This weekend’s “Unplugged” posts revolve around Principle 42 from “The Code,” which is the unwritten rules of tennis published with the USTA’s Friend at Court. “Retrieving Stray Balls” is a lengthy paragraph detailing a wealth of directives about how loose balls should be handled. While the information in the USTA’s official rulebook is oriented toward organized sanctioned play, the principles provide a foundation of culture and behavioral norms even in more casual settings.
The first two sentences of Principle 42 establish responsibility for removing stray balls from the player’s end of their own court. It also describes how an opponent can request the removal of a ball from the opposite side of the net.
Retrieving stray balls. Each player is responsible for removing stray balls and other objects from the player’s end of the court. Whenever a ball is not in play, a player must honor an opponent’s request to remove a ball from the court or from an area outside the court that is reasonably close to the lines. A player shall not go behind an adjacent court to retrieve a ball or ask a player on an adjacent court to return a ball while a point is in play. When a player returns a ball from an adjacent court, the player must wait until the point is over on the court where the ball is being returned and then return it directly to one of the players, preferably the server.
Principle 42 from “The Code”, USTA Friend at Court
My formative years in tennis were spent on the windswept plains of north Texas. Consequently, I am somewhat fastidious about loose balls during play. A ball at rest is likely to become a ball in motion due to gusts of win that are frequent in my region. It is not uncommon for balls that seem to be securely nestled next to the net or the fence to wind up in the center of the court during a point.
Per a strict interpretation of the rules, a let cannot be called for a ball that was already in the playing area when the point began. The basis for that idea is Principle 42 within “The Code.”
Let called when ball rolls on court. When a ball from another court enters the playing area, any player on the court affected may call a let as soon as the player becomes aware of the ball. The player loses the right to call a let if the player unreasonably delays in making the call.
Principle 18 from “The Code”, USTA Friend at Court
When a point is started with an extraneous ball in the playing area, a let cannot be called just because the location changes during the point. If the player is aware of the ball and starts the point anyway, that constitutes an unreasonable delay in asking for a let.
I don’t care if my opponent clears loose balls from the other side of the net. In fact, I will intentionally aim my shots at it if it is within the lines. I will also attempt to run my opponent near the ball’s proximity, which might distract them. Having a ball within my line of sight on the other side of the net doesn’t bother me at all. It’s a target.
Consequently, the only times I can remember asking the person on the other side of the net to remove a ball involved practice matches with immediate family members. Those occasions also included a lecture about the importance of taking responsibility for their own balls and, of course, the potential rule ramifications.
If a ball on the other side of the net is a distraction, your opponent cannot refuse a reasonable request to remove it. This is yet another example of the subtle aspects of tennis etiquette known to only a handful of the most experienced players.
