Men's doubles opening gambit

Have you observed in men' doubles that the serve and the return of serve are the most important aspect of the game? The objective of the server is to deliver the shortest serve with the minimum return angle for the person receiving the serve. This means serving low to the front service line at the spot near the T. Why a low service? Because you cannot mount an attack when receiving a low serve. A low serve may result in the receiver returning a high return (a foolish thing to do and precisely the intent of the low serve). Why don't they serve low to the sidelines, which many people find difficult to return but which players and amateurs like us like to do? Because serving low to the sidelines can be suicidal. Why, you may ask? Serving low to the sidelines opens up the angle of return/attack for the receiver, akin to opening the gates of your castle when under seige. The occasional use of the flick serve is to discourage the receiver from rushing the net. Sometimes the flick serve is used because the server's serve is poor and he has no other options, in which case he is in trouble.
In the same light, the receiver's objective is to avoid returning a serve high. In fact, a good receiver would like to turn the tables on the server. He does this by taking the serve as near the net as possible and hitting or tapping it down or flat to deny the serving side from mounting an attack. Notice how close to the front service line the receiver places himself, and with his outreached arm/hand with racquet almost touching the net, the receiver can be very intimadating. Sometimes the receiver goes for a net tumble (a deft shot taken high in the net with the racquet horizontal to the floor) causing the shuttlecock to fall/tumble vertically over the net. The net tumble is to turn the tables on the serving side, forcing them to lift the shuttle when returning the net tumble. A net-hugging tumble is impossible to return. Even a close non net-hugging tumble can bring rich pickings as the return will at best be half court if it is to avoid hitting into the net.
In its barest essence, the serve and return of serve is a battle to force the opposition to lift the shuttlecock so you can mount an attack.
After the opening gambit, the objective of the whole game is to attack, to turn defence to attack( now you know why doubles players play a lot of flat shots, sometimes by squatting a bit lower to return smashes and turn the tide from defence to attack).
One way you can judge if a person is a good doubles player is to see if he stands a hair's breath away from the front service line(when receiving a serve) and at the same time he can cope with a high flick serve to the back doubles service line. If you can master this, you have the potential to be a very good doubles player.

 

Yes, it makes no difference serving to either side of the front service line T or whether the receiver returns with his forehand or backhand. A perfect low serve is impossible to hit down, even if you rush the net to try to hit down the serve. A perfect low serve skims, and reaches its highest point of, the net and then descends. In trying to kill such a perfect serve by hitting it down, you will only hit it into the net, because you are taking the shuttle below the top of the net when it is descending. If you push or hit it high you are doing exactly what the server wants you to do. But if the low serve is badly executed and goes over the top of the net, say by 5", the receiver will then easily kill the serve with either forehand or backhand. There is a world of difference between a good low serve and a bad one, one brings you victory, the other defeat.

 

Yes, but never when returning a serve!