I came to this forum searching possible solutions for bad line calls in junior tennis.
But unfortunately have not found too many options apart from retaliatory calls (if there is no possibility to ask officials to watch lines), but this is not acceptable for my son..
Though I noticed that names of cheaters were never cited in witnessed cases posted. So I wonder if we do so, it could probable help to calm cheaters down a bit, unless they are happy to be known not for their playing skills but for their cheating skills..
It simply mirrors "life" in that way, doesn't it? People will cheat to get ahead. They will benefit. There isn't much if anything you can do about it. The only thing under your control are your own actions.
And yes, this in an unhelpful, idealistic analysis / solution. But that doesn't mean this isn't the way it is.
You may be able to "get justice" against the odd cheater here and there, but the systemic problem never goes away. You are just chasing your tail.
Think about it this way. There are 2 basic ways to enforce good conduct. I'll call them "formal" and "informal". The formal method relies on the rules and the enforcement. The subjective nature of tennis rules makes formal enforcement difficult. This is why it is called a "gentleman's game". Because it relies on informal enforcement.
Informal enforcement relies on the value of your reputation. So for example, imagine you joined the Wimbledon Tennis Club. Do you imagine anyone risks their reputation by making bad line calls or otherwise not behaving like a perfect gentleman? Of course not. The cost is too high. But notice, this type of enforcement won't be effective in most "groups" for various reasons. And I think you can see why without me going into a long drawn out explanation.
Just understand the nature of the situation you are in and act accordingly. That's about all you can do. In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle warns that we should not 'look for the same degree of exactness in all areas', but instead 'for the degree that accords with a given subject matter and is proper to a given line of enquiry'. You won't find mathematical or logical exactness in a tennis match and it's foolish to expect that.
As you can probably see, what must be done is to have a "good" which is greater than winning. This is the case in my Wimbledon example. But you'll never find such a "good" in junior, USTA, etc tennis. And to add to this, the "win at all cost" mentality is actually celebrated to a certain extent in our culture. It's the type of culture that celebrates gamesmanship or "winning the mental battle". Gamesmanship may not be strictly speaking against the "letter" of the rules. But in most people's minds, it is often against the "spirit" of the rules. But this is probably another discussion for another time. But it's applicable for this case because you always have "plausible deniability" when you make bad calls. You simply saw it the way you called it is all you have to say. Something you'd never get a Club Wimbledon I'd imagine. Because you value your reputation too much. Such behavior isn't looked kindly upon and enforcement against such behavior is enforceable.
