This was a USTA match.
We had a captain's meeting in November. In it, the head of the league said what he always says: Two hours is all you get. Enforce the time restrictions. There are reasons for the time restrictions, he said. Not once did he say, "We'd prefer that you bend the rules so matches are decided on the courts." He then went into detail about ways to use the time efficiently and increase your chance of finishing on time.
There is, of course, a burning desire in players to decide it on the court. There are times when the losing team will exploit that desire in the team that is winning, attempting to guilt them into continuing to play.
I have told my teammates that I would like us to adhere to the rules regarding time in all cases and let the chips fall where they may. We'll win some and we'll lose some. But we can never be accused of gamesmanship or guilted into playing past the limit, as we will be ruthlessly consistent regardless of whether we are ahead.
I understand that your league does it differently. But on some level, this is rather arbitrary and unfair. It seems unfair that sometimes we will lose because we are forced to play past the limit but other times we will lose because we didn't get the chance to play past the limit, see? Right now, we have absolute certainty that we are always playing on a completely level field, and there is value in that. Me, I would oppose a rule change to adopt your league's policy.
As I told my team, failing to follow the rules is the fast track to having to file a grievance. Say you are just finishing the second set and split sets when time expires. Rather than stop, you keep playing ("Come on, come on, we can finish, let's play!!"). You get to 4-2 in the tiebreak. The facility manager comes up and tells you to get the heck off the court (facility is closing, they don't rent courts to non-members, some member or pro needs the court). Then what? The team who is ahead in the tiebreak says it should count and they win. The team who is behind in the tiebreak (but who was leading based on game count) says both teams contemplated that they would finish the tiebreak, and since they didn't it does not count. Then what?
Nah. Shake hands at 90 minutes or 2 hours or whatever the limit is and go home.
Cindy -- whose mixed captain had to file a grievance when a court kept playing past the time limit
Cindy,
I applaud your support of the rules. It should not change week to week and affect match outcomes.
Since you are a team captain, I would submit a rule change to your district, similar to this...
With 15 Minutes Left on the Clock – end of regulation
Players will finish the game in progress (first service ball struck). If a team is up by two games, they win that set. If games are within one or tied, they play a 12 point tiebreak (first to 7, by two) for the set. If sets are then split, they play another tiebreak.
(expanded version below...you can still have 90 minute matches as needed)
1) Time will be called after 1 hour, 45 minutes. If you are in a game when time is called, complete that game (a game begins when the first service ball is struck, even if it goes in the net or out).
2) If a team/player is ahead by, at least, two games - they have won that set.
3) If a team/player is within one game or tied - they play a set tie break (first to seven, by two).
4) If sets are split (third set never begun), they play a set tie break, in lieu of a third set.
5) If the second set is interrupted, the above rules 2) and 3) apply. If sets are then split, they play a set tie break, in lieu of a third set.
We know it is possible that a match will run out of time. You can help reduce this risk by following these suggestion.
a) Limit warm-up to 10 minutes. Captains should call for the match to begin.
b) Only switch sides after sets. You get a two minute break between sets, and you may drink water, as needed. You may not leave the court for water.
The match must be finished. If time runs out, players should move to an available court to complete the match. If the match must be finished at a later time, both teams/players get a 10 minute warm-up before resuming play.
If the match ahead of yours runs over time, try sharing a court for warm up. All four singles players can warm-up on one court. If it is time for your match to begin, the players must stop, so your match can begin.
We want all matches to be decided on the court, not by a racquet spin. We also don't want to penalize a player who is a "slow start" by counting games. The entire section is following these same procedures for resolving a Timed Match. Thank you, in advance, for your understanding and cooperation.
