What should you do if your opponent yells watch out when you are hitting an overhead? What happens if your opponent’s shoe falls off during a point? What if your dampener flies off? What if the dampener hits the net? Carolyn and Erin discuss these rules and more!
Thank you to Leah for all these great questions!
We are replaying a few of our most popular episodes and this was one of them.
Here’s a Complete Transcript of our Conversation:
Responding to Listener Questions
Carolyn 0:07
Hi, this is Carolyn and I’m here with Aaron. And we recently did some rules episodes and we got a lot of comments and questions back, didn’t we, Aaron?
Erin 0:16
Yes, we did. Lots and lots of emails and questions from people.
Carolyn 0:19
And so we thought we’d go through a few that we received and just kind of talk through, you know, what we would do and maybe what the rules says. So, Aaron, do you want to start us off with a few that you received on social media?
Erin 0:32
Yeah, I received a few from Leah. She messages me when she plays a match and then has a question which I love. So here are some that she sent that we thought were super interesting. So this the first one has to do with hitting an overhead. She said, random rules question. I can’t even count the amount of times that I’ve set up for an overhead to hear an opponent yell, look out, before I hit it. I guess they’re warning their partner, but what’s the call
Yelling “Look Out” During Overheads
Erin 1:00
on that? If I stop the do I stop the point and play it over? I always tense up because now I know that I need to watch the ball for my overhead and also see where the net person is. And there just is a lot going on in the court. So I think this one is pretty cut and dry, isn’t it, Carolyn? Or maybe I shouldn’t say that. None of the rules are really cut and dry.
Carolyn 1:19
Well, I think there’s the rule and then what people normally do. What did you tell her, Aaron? What did you tell her?
Erin 1:25
Oh gosh, that’s a good question. Or do you remember? I should have looked at my well, because I I think I know the rule and and I get confused when hindrances come in. But I the rule is you are not supposed to yell out when the ball is traveling away from you, right? So if I’ve hit a lob, the ball is now moving from my side of the court to someone else’s side of the court, and I’m not supposed to say, look out, or you know, watch out or move or run, you know, any of that. But it is so natural. If I were to guess, I would say a very, very, very, very high percentage of rec players say something. Yes. If they know they’re gonna get their partner the net killed, right? Yes. But what’s the actual rule? Do you know?
Carolyn 2:10
Okay, so I looked up the rule and it is talking when ball is in play. And this is what it says singles players should not talk during points. Okay. Talking between doubles partners when the ball is moving toward them is allowed.
Erin 2:25
Toward them.
Carolyn 2:26
Toward them. Okay. Doubles players should not talk when the ball is moving toward their opponent’s court. Okay, just exactly what you said, Aaron. And then it says any talking that interferes with an opponent’s ability to play a ball is a hindrance. Now, what’s interesting is in front of court, they say, for example, if a doubles player hits a weak lob and yells, get back, and the yell distracts an opponent who is about to hit the ball, then the opponent may claim the point based on a deliberate hindrance. If the opponent chooses to play the lob and misses it, the opponent loses the point because the opponent did not make a timely claim of hindrance. So this is what happens. That’s what happens.
Erin 3:07
Yes. So that’s even more interesting when you think about it, Carolyn, because if I hit a weak lob and I yell out, Carolyn, move back. Watch out. And it messes them up. Here’s what’s gonna happen. Here’s 99.9% of the time, this is what’s gonna happen. Our opponents are gonna hit it straight into the net, and then they’re gonna be mad at us and they’re gonna say, You hindered me by yelling out, and you can’t do that. The problem is they actually have to stop play before they literally have to catch the ball or let it bounce and just say, You hindered me. I’m taking that point.
Carolyn 3:40
Yes. And no one does that.
Erin 3:42
Super awkward.
Carolyn 3:43
That’s super awkward. Have you ever been in a match where someone does that? Where they say, as I haven’t either things.
Erin 3:50
But most, but but almost every single day that I’m on the court, somebody throws up a weak lob and somebody says, Watch out.
Carolyn 3:55
Yes. And then somebody gets mad afterwards. Uh-huh. And sometimes and a lot of times what they say is we need to replay the point, right? Which isn’t the rule.
unknown 4:05
Yeah.
Carolyn 4:06
But that’s what they say a lot of times.
Erin 4:08
So so follow-up question to that then, Carolyn. Speaking of replaying points, when is there the only time
Shoes and Equipment Coming Off
Erin 4:15
that you replay a point is if it’s a let. Correct? And the let’s say. Yes. Versus. No, I’m just I’m just saying replaying a point in general.
Carolyn 4:28
Okay. So in general, so what Rebel Good told us is a let is how you should think about it. I remember him saying this, and I hope he’s listening so that he can correct me.
Erin 4:38
Because he will because he will email and say, ladies, this is how I don’t understand why you don’t understand. What are you talking about, Carolyn?
Carolyn 4:46
But I think you have to think is I’ve been hindered on making a play on the ball. And then you say, was it intentional? Was it unintentional? Oh gosh. And if it was intentional, you take the point. And if it was unintentional, you replay the point. Okay. So you have to think it’s it’s hard. This is the part I do not enjoy because well, and the repertoire.
Erin 5:09
You have to think quick, right? So you have to decide, am I mad about it? Am I like there’s a lot going on, and you have to figure out, yeah, if it was intentional or unintentional.
Carolyn 5:19
But I would like to hear if anybody’s actually done that when someone’s getting ready to hit an overhead, because people do it all the time where they say watch out or weak shot.
Erin 5:27
I feel like we almost need to do training on that. Yeah. It’s literally like from now on, in your matches, the next time someone throws up a lob and someone yells, yellow, yells out, watch out, backup, whatever they say, catch the ball and just get used to doing that. But then you are gonna be the jerk that enforces the rule.
Carolyn 5:45
Yes. Yeah, exactly.
Erin 5:47
You know, that’s yeah, that’s what’ll happen.
Carolyn 5:50
It’s going to be an argument if you then say catch the ball and say, my point.
Erin 5:54
My point. Move on. She actually has Leah has some other good ones about taking the point, which I’ll get into. But the next one she said is during a match on a different court, we saw someone’s shoe come off. And she really stuck with that point until it was over. Then she got her shoe back on. People in my court were like, What the heck? But I just learned from your podcast that that is not a let and that you keep going.
Carolyn 6:17
That’s correct.
Erin 6:18
That’s correct. So if a shoe comes off, a racket flies out of your hand, you fall, it’s all part of the game. You play through.
Carolyn 6:26
Yes. Okay. So in friend at court, it says a player’s racket coming out of the hand or a shoe coming off is not the basis for either player claiming a let. So no one can call it. You can’t call it, and you can’t really hinder yourself. So you couldn’t call that anyway, but the opponents can’t call it. But uh it says something else, and I want us to kind of go over this. We may need to do an additional episode on this, but it says a let is never authorized for a hindrance caused by something within a player’s control, such as when a player’s racket comes out of hand, when a player’s shoe comes off, or when a player trips over the player’s own hat. I was gonna say, then it says, however, if a player’s hat falls off during a point, an opponent may immediately call a let due to an unintentional hindrance. To me, this does not make sense.
Erin 7:16
No, that’s super gray.
Carolyn 7:17
Yeah, it’s like, okay, my shoe comes off, the opponent can’t call anything. But if my hat comes off, an opponent can. And I just don’t understand it. We need to ask Rebel about that, Rebel did.
Erin 7:30
That’s just incorrect in my book. It just isn’t. There’s still pieces of equipment. It’s like I always worry about like, you know, those little racket dampeners. Yes. I always like I’ve played before and I’ve hit and that thing has flown off. And I always wonder like that thing’s so small. Like, what if it just hypothetically? What if it flew off and like hit the net player and then the net player? Like my opponent. Like, let’s say I hit a forehand and I hit it so hard that that little dampener flew off and flew across the net and hit one of the other players or got in their way, or they like is that a let?
Carolyn 8:12
Was I hindered and making a play on the ball?
Erin 8:14
I wasn’t doing it wasn’t intentional, so it must be a let.
Carolyn 8:16
Yeah, well, it depends on whether they’re making a play on the ball. Number one, I also think, you know, if it would hit the net, then they would lose the point, right? Because if you or anything you touch hits the net, you lose the point.
Erin 8:30
Oh gosh.
Carolyn 8:31
But that is an interesting question, but you see how this can be really confusing. So you’re saying if I think you think tennis is simple and a simple game with simple rules, and then all of a sudden these weird situations happen and there’s no official for us, and you don’t know what to do.
Erin 8:45
Not only is it not simple in the rules and in like just from the rule standpoint, it’s also not as simple as just having a racket with a ball and trying to get it over the net. There’s a million ways to do that. Yeah spin, flat, yeah, strategy. Yeah. It’s very much not a simple game like when I started and thought it was gonna be.
Carolyn 9:05
I know, and you have to remember the score. So on top of all that.
Erin 9:11
So, okay, one more super quick back to that. So you’re saying if I hit, let’s say I hit a forehand or a backhand, my little dampener flies through the air, hits the net, I would lose the point. I believe part of my equipment touched
Dampeners Hitting the Net
Erin 9:28
the net. Touch the net before the ball was dead. Interesting.
Carolyn 9:30
Again, I let me double check. I think I think we need to double check the rules and double check with Rebel Goat on that. But that’s what I would say like part of your equipment touched the net while the ball was in play, you lost the point. But I think again, that would go over real well with the people that that happened to. Yeah.
Erin 9:51
Right. I would love this next one. This is kind of just a statement, but I just thought it was very funny and I wanted to read it, and it came from Leah. She just said, I had someone tell me that she can say anything she wants while I’m getting ready to kill basically a lob. And she told me that I was wrong. And she told me that my our expert guest was wrong. I am positive, especially after listening to your podcast, that she is in the wrong. I just thought that was funny. So this lady is arguing with Leah, telling her that our expert guest was incorrect.
Carolyn 10:22
So yeah, so basically I think she’s saying that Rubble Good, who does the Court of Appeals column for Tennis Magazine and the stomp the ump column for Western Wake Tennis Associates.
Erin 10:33
The guy that has officiated at the US Open. Yes, that guy’s wrong.
Carolyn 10:36
Yes, yeah. And and so she’s saying that her opinion I can say anything I want anytime I want.
Erin 10:43
Yes, yes.
Carolyn 10:44
And see, that’s what’s hard about playing adult tennis.
Erin 10:47
Because yeah, because she’s gonna stick to that, even though she’ll never read the rules. She is gonna stick to that and she’s gonna tell other people the same thing that she knows the rules and that she can say anything she wants at any time.
Carolyn 10:57
And then it becomes that weird, do you argue this or not? Like what do you what do you do from a practical standpoint when you’re out there and you just walk away?
Erin 11:07
There’s there’s no there’s no getting through to people like that.
Carolyn 11:10
Or do you say whatever you want and keep going? I don’t know. Maybe that would be fun. Like a map.
Erin 11:16
Maybe you go to a dark place like Carolyn does sometimes and just say whatever you want.
Carolyn 11:21
That’s good. Yeah. Okay, for the dampener question, I looked it up in friendic court, and rule 24G states the point is lost if the player or the racket, whether in the player’s hand or not, or anything which the player is wearing or carrying touches the net or the opponent’s court at any time while the ball is in play. So Aaron’s dampener, if it flies off and flies into the net, she would lose the point,
When Players Misunderstand Rules
Carolyn 11:49
or if it flies off and touches the opponent’s court, or I guess the opponent, she would lose the point. However, I did confirm with Rebel Good that if Aaron’s dampener comes off and lands in her court, then her opponent can call a let. Also, after listening to the episodes with Rebel Good one more time, I think I’m starting to understand the main situations where no one can call a let for something that happens on your court. And those situations are when a rocket comes out of your hand, your shoe falls off, or someone falls. And in all three of those situations, that person is at a disadvantage. So no one on the court can call lead. The opponent still needs to finish the point, but if someone’s rocket’s out of their hand, it would be very difficult for them to play. But please let me know if I’m thinking about this incorrectly, especially Rebel, if you’re listening. We hope you check out our website, which is secondserv podcast.com. Thanks so much for listening and hope to see you on the court soon.
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