Poaching in tennis is when the net player crosses the middle of the court to cut off a ball, almost always a return of serve, that was heading toward their partner. One decisive volley ends the point. It is the fastest way to turn a passive doubles team into an aggressive one.
The trouble is that most club players either never poach, or poach at exactly the wrong moment. This guide covers when to go, when to stay, how to move, the hand signals that make it work, and three drills for your next practice.
What is poaching in tennis?
In doubles, the crosscourt return is the safest shot the returner owns. It travels over the lowest part of the net and into the longest part of the court. That means the net player is already standing next to the most probable ball in the entire point. Poaching is simply the decision to go and take it.
Drifting toward a ball that happens to come near you is not poaching. A poach is a deliberate, committed interception, usually decided before the serve is struck.
Why poaching wins doubles matches
- It removes the returner’s safest, highest-percentage shot.
- It creates doubt. Even a poach that fails changes the next three returns.
- It shortens points, which matters over a long match or a hot afternoon.
- It puts the finishing volley close to the net and above the tape.
The value compounds. Intercept two returns in a service game and the returner starts aiming further from the middle, so the errors arrive without you touching the ball.
When to poach and when to stay
This is what separates effective net players from reckless ones. Read the serve first, then the returner, then the score.
| Situation | Poach or stay? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Strong first serve jams the returner | Poach | A crowded returner floats the ball short |
| Returner steps in on a weak second serve | Stay | They have time, balance and the whole court |
| Three crosscourt returns in a row | Poach | The pattern is established |
| They already burned you down the line | Stay or fake | They have shown the counter-punch |
| Score is 40-15 or 30-0 | Poach | Low cost if it fails |
| Score is 30-40 on your partner’s serve | Stay | Wrong moment to gamble on a break point |
| Partner dragged wide off court | Stay | Nobody covers the space behind you |
| Return arrives low and fast at your feet | Stay | You will pop up a weak volley |
How to poach: the movement, step by step
- Start closer to the middle than feels comfortable. Most players stand too wide, covering an alley nobody is aiming at.
- Split step as the returner begins their forward swing, the moment their target is locked in.
- Move diagonally forward, never straight sideways.
- Take the ball well out in front with a short punch. There is no time for a backswing and you do not need one.
- Aim at the feet of the opposing net player, or into the open court.
- Finish on the other side. You and your partner have swapped halves, so recover as a pair.
Cross forward, not flat. Moving diagonally lets you take the ball above the net, which is the whole point of being there.
Doubles hand signals, decoded
Signals are given by the net player, held low behind the back, before the toss. The server answers with a nod. A signal does not just announce a poach, it tells the server where the ball must go for the poach to work at all.
| Signal | Meaning | What the server must do |
|---|---|---|
| Open palm | I am crossing | Serve down the T to shrink the return angle |
| Closed fist | I am staying | Serve wide or into the body, your choice |
| Two fingers | Fake, then stay | Any serve; the net player sells the movement |
| Open palm, then tap | I-formation cross | Serve to the side you agreed while the net player crouches at the centre |
Three mistakes that kill a poach
| Mistake | What happens | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Going too early | The returner sees you leave and goes down the line | Wait for the forward swing, not the toss |
| Crossing flat instead of forward | You arrive stretched and pop the ball up | Angle your first step toward the opposite net post |
| The lazy half-poach | You touch the ball but leave a soft volley mid-court | Commit fully or stay home. There is no middle option |
Three drills to practise poaching
1. Shadow crossing, no ball
A partner mimics a return swing. On the swing, split step and cross with the full diagonal movement, finishing balanced. Ten repetitions each side, building the timing without the pressure of contact.
2. Fed interception
A feeder hits gentle crosscourt balls from the returner’s position. You cross and volley to a cone at the opposing net player’s feet. Sets of eight; the target matters more than the pace.
3. Live points, poach every return
Play service games where the net player must poach on every point, regardless of situation. You will lose some. You will also learn very quickly which serves make poaching easy and which make it impossible.
Poaching from different formations
Standard formation is where most players live, but the alternatives exist to make poaching harder to read.
| Formation | Where the net player starts | Best used when |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Service box, opposite side to the server | Default. Easy to recover from, easiest to read |
| I-formation | Crouched at the centre service line, close to the net | The returner is comfortable crosscourt and you want to hide your direction |
| Australian | Same side as the server | You want to remove the crosscourt return and force a down-the-line reply |
The I-formation is the natural home of the poach: the returner cannot tell which way you are going until they have already committed. The trade-off is that both players must move decisively and agree the direction beforehand. The USTA guide to poaching in doubles is a useful companion read. Where you and your partner stand before the poach even begins is covered in doubles court positioning, and the crossing movement itself comes from the recovery patterns in these tennis footwork drills.
Building the volley that finishes the point
A poach is only as good as the volley at the end of it. Most players who struggle to convert do not have a movement problem, they have a contact problem: too much swing, too little punch. Working through a set of tennis volley drills for a sharper net game will do more for your poaching than any amount of tactical theory. Without a hitting partner, the reaction work in these tennis backboard drills for solo practice trains the same skill against a wall, and the free tennis instructional videos show the movement at full speed.
If you would rather have the timing corrected in person than guess at it, that is what a private lesson in Redwood Shores is for.
Frequently asked questions
What is poaching in tennis?
Poaching is when the doubles net player crosses the centre of the court to intercept a ball travelling toward their partner. It is almost always used against a return of serve, and the aim is to finish the point with one volley.
When should you poach in doubles?
Poach when your partner lands a strong serve that jams the returner, when the returner has settled into a crosscourt pattern, and at comfortable scores such as 40-15. Stay put on weak second serves, when your partner is pulled off court, and when the return arrives low and fast at your feet.
Do you have to signal before poaching?
No, but signalling makes it far more effective. Hand signals tell the server where to place the ball so the poach is set up properly. Without one, the server may go wide and open the very lane you are leaving behind.
Is poaching allowed in tennis rules?
Yes, entirely. In doubles either player may hit any ball on their side of the net, apart from the return of serve, which must be struck by the designated receiver.
How do you stop an opponent from poaching?
Vary the height and depth of your return, go down the line occasionally to make the net player honest, and aim at their feet. Lobbing the return once or twice a set also slows an aggressive poacher down.
Written by Claire Carter, a former WTA Tour professional and full-time teaching pro at Bay Club Redwood Shores, where she has coached juniors and adults for more than twelve years.
Image credits: J. Schiemann (Unsplash), John Fornander (Unsplash), Nenyasha Manzvera (Pexels), RDNE Stock project (Pexels), Richard Sagredo (Unsplash), cottonbro studio (Pexels). Photographs are illustrative.