Mixed Doubles – The Third Shot – Female

Featured Image: Pierre-Yves Beaudouin

The third shot is the shot after the serve and return of serve. In mixed doubles, the third shot becomes even more important because of the differences in skill sets between the man and woman.

The first three shots, sequentially are the most important of the rally. We can think of them as stages as below. We will assume we are serving.

Stage 1 – Serve

• Advantage: If the serve is good, the receiver will be unable to attack it.
• Disadvantage: If the serve is bad, the opponents will attack it, giving them the initial advantage or losing the point straight away

Stage 2 – Return of Serve (Opponent)

• Advantage: Neutral shot from the opponents or lift.
• Disadvantages: Serve is attacked or killed. Alternatively, if the return of serve is played early tight to the net, or into the midcourt areas, it also creates pressure to lift the shuttle.

Stage 3 – Third Shot

This shot will often determine who has the first attacking opportunity in the rally if the first two shots are completed.

We can see the initial advantages will lie with the server, however, this can change quickly. Of course, it’s important who has the initial attack as they will have a competitive advantage to win the rally.

The Third Shot Of The Female

For the below scenarios, we will assume that you are the female player and you or your male partner is serving. It doesn’t matter whether the man or woman is serving as they are both in their prefered formation. The female will play the third shot when the return of serve is to the net or sometimes to the midcourt. Unless otherwise stated, these shots should be played straight and not cross court.

Opponents Return to the Net

When the opponent returns the serve to the net, the female player should be ready to take the third shot. After the serve, she is already in a position to try to control the net. Her aim is to set up her partner in the rear court for attacking opportunities or kill weaker responses. However, it will depend on the quality of the opponent’s return.

1. Net Kill

The most likely response to a serve at the net is a net shot and is most likely to be played by the opposing female. Therefore the female of the serving partnership should be aware of this and seek to take the shuttle above the net in order to hit the shuttle downwards. This will be done through net kills, ie. taking the shuttle above or off the top of the tape. This is the best third shot in this scenario.

2. MidCourt Pushes

If it is not possible to kill the shuttle, playing a push into the midcourt areas is the next best option. This is in an attempt to gain the lift. Again this requires, the female to be quick onto the net. The aim is to force the opposing man forward to take the shuttle from below net height. From this position, the opposing male risks playing back to the net or through the front court player, where the shuttle might be killed. Or they can lift in order to reset but give away the attack.

3. Net Shots

Net shots as a third shot are not advised. If the opponent played a good tight net shot in response to your serve, (especially if it’s a female), chances are they are waiting at the net waiting to kill any net response. From this position, the opponent now has the advantage. This is why it’s important for the female to threaten the net, once the serve has been played. So that your opponent feels insecure about returning your serve back to the net.

4. Cross Court Lift

Yes, that’s right! But only in certain situations. If the male receiver plays a net shot, it will usually be to the same side he is receiving serve. If this is the case, the female should lift the shuttle cross court. This will force the opposing female in the rear court as she has to cover the open space left by their partner. This is a rare situation. The male will usually avoid this as it puts their partnership in their weaker formation.

5. Lift

Obviously, we don’t want to lift the shuttle if we can avoid it. However, sometimes it can’t be helped. If the opponent’s shot is too good, we need to play the lift in order to keep the rally going. If this is the case on the third shot, the woman should try to lift to her man’s side in order to give her time to recover for the opponent’s attack.

Returns To The Midcourt/Rear Court

The midcourt return is a shot which is either taken early by the female in the forecourt or left to their partner. In the case that the female can take the shot, there are a couple of options available to them.

1. Interceptions

The female of the serving partnership will not be in the midcourt. However, having her racket up at the net allows her to intercept shuttles which are being played into the midcourt. These should be played in a downward direction to put pressure on the opponent. If successful, she will be able to move forward to kill off weak replies. Alternatively, it can force a lift from the opponents, setting up their partner in the rear court.

Interceptions of this nature requires a level of anticipation. It also requires confidence to be able to go for such an interception. Any split second of hesitance might result in the opportunity being missed. If in doubt, or the shuttle is too fast, it should be left for the rear court player.

2. Drop Back To The Net

This could be described as a soft interception. Often the opponent, after a midcourt push has been played, will back off from the net. This is because they possibly want to give themselves time to react to a faster drive straight back at them. This creates space in the front court to play the drop and gain the lift. However, because this is a slower shot, be careful not to become predictable. The opponent will recognise the pattern and will move forward to play the kill.

Third Shot After the Flick

If the female plays the flick, she should move a little back further into court but closer to the net than her partner. This will be the wedge defence. If the male flicks, the same position is taken up, but the female moves to a cross court position from the shuttle. Whether or not the female plays the third shot will depend on how effective the flick serve is.

Effective Flick Serve

If the flick serve catches the opponent off guard it will throw them off balance and they will be forced to clear the shuttle in most instances. The female will not play the third shot in this situation because the male will retreat to the rear court to begin attacking.

If The Opponents Can Attack The Flick

If the opponent is able to smash it, it is likely to come back cross court to the server because it’s easier than playing the straight smash. Therefore the females third shot should be a defensive block to the net, drive or even lift as the last resort. They should all be played straight because the opponent is smashing cross court so this leaves space for the straight reply.

The block to the net is obviously with the intention of regaining control of the net and forcing the lift. Once played, the female should move forward to threaten the net immediately.

The drive is to put movement pressure on the opponent who may have to scramble across court to retrieve the shuttle. This works particularly well against male opponents as their female partner may be reluctant or just unable to intercept such a fast shot. In addition, they might not want to move into the rear court as they expect their partner to cover that shot.

If your only option is a lift, lifting straight will also apply movement pressure to the opponent. However, as it gives more time to the opponent, a fast player will be able to move across court to continue the attack. The point of the straight lift at this point is to try and limit their attacking potency by forcing them to play off balance. This is especially the case on their backhand side. This might allow the serving pair to play a defensive shot which moves them into their prefered formation so that they can attack.

The Third Shot – Conclusion

Who knew there could be so much to write about the third shot in mixed doubles! But as the tactically most complicated of all the disciplines, perhaps it’s not so surprising. In the next article, we will discuss the options available to the male as the third shot. This will be a little more complicated because the third shot for the male depends somewhat on who returned the serve.

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