Singles sticks or no singles sticks--that is the question.
COACH GIVING HIS OWN PLAYER A CODE VIOLATION
In a men's ITA match, player A made a valiant effort to get to a shot but fell short. In going for the ball, he launched it over the fence. The chair official felt that there was no codeable offense but player A's coach immediately came to the court and instructed the chair official to give his player a game penalty (since he had previously received a point penalty).
What would you have done and what do you need to remember in this situation?
DISCOVERING THAT THE SINGLES STICKS WERE NOT UP
In a men's ITA match during the start of the second game, Player A's coach pointed out to the official that the singles sticks has not been put up before the singles match began. He then asked that his player be permitted to serve his game without sticks since Player B had served without them.
The official granted his request.
Was this the right decision? Was this a fair decision?
7 comments:
1. No problem, give the code as requested by the coach.
2. Insert the singles sticks as soon as discovered they were not up. How does serving have any impact on whether the singles sticks were in place or not? Both players are using the same net during a rally.
Unfortunately, the chair umpire on the first incident wasn't fully observant of the player's actions. Although he thought the player was making a valiant effort to get to the ball, the other off-court officials AND the player's head coach (who was standing three courts away) saw that the player was pissed for not being able to get to the ball in a timely manner, made a valiant and conscious decision, and launched the ball across the river and into the woods.
Now this brings up a most excellent point. Having already been penalized loss of point for a previous infraction, what would the penalty be? For those in the know, it would only have been a point penalty since the coach was the one issuing the code violation and not the chair umpire. In this situation, the chair umpire erroneously issued a game penalty.
In the second situation, the official again erred. The FAC states that certain mistakes should be rectified immediately, which includes the case of missing singles sticks. Although it doesn't seem fair, it is the rule and should be followed.
Remedial training would be appropriate for the on-court official involved in this case. Would that official be a certain GT we all know?
This must be a very special year for officiating collegiate matches. I have seen more than the usual number of buffoonary calls. Hope this trend doesn't continue. The coaches are paying a lot of money to have qualified officials, and it appears they aren't necessary getting a good service for the monies payed.
1. Only point penalty and not part of the progression of the PPS.
2. Rectify immediately.
Interesting scenarios. In #2, I think I would allow the request and insert the sticks after they hay both served without them. The singles sticks do affect the wide serve making it harder to hit a strong angle.
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