND I have created large gaps around the court that I can safely hit to.

So you see, a lift is a really good tactical thing for MAKING gaps, because people have to get behind the shuttle and hence have a long way to run for the next shot. However, if I hit flatter shots, there are hardly any gaps to hit into.

I hope that makes sense – I love to lift. A good lift puts me in control!

Dobbie98 said

Hi Matt, thanx for your thoughts. Here’s a bit more detail. I know my partner is trying her best. But losing 9 points in 1 game unforced errors from serve & return of serve to me is high. Her lifts go mid court & she stays bang smack in the middle of the court to which I then have to decide to pick a side or try and cover her. Don’t get me wrong she does come up with some good shots. But guess I want a partner who can control the net and move like a panther(if that makes sense) Plus it’s not nice seeing her wearing the shuttle. I would rather she played blocks, pushes & kills. She doesn’t like receiving advice from me, I guess I know what style of play I want & get frustrated. Ie where a push into space would be sufficient to keep us in the ascendency, she will lift mid court & usually wear the shuttle. Where she gets away with it playing levels she gets killed in mixed. I know I’m no expert & I’m still learning & have a lot to learn. But I also feel useless as can’t do much to help her out. If you have any wise advice I will greatly receive.

Hi Dobbie,

I must admit your posts are confusing me. You seem frustrated with her but yet acknowledge she is trying her best.
What do you want to achieve? Do you want her to be better? Do you want to play with someone else? Or do you want to improve yourself? Or do you want to know what to do in this situation?
Some thoughts:
1. Wanting her to be better is actually judging her. She is trying her best and thus can’t do any more. Therefore, there is no point in trying to alter her game – its not within your control. So let it go.
2. Wanting to play with a different partner is absolutely fine. Its important to be realistic – if you and your current partner do not “work” then it makes sense to try and find a different partner. Its better that you do this than think badly of your current partner.
3. Wanting to improve yourself? The only thing I think you need to improve is your mentality – doing so will free you up and remove the frustration you currently feel, allowing you to play your best. This means staying with your current partner, or getting a new partner, but instead of focusing on the negative, allowing yourself to be the best partner possible – encouraging, hard working, and most importantly enjoying the game!
4. What to do in those situations? Accept that you can’t do anything to help. If she doesn’t want help, and the situations arise from something she does, then it is out of your control – so start focusing on the things you need to do well e.g. making no mistakes, playing a safe and steady game, ensure you play consistently so your partner knows whats coming etc. You just keep trying your best, and forget the rest!

Good luck!