This week, I was thinking about winning strategies (again). While there’s a lot to be said for just getting out there and enjoying playing pickleball, if you’re reading this, chances are you also think about winning and want to better your odds.

Most pickleball games are played as doubles. (You singles players out there can either skip this posting or keep it in mind for when you do play with a partner.) Doubles is a team sport, and I believe two players working well together will usually beat two players who don't work together as a team, even if the latter are each better individual players. I did a little research online to back up my thinking. While the statistics I found have to do with tennis, I believe they probably apply to pickleball as well.

The top men’s doubles tennis teams at the professional level don’t usually include players who are ranked very highly as singles players. There are exceptions and, in the case of the women’s teams, at least one of the doubles players is often a great singles player, too. But statistics indicate that two players who work well together often beat two players who may be individually better than they are but don’t work as well as a team.

When we pair up with someone on the court, we almost never spend enough time discussing strategy or figuring out how we can capitalize on our combined strengths and minimize our combined weaknesses, yet that would be the logical thing to do since it would win us more points. Even people who have been playing with the same person for a long time should occasionally take a look at how they play together and examine their strategy critically to see how it could be improved. Here are some things to keep in mind.

I’ve written about communication before, but it’s still foremost in making a partnership (on or off the court) work better. It doesn’t matter how you communicate as long as you do it. One partner might do all the talking, or you might have the serving partner speak up. The player in front can use hand signals behind his back, or you can even just grunt. The point is to develop a system that works for the two of you that you will use and understand.

Strategizing prior to a game is valuable. Determining who will call out balls, whether you’ll switch places if you’re weak in a certain position, who will go back for lobs, how you’ll handle the center court if both of you are on your backhand, and more can make a huge difference when you find yourself in one of those situations. Teams that have a plan can react surely and quickly compared to a team that’s not prepared.

Mirroring (or shadowing) each other’s position still appears to be the best strategy most of the time.

But always taking the strategy with the highest percentage of success might not always be the best move. That’s like saying you should always return a shot down the middle. That’s a good strategy, but not when your opponents know you’re going to do it every time. IF you and your partner have discussed strategy before the game and IF you have established good communication during play, you can utilize that communication and try something different to catch your opponents off guard and win the rally. You and your partner switching sides can work beautifully when both partners are ready for it or it can lead to disaster if it’s tried without warning.

Take time to talk with your partner, preferably ahead of the game, and list those things you do well and which things are problems, both individually and together. Here’s an example: let’s say I’m bad at running back to get lobs and our opponents always lob, my partner and I will both do poorly if I’m the one making these plays, so we should find a way to deal with these differently.) Look at ways to promote your individual and team strengths and devise strategies that will minimize the areas where you’re not as strong. Even if this only added a couple of points to your game, wouldn’t you think it was worth it? Chances are it will do that and more.