Doubles Only Tennis Podcast

Peter Freeman is one of my favorite tennis coaches to speak with because he has so much experience coaching club doubles players. Like me, Peter creates a ton of online content, including one of the largest online tennis conferences, Tennis Con. I've presented at Tennis Con for the past 3 years and cannot recommend it enough for club players.

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I spoke with Peter to preview Tennis Con 9, which is a ...

I recently posted an Instagram video asking why club doubles players don't use I-Formation. It now has over 210,000 views and 100 comments, many of which are excuses.

In this episode, I break down the five most common excuses and share my rebuttal. I hope that this will convince some of you to start using serve formations more often to help you win matches.

Here are the excuses...

1. "Our serves aren't good enough.&quo...

I share seven strategy lessons gathered from recent experiences at the US Open, Davis Cup, and coaching club players heading to Nationals. These lessons are particularly helpful for the 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, and 4.5 level doubles players who tend to get some of these things wrong.

Note: Tennis Tribe Members get access to all seven lessons, while everyone can preview the first three.

• Focusing on what happens most - and why we get this wr...

Jamie Cerretani, a former top 50 ATP doubles player and founder of Inspired, shares his holistic approach to coaching professional doubles players through structured preparation, mindset work, and career optimization.

• Working with JP Smith, who reached a career-high ranking of 50 in ATP doubles
• Creating a daily structure for players that includes tennis practice, gym work, and family time
• Viewing family responsibilities as strengt...

2025 US Open Champions, Gaby Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe, take us behind the scenes of their incredible run, sharing details about their mental approach, the dynamics of their successful partnership, and their victory celebration in New York.

• How many days did they take off after winning the US Open?
• How to come back after losing the first set 0-6
• Developing belief as players who don't naturally possess unwavering confidence
• ...

Bruce Lipka, coach of US Open doubles champion Erin Routliffe, joins the show for the second time. I spoke with him before Erin Routliffe and Gaby Dabrowski played their semifinal match in New York.

• Why preparing for semifinals involves months of work
• Championship-level doubles requires continuous improvement rather than focusing on winning or losing
• How they turned around a 0-6 first set in the quarterfinals
• The compact tournament...

Three-time US Open Champion Joe Salisbury joined me before the start of this year's tournament to discuss his athleticism, doubles partnership with Neal Skupski, college tennis experience, and more.

Tomorrow, Joe and Neal play in the US Open Final on ESPN. Here's what we discussed before the tournament.

• Attributes his exceptional athleticism to his parents and playing multiple sports growing up
• Credits natural instincts ...

Nicole Melichar-Martinez joins us from the US Open to share insights on her recent doubles success and preparation for the final Grand Slam of the year. I spoke with her fresh off a title in Monterey with new partner Cristina Bucșa.

• Detailed breakdown of Nicole's practice routine, including specialized drills for volleys and overheads
• Comparison of New York to other Grand Slam cities, with particular focus on commute times a...

Rajeev Ram joins me for the first time in 2025. He's coming off a Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati with new partner, Nikola Mektić.

Rajeev shares insights on building team chemistry in doubles partnerships. He offers a nuanced perspective on the singles vs doubles player debate and provides practical advice on net play strategy, return tips, and career longevity. We also discussed:

• Fishes
• Building team chemistry quickly in a ...

At the Cincinnati Open, I spoke with the current #1 doubles team on the ATP tour.

Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash's win streak ended at 22 in Cincinnati. We discuss their dominant run on the ATP doubles tour and the mental approach that has led to their success. The pair shares insights into their tiebreaker tactics, physical and mental challenges during their streak, and the fundamentals of what makes a successful doubles part...

I spoke with ATP & WTA Coach, Dan Kiernan, in Cincinnati about life as a professional coach, doubles drills, practice sets, and more. This episode will help you rethink how you practice.

Dan works with multiple players on different teams, not uncommon for doubles coaches, so you'll get insights into what his day-to-day responsibilities look like.

• Dan's daily schedule can involve up to 7-8 hours of court time, plus m...

Former Top 70 WTA doubles player Catherine Harrison returns to the show to share her journey recovering from multiple injuries over the past few seasons. We discuss her recent decision to focus exclusively on doubles moving forward.

Catherine came to Fort Worth, Texas, last week, where we spent two days of intensive on-court doubles training. We discussed the key takeaways from the training and more.

• Simple tactical improvements ...

This is a free preview of a Tennis Tribe member episode. To hear the full episode, become a member at thetennistribe.com/memberships.

In this episode, I answer three questions from Tennis Tribe members and followers.

• FREE: How to beat unconventional or unorthodox players.
• Why there is no "right way" to hit a tennis ball.
• Topspin can be overrated.
• Members: All the options you have when the opponent hits a lob, and when to u...

The rising American doubles team of JJ Tracy and Robert Cash share their journey from winning the NCAAs at Ohio State in 2024 to becoming ATP doubles title winners in Los Cabos in 2025. They've climbed to #59 and #62 in the world this year from outside the top 140.

You'll learn what's clicked for them recently, and get to know them as individuals and as a team.

• Working with new coach Andy Fitzell has helped refine ...

I watched a lot of Wimbledon doubles over the past few weeks. In this episode, I share 4 strategy lessons from the Championships. Watching professional doubles can help you learn new tactics, positioning, movement, and strategy that you can apply to your own game.

• Practice specific shots to counter your upcoming opponents' preferred tactics, as demonstrated by Wimbledon Champions, Elise Mertens & Veronika Kudermetova.
• Wh...

World #23 Olivia Nicholls joins us fresh off her first title with partner Tereza Mihalíková in Berlin. She discusses her career-high ranking, steady rise in doubles, and shares insights on overcoming challenges throughout her career journey.

• Defeating Roland Garros Champs, Errani and Paolini, in Berlin, breaking their 13-match win streak, including tactical adjustments
• On developing a belief in her game to beat any team
• Overcoming...

Julian Cash is ranked #12 on the ATP Doubles Tour, has four titles in 2025, and is currently #3 in the race to the ATP Finals. In this conversation, he shares the story of his impressive rise in professional doubles, his successful partnership with Lloyd Glasspool, thoughts on college tennis, mixed doubles, and more.

• How his partnership with Lloyd Glasspool is built on aligned goals, complementary playing styles, and balancing e...

Neal Skupski, the #11 ranked doubles player on the ATP Tour and three-time Wimbledon champion, discusses his partnership with Joe Salisbury, their recent Roland Garros finals run, and more.

I spoke with Neal during his off day in Eastbourne, where he was preparing for the quarterfinals. He and Joe won that match and are now in the semis.

• Working through the chemistry and tactical adjustments of a new partnership
• The significant ad...

The US Open just announced its entry list for the 2025 Mixed Doubles Tournament. In case you missed it, they've made significant changes to the event this year, which I discussed with Dan Kiernan and many players at Indian Wells back in March on the podcast.

This episode, recorded on Instagram Live with Philip from Tweener Head Tennis, includes my initial reaction to the entry list and a deeper discussion surrounding mixed doub...