22 March 2019

Calling the score... What could possibly go wrong?

It should be so easy, but keeping a hold of the score in a non-umpired match can be difficult, and when it goes wrong, can cause problems that can be difficult to resolve. Here's how to make sure you don't lose track and what to do if you do!

Even in the professional game, with umpires and technology, sometimes the score goes wrong. Famously, in a match between Venus Williams and Karolina Sprem at Wimbledon in 2004, the umpire gave Sprem an extra point in a tiebreak and no-one noticed. Williams went on to lose the match.

In non-refereed matches it is harder still and it is up to the players to make sure they get it right and solve any issues.

Who keeps the score?

In the absence of an umpire, etiquette (and many organisations' tournament rules) advise the server keeps the score. This is no different in a Local Tennis League match. In our etiquette guide we suggest:

This is the server’s responsibility and the easiest way is to announce the score at the beginning of each point. 

Note, this is not an absolute rule of tennis but it is best practice. However, just because a server hasn't called the score, it doesn't mean the receiver has the right to decide what the score was if there is a dispute. Nor is not calling the score a breach of the courtesy rule - many a match between competent players proceeds perfectly happily from first to last point in monastic silence!

Nevertheless, if you are prone to losing the score mid-game, you are strongly advised to follow this advice. You could even go the extra mile and at the beginning of the match tell your opponent that when you serve you will be calling the score. When you call the score, make sure it is loud enough for your opponent to hear.

You need to remember the game score too!

It is not just the point score during a game you need to keep track of. It is almost equally easy to forget the game sCore in a set. Once again, best practice suggests that the server announces the game score before they go on to serve for the new game.

What to do when you lose track?

First, let's not exaggerate the problem. Nine times out of ten, losing track of the score is simply an inconvenience. At 30-all for instance it may not make a huge amount of difference in the greater scheme of things if your opponent thinks it is "deuce".

But sometimes it matters a lot and for the match to proceed to its conclusion, a decision must be made. In our etiquette guide we say:

If you really can’t agree on the score, you must go back to the last point you both agree on. 

This is not quite as straightforward as it seems and all over the world you will find tennis organisations advising on this principle slightly differently. Tennis Australia has a nuanced approach:

If players cannot agree on the score, they should calmly discuss the points/games that are disputed. All points or games which the players agree on stand and only those in dispute should be replayed i.e. two players cannot agree on whether the score is 40–30 or 30–40 and disagree only on who won the first point in the game. The game shall continue from 30–30, since both players agree that they have won two points each. 

When the game score is in dispute the same principles applies i.e. two players cannot agree on 4–3 or 3–4, and disagree only on who won the second game. The match shall continue from 3-3, since both players agree that they won three games each. The player who received in the last game that was played will serve in the next game.

We suggest that if players are able to track the points back in this way, then this methodology can be adopted. But you may find that in practice it is too time consuming, or you may simply find you can't agree or recall all the points. The USTA has a rather more pragmatic approach:

Disputes over the score shall be resolved by using one of the following methods, which are listed in the order of preference:

  • Count all points and games agreed upon by the players and replay only disputed points or games;
  • If the players do not agree on the court in which the disputed point started, toss a coin to select the court.
  • If the players do not agree on who served a disputed point in a tiebreak, toss a coin to select the server. (A coin toss may also be needed to determine the side in which the point is played and the end from which the server serves.)
  • If the players do not agree on who served a disputed game, toss a coin to select the server.
  • Play from a score mutually agreeable to all players
  • Spin a racket or toss a coin

Our conclusion is based on our principles of "friendly, competitive tennis". Your first duty as players is to share the problem and resolve it amicably.

If replaying a whole game is what you are both genuinely happy to do, then that is fine with us. If you are both happy to replay only the disputed points, then that is also fine with us. If you prefer to toss a coin, no problem.

But if you can't agree on the score, the league's official position is:

Go back to the last actual score you can agree on - eg 15-30 or 30 all and play on from there.

To get playing, find your closest league here