PLAY BETTER TENNIS

Tennis is a sport with numerous rules and regulations, and getting them all in your head can take a while. In this article, we'll examine some commonly occurring issues regarding the game so that you can have a clearer outlook on exactly what should happen should these questions come up in a game.

Q: What should I do if a ball from another court rolls onto my court during the middle of a match?

A: The rules laid out by the International Tennis Federation state that a request by another tennis player to remove their ball from your court must be honored. However, the request doesn't need to be honored while you have a ball in play. If a player from another game hits a ball that doesn't land on your court but near the court's lines, the sportsmanship-upholding rules of the federation state that you should take time when you are not in play to retrieve the ball for the other player.

Q: Can I call my own let?

A: Lets are not allowed to be called by the player performing the service. Regardless of the situation, be it a snap of the player's racket strings or a distraction such as their hat blowing off, nothing that a player does can entitle them to call out their own let. Similarly, if a distraction occurs such as a cell phone ring while a player is serving, they are held responsible and no let should be given. The opponent of the person who is being distracted is completely in charge of whether or not their opponent should be allowed a let, and they should let sportsmanship and fairness guide their decision. However, it should be a players responsibility to ensure that any distractions will be minimized by doing such things as turning off their cellular phone. If, however, the referee doesn't state that cellular phones should be turned off before the game, in certain cases, a referee may allow a player to have a let. However, this can only happen once per game at most for any player, since after it occurs, every player should be familiar with the fact that cellular phones should be left aside. In addition, lets should not be allowed due to the sounds made by any of the audience members. Although it can be distracting, spectator noise is not the basis for the replaying of a point.