Rule of the Week
Rule of the Week
Here's something that happened this morning with my tennis group.
A ball was returned by Team A to Team B. The ball bounced on Team B's side
but the backspin on the ball made the ball bounce back over the net on Team
A's side.
Then the discussion began. Of course Team A contends that they won the
point because they do not have to touch the ball. Team B contends that
they won the point because the "return" was untouched by Team
A players.
Set us straight please.
Answer
Team A wins the point. Team B must hit the ball back over the net. Interestingly,
this scenario is the only one in which it's permissible for Team B to hit
the ball while the ball is still on Team A's side of the court. If the
ball hits on Team B's side of the court and backspins back over the net,
Team B can reach over the net into their opponent's side of the court and
hit the ball. The bottom line, Team B has no excuse not to hit the ball.
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