In a doubles match outdoors at night, our opponents lobbed a ball back to us. While the ball was in midair, a bat landed on it for an instant. The bat let go and the ball landed in our court (we played out the point). My question is, should I have called a let?
— Steve Clark, Cary, NC
“Should” or “could”? In this circumstance any of the players could immediately call a let for a hindrance under Rule 26, “. . . the point shall be replayed if a player is hindered in playing the point by . . . something outside the player’s own control . . . .” However, all of you can ignore the distraction. Once you’ve played a shot after the “batted ball,” though, it would be too late to stop play under The Code, Item 33.
Except where noted, answers are based on the ITF Rules of Tennis and USTA's The Code.
Got a question? Email it to: courtofappeals@tennis.com