CTC Shorts: Louis Cayer´s Top Doubles Tips

a man who I admire so much. You know, well before I even met him, he was a big influence on my career. And then he's someone who I'm very honored to say has gone on to be a mentor and and become a friend of mine o over the last few years. And actually ironically, when I had this conversation with Louis Caillet three years ago. I wasn't working at the time on the ATPR WTA doubles tour. It was a passion of mine. I'd played to a decent level. I'd worked with some players in some grand slams. But

He is someone that I'd always looked up to. And I I do think when you put your mind into a certain space. You do create a certain energy and things then are attracted your way. And I have Louie to thank for that because he is someone that's inspired me tremendously. And the conversation was so good, it was

Our second most downloaded, but that's kind of a cheat really. Nobody's gonna beat Sir Andy Murray in terms of being the number one most downloaded episode, but it's the second behind Sir Andy Murray. And you think of the amazing guests we've had on control the controllables. And when I speak to Louie about that, he's just so humble. He's like, Why? Why do people want to listen to me? And uh the reason people wanna listen to Louis is he's a genius. He's

a the Pep Guadiola of tennis. Uh I wouldn't insult him by saying he's a doubles coach in any shape or form. He's a brilliant tennis coach. He's come in almost twenty years ago And he's changed British tennis the and changed the double system within British tennis. I I daren't even guess how many Grand Slams have been won ever since he's been there. I know there's been at least three world number ones on the ATP under his guidance.

and multiple, multiple grand slams. And and I was a player just before Louis arrived a few months in as British doubles number one. I was lucky if I played a Grand Slam, never mind winning one. And the the the change that he has made the belief that he has installed is is really, really incredible. We've taken a small little excerpt from that conversation. You know, we jump into, you know, doubles evolving. You know, Louie is

No spring chicken, you know. Uh we all get older, uh, but he As I see a lot of older coaches, they don't evolve the way that they think. They get very fixed and this is this is how it is. Louis is evolving all the time. He's using the objective data, performance analysis to m to take that on. And he's informed and he's got no problem changing

what he believes. He's got no problem changing the language that he uses. He's got no problem changing the way that he is coaching to go with the times. And that is for me the mark of a of a truly world class coach who can do it over the years and through the levels.

Uh I'm so pleased that we're we're bringing this back to the forefront. I know you will all love it. And we're gonna pass you over to our our C T C short with Louis Caillet. So let's say me and I I stopped playing at twenty five.

I played doubles. You you wouldn't have seen me play doubles, Louis. I played doubles. With feel I would say, if I'm honest. You know, I didn't You know, I did the the things that I've learned since from you, I didn't know when I was playing. You know, I was I was feeling a move, I was definitely too close to the tram line.

I had pretty good hands, so I was quite good at picking up a first volley, but actually it doesn't matter. If you're hitting a low first volley against good guys, it doesn't matter because they're closing the net on you. You know, uh but what if I came in Then, not looking back now. Don't look at me now. Don't tell me I need to get fit. Imagine I was fit and I came to you at twenty-five. What are the first three or the three most important things that you're you're teaching me?

could be receiver's partner. Look, if you get past a trem line, you know at the beginning, you're new, you you're always protected. You look at me and you point and say, It's your fault. Okay, do that. And they realize after the match it didn't happen. And they uh they start to have a uh wins that they never had because their their progression is quickly. So I again a lot of trust because by bringing some

modification like serve, go to your spot because when they serve wide, they go to the middle of the court. Yeah. Like in singles. No, no, go go to your spot still. Yeah. Uh so I make very, very quick gain by showing where to position quickly. And uh it's amazing how many points you win right away just by knowing where to stand at the net, where to stand as a receiver's partner, where to go after your serve and all this. You you win like

Right away, twelve, thirteen points more right away. Yeah. So so much quick gain. And after that you can go a bit more into details. Yeah. So I think I will do the same as I did with every Brit. I will look at you serving'cause that's important. I will say, Go there, go there, do this, quicker to respond to do that or Whatever, or I will make you practice the four type of sir. Yeah like onduce regular stay regular post

'Cause it's because it's way too late for me now. But that moves me into the next bit because I guess a lot of people listening to this podcast are there'll be some that are involved at a at a at a higher level competition level of the sport, but there is also a lot of people listening to

you know, very much a big part of the ecosystem of tennis and club working in clubs and, you know, keeping people playing and and obviously doubles is a massive part of that, you know, around the clubs in the UK, but all also around the world. And I know I had this chat with my mother in law, who uh hopefully if she's listening, hello, Sue. And and I actually talked to her about just move your positioning. Just that's it. You know, she plays doubles once or twice a week.

And I just said they're not going to pass you in the tram lines. Because that was a that was a real fear I had when I played. You just kind of naturally think it's going to go there, but but like you say, it doesn't. And she reported back to me that just by shifting slightly closer to the center, it was amazing how many balls ended up on her racket.

So can you can you give can you give the listeners and coaches and and people that are playing at club level, give them one or two little quick tips that can help their double?

So for me, the fear of getting hit, I don't teach people won't see me near, but I don't see like this. I accept like to have a back-end grip. So if the ball comes fast on you, you already prepare your you cover your body and you cover also if you stretch. Yeah. On your back end. And you changed your grip for a four inch. I teach that. uh fear of getting pass in the tram line, I make a little competition. I put like the four members over there. I say, I'll gonna hit you like a nice

uh ball cross court about at the the same pace as you do. Yep. If you put like uh the ball in the trend line over three on ten, like four on ten, you know, three on ten. I buy a drink to everybody or yeah, whatever it is. And they don't succeed.

It's difficult. And I say even less. I mean if the ball is very easy, maybe, but if if your friend hit anything that looks a bit like attacking, a bit like annoying, yeah, because it's a bit deeper, it's a bit more, please don't protect it. Switch a bit to the middle. But if it's very short and easy, yeah, okay, protect your tram line, but not and they realize okay, so you have to change your belief about things.

And for the lob, uh, I say on the first serve, if you get lobs, it's okay. Your partner will switch because their partner stays back. Yeah. No big deal. And when you're both at the net, I show them where to stand in the l uh on the wall. And I showed them the service line behind.

And we make them a little test. Every time they cross the service line before a lob, which is slow, they never get lobbed. Yep. So I tell them, look behind, how far is it? Okay, now lob, cross the line before and even like uh like normal member if they cross the line before, they don't get love. So you you have to break the you have to break these fears to be good. Second, this is more I know you wanted to talk to member for the coaches.

Stop people stop having people serve and volley everything, men and women. There's about 90, 90, 95% of the women stay back on their surf, and now 55% of the men stay back on their surf.

Uh most of a lot of people play bold back. Now let them play bold back. Let them serve and stay back. And let's let's show them how to win when you stay back on your serve or your bolt back on the return. And this is all fine now. The the players do all these variations. So that's it. So respect the members and you members have a coach who will ask the help you to go. has the fear of getting past, getting hit and getting loved. Yeah. And you're gonna be very effective and

And to and to pick you up on that, it was actually something I wanted to talk to you about and you and you've brought it up there is about the serving and staying back. And I I I knew it was around fifty percent. I didn't realise in the men's game it had gone to fifty five. And the women's as high as ninety ninety five. How much have you had to evolve the way that you coach on the back of that? Because I guess that that changes that changes lots of things when you're teaching players.

Uh yeah, there's a lot of tactics and for a ball back, we put the rule for example, never, never volley twice in a row to the forehand. Yeah. It's like it could be like simple, yeah. But go go reach the back end because the back end, even if it's steady. Normally there's less revolution on the ball, more less shape. It's a bit flatter, so there it's easier to volley. Yeah. And we have developed uh I remember doing a camp. Think it was six, seven years ago, the team was let's beat those

dot dot dot singles players. Yeah. You know. So let's beat uh these guys when they stay both back. We're gonna volley on the loose side back end guy. He will have no angle on his back end and we'll do that. We'll do this, we'll do that. So yeah, I have to redesign a lot of the patterns because until even 2010, if someone was surveying staying back, you will look like, what are you doing?

And uh suddenly it started few. And it when it when it uh crossed the pivotal like twenty percent, like if you read that the tipping point, there's always a A number where people start to say, Oh, it's fine to do that. And it has uh helped people to stay back, to not feel forced.

like Neil Skoopski. Uh he was serve and volume first serve but he felt very comfortable and not inadequate to serve and stay back on his second serve and smack his foreign. But if he was ten years ago he would be criticized.

And then he sat down at Change of Ends and and I said, Come on, we can you know, we can do this to me you know. I didn't know him really, and he just said and he really spoke to me in quite a strong Russian accent, No, we take one one point, one point, one point at a time. And he then honestly hit winner after winner.

for two for two sets and I just had to knock a couple of volleys off and I thought wow this is like this is the future this is amazing So a couple of days later we played against Fernando Vicenti and Oscar Hernandez, who were both top hundred singles guys, center court Barcelona. And it was the worst 45 minutes of my life. It was three players at the back of the court and me at the net.

And you talk about trying to find their backhands. I don't think they hit one backhand in the mat. I don't know if you know remember Vicente was very talented and skillful with the forehand. And Oscar Hernandez just like smacked heavy, heavy forehands. And it was we lost six love, and I think it was six four on the second set. It was a bit more respectful, but it was just I wanted the ground to swallow me up. So the ability to adapt to that.

Is is something that certainly I felt as a player. And I'm sure, like you say, as a coach, you've had to do that as well.

And if it's a defensive shot really short and the guy will attack you, you can back up to the service line and defend your tram line. Yes. And let the guy, because you protect your tram line, hit cross court. Because your friend at the baseline will have much more chance to deal with it than you if the ball is smack at you. So it's uh it it's tough for your the people who's listening right now because you don't see it.

But uh it's a it's a simple system. Don't go close to the net unless it's an attacking shot. If it's neutral, stay pretty much on the Yeah. And the wall position which is a bit in between the net and and just move a bit to your right or to your left. Yeah. And if you're in defense because they're gonna attack, just retrieve back to the your own service line a bit closer to the tram line and after that read what's going on after that.

But yeah, the one of the ones, and I know you talk a lot about this, and I would be a big believer in this, is what what's the best way to be a good doubles player? Pick the right partner. Yeah. And you know, and and in terms of in terms of that, one thing that always fascinates me, Louis.

And I remember uh the Brian brothers saying this that every every December or going into January Australian Open, they felt as if they ended up being the best team in the world because so many had people had split up at the back end of the year before. And they kind of took their time getting to know each other. And then the last half of the year, they felt like teams started to really catch them up and maybe overtake.

And and it just seems like there's so many changes so often, you know. So I guess there's there's lots to talk about on this, but how how are people, how do you pick the right partner to uh uh to start with?

You you want to play like uh let's say Johnny O'Mara is very nice. Everybody likes him, he's good. Good player too, but if his ranking is sixty and you're thirty. Yeah. If you play with him, you cannot play the masters because the cut is about fifty-five. Yeah. So thirty plus sixty it's ninety, you won't play in it. So you have to find A guy uh in the top thirty. So that's not a lot of people. Yeah. Then if you're the outside player, you have to find a do side player. Yeah.

Okay, so now suddenly it you cut right away almost into so you have about ten, fifteen. Some teams are already established. So you don't okay, to put it simple, you don't have that much choice. Sometime you you pick up someone and you try to make it work. You know, you try to make it work. And or you try to find someone who can uh combine your your strength, like for example.

uh Jamie Murray because we both know him very well. His his game is more on on balling. So he will he will want to have a partner like Niels Kubsky or Bruno who can return the ball quite hard. Yeah. So that he can impose, intercept the volley and more shine at the net. Yeah. Either you get along well with the guy and you go have lunch often, you have a Social time or you don't get along with the guy and there's no social activity and you just meet on the court for the warm-up and the match.

And you play as a business, you know, as a business partner. Yeah. And these teams are those who will split more often because as soon as the business is not good, they they want to change.

team really like develop a team and uh a team identity, team tactics, team and everything is team, you know the always that team has a main focus. You create you create a bit that bonding and that that special thing that they may stay together longer. Yeah. Because it it could not just be based on liking each other or because a lot of time they come from different cultures.

you know, like uh like Bruno for example is Brazilian this or Rajiv is American and is a British and they have different culture, different uh interests maybe in sports or they have different They're different. So so I have to find a common ground and the common ground is the team identity.

Uh I do have a reputation because I'm on the tour since nineteen ninety seven. Started to travel and start to be with the leading doubles team since uh even nineteen ninety, nineteen ninety one and all this, uh the Canadian were doing very, very well. So I have a bit of the reputation and they kind of let me Not control but charge of the team. Yeah. And uh but I would not go correct, for example, the

the serve or whatever technique the coach will do that. Yeah. But I could say I would like you serve a bit more white, for example. Yeah. But I will not do I will just do the the team and and that goes very well. I'll touch wood like I said, but uh

I did to go through the videos, we talk with the coach and the players. I make them some questions, looks what happened, you know, what do you think should have done? Oh yeah, I should have. So we do a lot of you know like interactive assessment and then we say, okay, next practice, do a bit more this and that. And that's it. But like I say, my my relationship with the coaches.

are excellent like right now even Colin helping Jamie. I coach Colin like many years. So it it it makes uh life very easy and uh yeah so far like I said whoever it was like uh other coach like even when Luke played with uh Ben McClag and his brother, they were really fine to let me lead the team lead that. So

Hopefully it stays like this. Hopefully I won't get to a age where they start to lack respect and take too much over the hill. But right now, right now uh I'm happy everything goes pretty well. And of course I I I respect them because if I was lacking respect and bullying it will not work.

I think I create a good energy and a good synergy and uh it's going well. Yeah.

have zero complex and they have learned how to construct the points to uh to do better. If they feel they close a bit too much the net, they will love, they will do this. They uh yeah, very I think the level is very strong. It's it's tough.

I think we often think as coaches that it's about what we know and certainly Louis knows more than most of any coach that I've ever known. And before I knew Louis personally, I thought that's what it was. He was just this genius tennis brain. He had all of his information. But w since I've got to know him and I've worked closely with him, I've seen do you know what? It's not about that. It's about his relationships with the players. It's about it's about the way that he's able to get

into the minds of the players, get the buy in from the players. He's got a genuine care and connection. So now they're they're open and now the information can be passed through. And uh I think the saying goes, People don't care about what you know until they know

yw'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn o'r hyn But the thing that stands out to me loud and clear with Louis Caye is his ability to build relationships and and and the passion that he has for connecting with athletes.

installing that belief and and then obviously the incredible knowledge that goes with. So brilliant conversation. Loved it. Louis, if you are listening, we need to get you on again. It's been a few years on and and I'm sure the game continues to evolve. You know, I know we've had some breakfasts at tournaments where we've discussed the differences between men's doubles and women's doubles.

uh which is I think a very interesting conversation as well. And and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for for all the support that you have given me. Uh it's fantastic to to have Louie on as as always. And

Controller controllables, you guys, please, you know, do get in in in touch with us. You know, what are some of your questions? I'm gonna let you know. who we've got coming up. We've got the the recently top hundred world ranked ATP player who was in college, US college a few months ago. And we were like, Well, he won he won a couple of matches to start off. And I know he ended up winning the tournament in Nottingham Challenger in the summer.

And it was like, whoa, fair play to Jacob Fernley. And then he played centre court against Novak Djokovic in the second round at Wimbledon. And how many times have we seen the British player have the limelight? over Wimbledon and then they disappear. But boy or boy has Jacob Fernley not disappeared. He has kept going. He's beaten the whole of France over the last month.

And he has made his way into the top hundred in the world. An incredible story. Really excited to announce that we have Jacob coming on in the next couple of weeks. We then have I'm out here in China right now, in Wuhan, and I've been in Beijing, and I've been spending time with Calvin Betton, who all of you will know, the coach of Henry Patton, but also Candy Reid.

And Candy Reid, who worked for CNN for years. She was a really top player, went to University of Tennessee as well, knows tennis from all the angles, is now a commentator that you will hear on the ATP and WTA event. around the year. And myself, Calvin and Candy are gonna get together next week and we're gonna

Unpack the Asian swing. You know, I think there's a lot of people saying to me there's not a lot of information out there about what's going on out here. I think it'll be great to get us together, to kind of shoot the breeze. Uh, but any questions you have for us? Ctc dot podcast at sottotennis.com. That's CTC dot podcast.

at Sototennis.com and we're here. Get the questions in. We're gonna be posting things on social media as well. So you get a chance and you will get your name and like yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n We're going to be speaking to Candy about her story as well. So you got a few little little episodes to look forward to over the next few weeks. Wherever you are in the world, enjoy the rest of the tennis season. There's still lots of exciting tennis to be played.

But until next time, I'm Dan Kiernan and we are control the controllable.