Doubles Warm Up

[corgi10s]

I had a sticky situation in a competitive match last week. One of my opponents had just completed another match and didn't want to warm up. Consequently my partner and I took positions on opposite sides of the net to warm ourselves up. That left our one opponent with no one to warm up with, and my partner decided that wasn't our problem, and that if we chose to include him in our warmup we would not get sufficient time. It got ugly as you might imagine.

Are we required to let them warm up with us? I think that the problem was with their own partner. What would you do?

 

[JLyon]

yes you are required to allow them to warm-up, the partner should also be mad at his partner for not sucking it up to hit a few balls, but you can not leave your opponent out to dry during warm-up.

 

[AR15]

Why didn't the three of you warm up together? Did the other guy have cooties?:wink: Or, was everyone in a jerky mood that night?

 

[tfm1973]

i know the rules say that in doubles you don't have to warm up with your opponents. you and your partner can choose to warm up each other instead. not sure if your opponents don't wanna warm up with each other.

i guess the jerk who decided he doesn't need practice is hurting his own partner. and that's his prerogative.

i don't think you have an obligation to warm up the 3rd guy. but on the other hand -- why be a jerk like the other guy. just warm him up too.

 

[Cindysphinx]

i know the rules say that in doubles you don't have to warm up with your opponents. you and your partner can choose to warm up each other instead. not sure if your opponents don't wanna warm up with each other.

i guess the jerk who decided he doesn't need practice is hurting his own partner. and that's his prerogative.

i don't think you have an obligation to warm up the 3rd guy. but on the other hand -- why be a jerk like the other guy. just warm him up too.

Yep, that's the rule. You can always choose to warm up your partner. In fact, it's a good idea to switch to that arrangement if either opponent is one of those people who doesn't know how to warm up correctly.

Me, I wouldn't include the third person. I'd just say tell her to get her partner off her duff.

On occasions where the fourth person is late, then I include the opponent in the warm-up.

 

[WBF]

I agree with your partner. If there were time limitations, the side with two people on it will get far fewer balls. The blame lies entirely on the dick who decided he couldn't be bothered to warm up. I would have been furious if I were his partner (not at you).

 

[AR15]

Me, I wouldn't include the third person. I'd just say tell her to get her partner off her duff.

I wouldn't invite my opponent to warm up with me, but if he asked (under this circumstance), I'd certainly welcome him. And, I might take a little longer on the warm up consequently. I'm not going to be a jackass just because one of my opponents chooses to be - life is too short.

 

[Sakkijarvi]

There must have been big money at stake. Big money. Or maybe the honor of your womenfolk?

If the guy's shoes were untied, do you mention it? Hell, that deserves its own thread...

 

[randomname]

I had a sticky situation in a competitive match last week. One of my opponents had just completed another match and didn't want to warm up. Consequently my partner and I took positions on opposite sides of the net to warm ourselves up. That left our one opponent with no one to warm up with, and my partner decided that wasn't our problem, and that if we chose to include him in our warmup we would not get sufficient time. It got ugly as you might imagine.

Are we required to let them warm up with us? I think that the problem was with their own partner. What would you do?

congratulations! your a jerk!

 

[WBF]

congratulations! your a jerk!

Why is he a jerk? If they warm up the third person, one or both of the people on *their* team gets short changed by having to split a single rally between two people. Assuming that these warmups were limited in time, or the court time was limited, or some factor lead to them needing to warm up quickly, there was nothing wrong with the author or his partner's actions. The vast majority of the blame lies on the ******* who didn't want to warm up, and a little blame lies on the guy who did not get to warm up, as he should have told his partner to warm him up or to get up off his ass and participate in a normal warmup.

 

[Sakkijarvi]

I don't see any clear winners here, all are losers in this lame tug-of-war.

Sadly, in my experience this kind of stuff seems to be the realm of the men in tennis whites. I still play competitive baseball with a lot of former D1, D2 and minor leaguers, and it can get intense. But this kind of thing, with all due respect to the ladies, and I greatly respect them, have multiple female athletes in my family including my daughters, and coached girls sports...is girlie stuff.

If you really need to stiff the third wheel guy on the warmup to win...you might want to look long and hard in the mirror...what do you see???

 

[Sakkijarvi]

<...and my partner decided...>

I mean, sheesh. At least own it...'my partner'...

 

[AR15]

I don't see any clear winners here, all are losers in this lame tug-of-war.

If you really need to stiff the third wheel guy on the warmup to win...you might want to look long and hard in the mirror...what do you see???

I agree.

And maybe it's a southern thing, but down here we are quite accommodating about such things.

 

[randomname]

Why is he a jerk? If they warm up the third person, one or both of the people on *their* team gets short changed by having to split a single rally between two people. Assuming that these warmups were limited in time, or the court time was limited, or some factor lead to them needing to warm up quickly, there was nothing wrong with the author or his partner's actions. The vast majority of the blame lies on the ******* who didn't want to warm up, and a little blame lies on the guy who did not get to warm up, as he should have told his partner to warm him up or to get up off his ass and participate in a normal warmup.

I know this is a difficult concept for a lot of tennis players (see the "catching a ball before it lands out thread") but just because you CAN use technicalities to give yourself a minor advantage does NOT mean its ethical. While the guys partner should have gotten up and just hit with him when it was clear that the OP and his partner woldnt let the guy hit with them it doesnt change the fact that a gentleman would have no problem accommodating their opponent. and I highly doubt you cant get a decent warm up with 3 people, I have to deal with 5 minute warm ups and I get by just fine

 

[Vik]

I'm shocked that so many think it wrong to not warm up the 3rd person.

Provided it is a timed warm up---->your partner absolutely did the right thing. You warm the 3rd person up and you (and your partner) are getting HALF the warmup you usually get (while your opponent gets a full warmup). Now your team is at a competitive disadvantage.

 

[Cindysphinx]

I'm shocked that so many think it wrong to not warm up the 3rd person.

Provided it is a timed warm up---->your partner absolutely did the right thing. You warm the 3rd person up and you (and your partner) are getting HALF the warmup you usually get (while your opponent gets a full warmup). Now your team is at a competitive disadvantage.

Our matches are timed to 90-minutes. Warm-up is 10 minutes, and the captains yell "Begin Play!" or similar when it is time to strike the first serve. Adding a third person to a warm-up will diminish my paltry allotted warm-up, so I wouldn't look kindly on it.

Sorry, but if my opponent's partner is seriously going to sit on the bench and let his partner start the match cold, that is their problem.

Again, I make exceptions if the partner is late. And I made an exception when one lady needed a bathroom break more than a warm-up.

But extending courtesies to someone who refuses to help out his own partner?

Nope.

 

[JavierLW]

There must have been big money at stake. Big money. Or maybe the honor of your womenfolk?

If the guy's shoes were untied, do you mention it? Hell, that deserves its own thread...

I dont think I could really deny the 3rd person a warmup either. Just out of common courtesy.

However I dont see how you people can spend so much time disparaging the other team for choosing to warm up the third person, when this is really the fault of the person who choose not to take a warmup in the first place.

By sitting out the warmup, she is denying everyone of a decent warmup, and if you feel the other team (who are the real victims here) are wrong for denying someone a warmup, keep that in mind.

2nd match or not, 5-10 extra minutes isnt going to hurt anyone.

 

[shell]

I'd certainly allow the third person to warm up with me and my partner. It is, afterall, a tennis match and not WWIII.

But having said that, I would pop one hard at the player that sat out the warmup as early in the match as possible:
1) because they are probably not as warmed up as they think
2) it is a good strategy to feel them out and set a tone that they are not going to dominate the net on you
3) because they are a jerk

 

[WBF]

I know this is a difficult concept for a lot of tennis players (see the "catching a ball before it lands out thread") but just because you CAN use technicalities to give yourself a minor advantage does NOT mean its ethical. While the guys partner should have gotten up and just hit with him when it was clear that the OP and his partner woldnt let the guy hit with them it doesnt change the fact that a gentleman would have no problem accommodating their opponent. and I highly doubt you cant get a decent warm up with 3 people, I have to deal with 5 minute warm ups and I get by just fine

I'm saying nothing of the sort. There is a major difference between avoiding a handicap (fewer balls in warmup for you and your partner), and using a technicality for an advantage. Did you read the op? There were time limitations. Why should the author let the third guy warm up with them if it would impede their own gameplay and help the other team at the same time????

If you are the sort of person who can get warmed up in 5 minutes... I see that if you were in that situation it wouldn't be a problem, but for the majority of people who prefer warming up a bit more, it is not acceptable.

 

[Cindysphinx]

WBF, even more surprising is how some say they would warm up the third guy and then try to injure the guy who wouldn't warm up. On what planet does that make sense?

Heck, if it were left to me, I'd warm up a full 30 minutes rather than the 10 minutes I am allotted. Since I only recently started playing singles, I have been shocked to see that the norm is that each player hits three serves from each side of the court and then they start. Wow. Not nearly enough for me.

 

[shell]

WBF, even more surprising is how some say they would warm up the third guy and then try to injure the guy who wouldn't warm up. On what planet does that make sense?

Heck, if it were left to me, I'd warm up a full 30 minutes rather than the 10 minutes I am allotted. Since I only recently started playing singles, I have been shocked to see that the norm is that each player hits three serves from each side of the court and then they start. Wow. Not nearly enough for me.

I didn't say injure. I said hit at them, as in a sharp return in their vacinity . Test their volley. Test their coverage of down the line. It makes sense in the planet of doubles. Backs them off the net a bit.
I have never in my life hit at someone to hurt them. Don't read more into it than was intended.

 

[Cindysphinx]

OK, but you are still saying you would retaliate in some way. That seems wrong to me.

You know, the third guy could find a teammate or bystander to warm him up. But the Code specifically reserves to players the right to warm up with their partners rather than their opponents. There could be several reasons for this provision, but one could be to make sure that the Insane Behavior of an opponent doesn't diminish the warm-up of a doubles team.

 

[shell]

OK, but you are still saying you would retaliate in some way. That seems wrong to me.

You know, the third guy could find a teammate or bystander to warm him up. But the Code specifically reserves to players the right to warm up with their partners rather than their opponents. There could be several reasons for this provision, but one could be to make sure that the Insane Behavior of an opponent doesn't diminish the warm-up of a doubles team.

I don't know, maybe. But really I would just want to see their volley - which I would have been denied in the warmup. That's also a really important aspect of the warmup that was denied to the team.

 

[corgi10s]

Thanks for all the debate. I feel like in any amateur competitive tennis match you should be accomodating unless their is history of problems with the opposing team. I didn't want to get off on the wrong foot with my partner (who I had never played with before), and I knew that according to "Friend at Court" teammates are allowed to warm eachother up. It just made for an uncomfortable match for all parties, and I wanted to get everyone's feedback.

I guess the debates rages on!