22/04/2026
Pro Tip:
Most net players in doubles are in the wrong position. Not a little wrong. Completely wrong.
Here's the thing: one side of a doubles court is over 130 square metres. You have two players to cover it. Something always has to be left uncovered. That's just physics and geometry, and you cannot change it no matter how good you are.
The question is what you choose to leave open. And most players are making the worst possible choice.
When you hug the alley at the net, you are choosing to defend the hardest shot your opponent can hit: a ball aimed at a narrow, low-percentage corridor over the highest part of the net. Meanwhile, you have left the middle of the court completely unguarded. The middle is the shortest path over the net, the widest target on the court, and where most shots naturally want to go. You are defending the shot that almost never comes. You are giving away the one that very often will.
I know your partner has been telling you to cover the alley. I know it feels like the smart, responsible move. Here's the problem: your partner is wrong. I have had this exact conversation on a court with players for over 20 years, and the realization always lands the same way. You can watch it hit them in real time.
Here's what the right position looks like. As a net player, your job is to own the middle. Step toward the center service line, not away from it. From there, you take away the shot the baseline player most wants to hit and force them to aim at the alley instead. Make them beat you with their hardest shot, not hand them their easiest one.
Red is where most players are standing. Green is where you need to be.
