Brandi & Wojtek Bratek

Communication is key in partnerships on and off court.

Ever had a relationship fall apart? Poor communication was likely one of the factors that led to its demise. Doubles teams also thrive or barely survive based on the quality of their communication. We have figured out how to successfully communicate in our marriage and that skill has translated to the court. Our communication abilities have helped enable us to win the gold medal in the last two ITF World Tennis Masters Tour Championships and we wanted to share what we have learned over the years that has helped us and others we have coached.

Pre-match:

Discuss what feedback can hurt vs. help.

The goal is to be better attuned to what your partner might need in circumstances that may arise. Neither of us like when one of us is a cheerleader if things are going poorly. If this is you also, you should let your partner know, “If I double fault or make a dumb mistake, don’t try to cheer me up. Tell me ‘next point’ and help me focus on what we will do next.” Discuss what your partner could do to help snap you out of a funk if needed. Wojtek and I are big fans of sarcasm with each other because we know it will make us chuckle and is a great way to stop negative emotions quickly. I shanked an overhead that sailed into the fence and he said, “I know you paid for the whole racquet, but the strings are really where you should be trying to hit the ball.” He knows this will lighten my mood, but this could easily backfire with a different partner so discuss what works vs. doesn’t. 

Discuss what each of your strengths and weaknesses are and create a plan.

It is important you try to work with each other and consider how to play together and not as two separate people. For example, Wojtek knows I have an effective top-spin lob down the line that forces people to switch and back up. When I hit this shot, he knows to back up a bit off the net and anticipates being able to take whatever they hit back out of the air because of my strength. This 1-2 punch wins us a lot of points. If you are an established team and have played together a lot, let your partner know if you have improved an area of your game you want to utilize or if you haven’t felt good about hitting a certain shot lately such as, “My forehand down the line has been off so I won’t go for that as much today.” If you have knowledge about who you will be playing, establish a game plan for any person you want to pick on or a strategy you want to use such as hitting short balls to force baseliners to move in. After the warm up, you might notice a weakness in the game of your opponents that might help you formulate a plan too.

During match:

Have contact with your partner between every point and on changeovers.

The contact shouldn’t be a long conversation since you only have 25 seconds between points, but it still communicates to your partner you are with them. This contact can be a fist bump, saying something as simple as “next point” or telling your partner where you plan to serve or return. You may be wondering why should we have contact after every point? Consider this: What is the unspoken message you are sending to your partner when you only talk to them after they hit a good shot or your team wins the point? What is the unspoken message you are sending when you only talk to them after a mistake is made? Communicate consistently so that neither of you starts jumping to conclusions about why you are talking now and you didn’t the last game. Without regular contact between points, your team is missing a vital chance to reconnect and reset. This contact enables you both to move forward together regardless of whatever the outcome of the previous point. A lack of communication can also make the person who has made a mistake start to feel judged by their partner even if that is not the case. Our brains love to run wild with stories we create that may or may not be true so by maintaining regular contact, you help ensure both partners stay in the present moment. 

One person CANNOT be the ring leader and do all the talking and initiating of contact. 

When we see this happen, it often results in one player feeling like they are the assistant to their boss. This player then becomes more and more diminished as the match progresses. If you are technically the better player, you also cannot run the show. Wojtek is a better player than I am. He is a 10+ and I am an 8+ UTR in doubles, but if he dictated every conversation and game plan then our partnership would fail just like any other relationship would when only one person’s thoughts, feelings and emotions are the most important and the other person is an afterthought. 

Post-match:

Discuss what worked and what didn’t.

If you ever have plans to play with each other again, discuss the effectiveness of the tactics you used and if you felt supported. If it hurt your level of play when your partner shut down and stopped talking to you for a game, let them know, but also find out what could have been done differently so that it doesn't happen in the future. 

Bottom Line: Good doubles partnerships are not possible without good communication.

Being willing to express your own needs, strengths and weaknesses and listen to your partner’s as well demonstrates a mutual respect for each other. By taking the time to intentionally connect pre-match and by continuing to throughout the match, regardless of what the score is, you can forge a connection that will help you compete without having worries about what your partner is thinking about the shot you sailed into the back fence. 

Wojtek Bratek is the Director of Tennis at Bluegreen’s Bayside Resort and Spa in Panama City Beach, FL.

Brandi Bratek is a Mental Performance Consultant who has been working in the field of sport and performance psychology for over 20 years. She has worked with athletes ranging from club level players to professional athletes and currently resides in Panama City Beach, FL.