All
To get everyone in the mood for the upcoming SF Doubles Open, I ran across the following match of the Briggs Cup held every year at the Apawamis Club in Rye, NY.
Check it out. Particularly note the clearing by the players to the the left and right wall (in other words to the LEFT and RIGHT alley) which allows the striker to strike the ball from the center court door (the middle third of the court - in other words: the CENTER alley) unobstructed and directly to ANYWHERE on the front wall. Clearing done properly!
Think about it.
If you are a singles player, clearing TO the side wall is counter-intuitive.
As opposed to the singles game with only two alleys - the left wall and the right wall. The doubles game has THREE alleys - the left wall, the right wall, and the middle center.
If, during a rally, a defending player REMAINS in the middle alley at mid-court (which is a valid clear in the singles game) fails to clear to the side wall while the ball is being struck FROM the back-court middle alley (which is an alley in the doubles game and not in the singles game), the result is that the striker in the back-court and the non-clearing defender positioned in the mid-court are in the SAME alley leading to undesirable decisions and results.
Remember, (and I can't stress this enough) it is not enough to give the striker only one alley to strike the ball through. The striker is entitled to strike the ball directly through to the front wall (the full width of ALL THREE alleys - 25').
John
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