The Rules of Tennis
Perhaps it is a sign of the season. As I write this final installment on the “Coaching” section of the ITF Rules of Tennis published in the USTA Friend at Court, I have a Christmas carol stuck in my head. More specifically it is the lyric “He’s making a list, and checking it twice…” from Santa Claus is Coming to Town.
The final USTA Comment within the coaching section of the ITF Rules of Tennis is essentially a list.
USTA Comment: Is coaching permitted during a rest period?
Yes. Coaching is permitted during a 3-minute or 10-minute rest period. However, coaching is not allowed in the following situations:
A toilet/change of attire break;
A 2-minute set break;
A Medical timeout;
Bleeding timeout;
When players remain on court for a short stoppage of play such as during slight rain or repair of the net or net strap;
When a player leaves the court seeking the assistance of the Referee; or
When equipment or clothing is being adjusted.
USTA Friend at Court 2020, Comment 30.2
I find that it is easier conceptualize this rule by focusing on when coaching is allowed, rather than the prohibited times enumerated in this USTA Comment. Essentially coaching is allowed during any scheduled rest break that is 3 minutes or more.
It hasn’t been that long ago that we talked about the 120 second set break codified in Section 29 of the ITF Rules of Tennis. Since that break is referred to as 2 minutes in this USTA Comment, the linkage is obscured. The way to think about this is that there is always a 120 second (2 minute) set break. Sometimes the set break is concurrent with a rest period of 3 minutes or more. Coaching is allowed during rest breaks, but prohibited during set breaks.
There is a practical matter of detection and enforcement of this rule for longer breaks. For example, the USTA Comment is explicit that coaching is not permitted when players remain on court during a brief stoppage. The gray area comes when the stoppage is prolonged. The general consensus is that coaching is allowed under those circumstances. There would simply be no other way to detect violations if it was prohibited.
This USTA Comment brings us to the conclusion of the “Coaching” Section of the ITF Rules of Tennis. The next section is “Player Analysis Technology.” Coincidently, that is the last section in the main body of the ITF Rules of Tennis. It wasn’t planned that way, but it looks like the steady march through the main body of the ITF Rules of Tennis will align perfectly with the end of the year.
- United States Tennis Association (2020) Friend at Court. White Plains, NY
