The tennis summer swing is in full force across all surfaces, and with the turn from clay to grass comes more debates over lines and serves, questionable calls, and the perennial query: What does The Code say?
Court of Appeals is here to clear the air. Rebel Good, a past editor of Friend at Court, the USTA’s handbook of rules and regulations, has taught officiating for more than 30 years and will resolve all your rules questions and quarrels.
Leaving It All On The Court
One of our opponents fell on the court while playing and skinned her knee. She put two Band-Aids on the wound and continued to play. A couple games later, my partner was ready to receive a second serve and noticed a bloody Band-Aid on our side of the court. She stopped and asked the opponent to come around and dispose of it, which she did. Is her partner now allowed a first serve, even though it was their team’s Band-Aid that led to the delay?
—Melinda Conover, Castle Rock, Colo.
Definitely. You’re all equally responsible for the playability of the court. Your partner could have ignored the Band-Aid or brushed it aside with her racquet. She chose to hold up play between your opponent’s first and second serve. Under The Code, #30, your opponent is entitled to a first serve because the delay was “caused by the receiver.”
—Rebel Good
Got a question? Send it our way. Email your question to courtofappeals@tennis.com.