Page 17 - Kwasind May 2020 issue

MAY 2020 SPORTS • 17
Racquets: A Squash Doubles Partnership Sports Department
I have been asked numerous times what makes a good doubles team?
A good doubles team isn’t just two good singles players joining up and playing. At the club level, partners are usually selected because they are friends, or they play at the same division in singles. The success of the team depends on more then just their squash abilities. Sometimes even though you are good friends does not mean that will translate into a good playing partnership. Team chemistry is complicated.
So, what makes a good doubles team? There are many factors that contribute to making a doubles team good. In this article I will talk about one aspect of what makes up a good doubles team.
A Game Plan
I think one of the most important aspects of a good team is having a game plan and following that game plan. If you have played your opponents before, you should know their strengths and their weaknesses. Doubles squash is about recognizing a weakness in a team and capitalizing on that weakness. For example, an opponent might have very good racquet skills but has mobility issues and has trouble moving to the front half of the court. So, your game plan should be to make that opponent move to the front of their court. This is not to say you just start putting every ball to the front half of the court, no, you push your opponent deep into their back court first, then move the ball to the front half. Before the match you talk about what you both plan to do to achieve your game plan.
If you have never played your opponents before, then in game 1 you should play your regular game and analyze what is hurting you and what is working for you. Talking to your partner as the game progresses is a necessity. After the first game, win or lose you should have a good idea of what your game plan should be.
I have been very lucky to play with some of the best doubles players in Canada. Paul Deratnay, Jamie Bentley,
Alan Grant, Seanna Keating and Jamie Nichols to name a few. Why I have done well with them is because we always go into each match with a game plan. Now sometimes the game plan must change during the match as our opponents have been able to counter our game plan. This is where doubles squash is at it’s best. Trying to out smart your opponents. The team that executes their game plan better usually wins the match.
I’ll give you an example, in the finals of the Canadian National Open Doubles Championships my long time doubles partner Paul Deratnay and I were playing a team that upset the number one seeds in the semi-finals. The left waller was a tall player with very good hands. Our game plan was to make him hit as many balls high up on his backhand as possible. We were playing well but they were weathering our attack.
After 35 minutes we were down 0-2. We walked off the court after the end of the second game and we both looked at each other and said, “is this the right game plan”. We both agreed that it was and decided to continue to go after the left waller high. Our thinking was his arm would have to tire and the quality of his shots would diminish thus giving us some opportunities. We also decided to start the 3rd game strong, no errors and long rallies. Put it in their heads that if they were going to beat us, they would have to work hard to do it. We took an early lead in the 3rd game, up 5-1 and won the game 15-6. We won the last 2 games 15-5 and 15-4. It was one of our more satisfying wins ever because we executed our game plan exactly how we wanted too. The point I’m trying to make here is, we stayed with a game plan and even though we didn’t win the first 2 games we felt our plan was the right one and stayed with it. That sometimes is the hardest thing to do......... Both you and your partner, staying with the plan. Another important aspect of a game plan is communicating during the match. Sometimes you might see something your partner doesn’t and vice versa. Talking between points and encouraging your partner to stay with the plan is extremely important.
So, the next time you go onto the doubles court, talk to your partner first, devise a game plan against your opponents and try to follow it.
You will find having a game plan greatly enhances the enjoyment of the game of doubles squash.