How four players take turns serving in doubles

Label teams and partners separately

Call the first team A1 and A2, and its opponents B1 and B2. If A1 serves the first game and B1 the second, A2 serves the third and B2 the fourth. That rotation then continues for the set.

These are fictional player labels, not real pairings. The first and third games belong to the same team, but different partners. A television cutaway can therefore show the same uniforms serving again while the actual individual server correctly changes.

Each team chooses its initial partner under the rule

The Rules of Tennis allow the team due to serve first in the set to choose its first server, and the opponents choose theirs before their first service game. That establishes the within-set sequence.

Do not infer the order from ranking, handedness or who stood nearest the baseline during warm-up. The actual choice and sequence matter. A new set or approved match-tie-break arrangement has its own selection context, so a viewer should check the relevant rule rather than extend an old pattern blindly.

Receiving order is another decision

The partners also have receiving positions and order under the rules. A player’s service turn does not automatically identify which partner receives every opponent serve. The server alternates service sides point by point within the game.

After the return, either partner can play the ball in the rally within the normal rules. A camera showing the net player hitting next does not mean the wrong receiver took the serve. Distinguish the initial return from later rally strokes.

Recover the sequence after an edited replay

Note current set, game number, serving team and individual server. If a highlight skips two games, the next visible server may seem unexpected even though the underlying four-player order is intact. A full-game or full-set recording is better for checking this question.

This article applies published ITF/USTA rules to a fictional A1/B1/A2/B2 sequence. It does not judge an unseen service-order dispute, establish Canadian rights or claim IPTV Canada carriage. No physical playback test was performed.

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