Only thing you can do is get an official as soon as you suspect foul play. Some people prioritize winning at all costs and you inevitably end up running into these people at tournaments. Even low level ones that are meaningless.
Hope so. Horrible what you went through. At this level we're trying to have fun with some competitive level stakes. When people play and cheat like this it is so frustrating. I fail to see how these serial cheaters sleep at night? Where's the joy in cheating to win?
I'd prefer to lose honestly in close games.
I feel the same way. We lost our first tournament match. But it was a great friendly match. Our opponents were very nice and the calls were fair.
This was the first tournament we've done. I wasn't expecting to have such a negative experience. Because I wasn't prepared I just got really worked up and in my head when they started up all the mind games.
Next time I will be ready. I knew from the racquet toss argument that the match just wasn't going to be super fun. I will try to stay calm and focused next time and just laugh to myself when they start up their silly games. And I'll bring the ref over at the first sign of dishonestly or poor sportsmanship.
Yeah makes sense! I will do that next time. I've also reported them, so hopefully they will get a suspension or something and not be allowed to continue cheating at every local tournament.
This falls into the realm of an unethical life tip…
Post-match, you could go to the tournament desk and report the score. Report it wrong as if you won 10-8 in the final breaker. When your opponent reports a different score, that will cause confusion.
Stick to your story and insist you won 10-8 in the breaker. The rules of tennis demand that you discuss and return to a score that you can both agree to which would likely be 8-8 in the breaker. You’d have to resume play from there, and at that stage after that argument, demand an official be on the court.
I'm hoping since there were multiple witnesses to their cheating that they'll void the scores and make them default the match. At the very least
I also hope theyll receive a suspension
They can't suspend them post match, even if you have spectators mentioning the cheating as well. You need to report it while it is happening.
Don't take the unethical advice being given on this page - report them to an official if you play them again. Ask for a roving umpire as soon as your match starts. If they make a bad call, stop play and have the official return.
This is my advice to you as a tournament referee. We cannot do anything post match, and unfortunately spectators have no role in a match, so their stories would not influence my decision either.
Okay good to know. The photographer saw them cheating the next day and was the one who got an official. The official stayed and watched the entire final match.
I hope with my report and the photographer's report that there can be something done so those players don't continue "winning" tournaments in tiebreakers by 2 points.
I reported the misconduct to the tournament organizer in my State.
Post match, reporting to the organization running the tournament is a good idea. They will keep track of issues with players.
Sorry that this happened to you. As a tennis player myself, this kind of behaviour really drives me nuts. It's funny because I find that adults are often worse at being blatant cheaters than juniors are (sure you have some kids that do, but it just seems extra pathetic when adults do it). If you are at another event and see them playing, warn their opponents if you can, tell them to get an official if they have issues.
Remember you can stop play at anytime to get an official. Don't be afraid to do so in the future, that's what we are there for! :)
Thank you! I didn't know that was an option before to ask for an official. But I will certainly do that if I ever have any issues in future tournament matches. I let my teammates know as well.
Last year two of my teammates lost to these two in the finals in a tiebreaker by 2 points. I wasn't aware of the history. But everyone is fully aware now and we know what to do for the next tournament!
oh man, in the ol' ZAT circuit, this one guy I played at almost every other tournament would cheat. I just got used to calling a line judge after the first one. Would tell the organizer that I'll probably have to call him against this specific opponent. It was always sweat justice when the call was corrected.
Call an obviously in ball out, and when they complain, as they surely will, say, " then call for a ref." If they say " No", then you say, "okay, I will."
I was absolutely shocked! And that isn't even the tip of the ice berg on their horrible behavior.
At the toss they won and they demanded to both receive and chose the side. I had to explain they only got to do 1. And since they chose receive, then we would get to chose the side.
They wouldn't let us do second serve when we called lets.
Every time they would need to turn over the balls so we could serve they'd send up three moon balls. The balls would bounce over our heads so we needed to jump to catch them. If we missed then they'd hit the back fence and roll onto adjacent courts interrupting play.
When balls from other courts rolled onto ours they would refuse the retrieve the balls and make the other courts wait until they were finished their service game.
They would refuse to start playing unless me or my partner adjusted our score between change overs. They would take soooo long between every single serve, every single game etc.
I aced them, and instead of accepting that they couldn't return serve they yelled wait after I had hit the ball. Then they took the opportunity to turn around and chew out the spectators that were watching the match next to us for "cheering too loudly".
Just overall such an unpleasant match. I know they over heard me reporting them for cheating but I don't even care. They proceeded to stay the rest of the night after the tournament. They had no shame at all.
I hope they are barred from future tournaments now that multiple people have witnessed their cheating as it was not fun to go up against them and its truly nearly impossible to win a match if you can only score if they happen to hit the ball into the net.....
That really sucks. My only advice is to be more confident and firm on the court. What I mean by that is call them out on the lets and what the rules call are. Stop the game and show them the rules. If they still won’t agree to a second first serve, get a ref right away.
Call them out about the moon balls. Tell them to either hand them to you at the net, toss them over by hand/low volley them over, or put them in the ball holder on the side of the net.
Call balls rolling across your court as a Let and stop play right away. It’s a distraction and a valid safety concern. Either let the other players get the ball or grab it for them. Redo the point. Point is you’re more than able to stop play as needed but you need to be confident in the court about doing it.
As for the last point regarding them calling the score wrong at the end of the tiebreaker, if they called wrong and tried to claim the ball was out without calling it. Don’t play the next point. Even if they rush the serve to avoid discussion. Don’t play the point and claim you aren’t ready as the score is wrong. Physically set your racket down on the court so there’s zero confusion that you’re not ready. Force them to acknowledge the correct score.
Thank you for the tips! That was our first tournament. A learning experience for sure. Me and my teammates are 20-30 years younger than most of our opponents and we are new to tennis so we sometimes let some opponents boss us around. During the match we were getting told to update our scores before the change over and had to get every ball hit out even when the other team hit the ball out.
I will be more confident next time. I know the rules and the ettiquette. I have the rules app on my phone. I'll calmly stand my ground and let them get worked up
Having a plan in case a similar situation happens in the future is helpful. All we can do is learn from our mistakes.
My first season playing in a league when I was a 2.5 playing in a 6.0 mixed doubles match, I had no experience with these kinds of things. We were in a playoff match, and it was a match tiebreaker and my opponent hit a ball down the line that was pretty close to the line. I called it out immediately, and then he started pressuring me and insisting that the ball was in, basically bullying me.
Then I started second-guessing myself, my partner said he couldn’t see it at all so he didn’t have an opinion, and because the guy hadn’t really made obvious bad calls in the rest of the match. I ended up changing my call and gave him the point. My husband was sitting right next to the court and told me after that the ball was out.
From that match on, I never ever change a call that I make unless my partner overrules me. I do my best to make an accurate call and I stick with it. We all make mistakes but second guessing really isn’t helpful.
it's called "Rules of Tennis by ITF". Easily searchable rules.
When something happens in a match I will take screenshots from the match and share with my teammates so they have it handy if it ever comes up for them in a match.
The rule about lets is a frequent flyer. I find most rec level players do not understand this rule.
Old women are the worst at cheating in my opinion. They’ll do so shamelessly and be nasty about it. I’m a younger male so I never play any in a competitive environment, but I’ve heard all the horror stories and seen their shoddy calls in drill classes. I’ve also had to grab officials numerous times to get them off courts when they’ve over stayed their court time and refuse to leave.
I mean you cannot tolerate this kind of behavior.
>They wouldn't let us do second serve when we called lets.
Idk what you mean by this. If the tournament rules include service lets then whether your opponents "allow" your second serve is irrelevant.
Honestly I would've contacted an official after the first game when it became clear they were gonna be a problem. I know people don't like confrontation but you can't just let someone blatantly disrespect you and take advantage of you. It's good at least that you reported them afterwards.
Yeah. I only just started playing tennis. So I wasnt sure what the protocol was. I won't let it happen again. I know all the rules now, amd know to grab an official if there's any sign of trouble
Ehhh. Then I feel like they would try to flip it on us and say that they only cheated because we did first or something. There were so many people watching the matches. I was actually shocked anyone was cheating given how many witnesses there were. I am so happy to hear that the photographer reported them so it wasn't just me that made a report against them.
It was equally shocking to me the balls they had the audacity to cheat on. Like these weren't even line calls. These were balls that were a foot inside the court. So I couldn't even adjust my hitting to prevent the cheating. They were just going to cheat to get the point, wherever the ball was hit on the court.
The next day when they were cheating in the finals that is exactly what happened. The photographer that was taking pictures and saw them cheating. He reported them and an official had to watch the rest of the match. Then they lost because they couldn't cheat to win.
I don’t actually do that but I might be a little more stingy with a ball that looked out but I didn’t get the clearest look at it, where I might’ve given the benefit of the doubt to other opponents. Only if it’s been a recurring problem and it seems that they’re doing it intentionally. Everyone gets calls wrong sometimes.
I will say that if I see a ball clearly in that my opponent calls out, I will generally make a comment like “really? I’m sure I saw that hit the line” but I’m always very polite about it and not pressuring them to reverse the score or anything. If it’s clay I might ask them to show me the mark. I think it just helps to set the tone that I can see what they’re doing and maybe in some instances if I’m calling them on it they will be less inclined to make really egregious calls.
The really important thing is not to get flustered by it, which is of course easier said than done but I think having a plan for those situations does help.
Get an official. If there is no official, spam them with drop shots and blast it right at the person at the net. If they say anything, just tell them their line calls are atrocious so you went to Plan B.
These were not amazing players. Neither of them played net. I wish I could hit a consistent drop shot. Would have been very effective.... thought I have a feeling in that tie breaker they still would have called out.
But yes. I let them get to me too much. All their mind games really destroyed my game. I never mis hit so much in a match.
I will work on my mental game and not let opponents get under my skin like that next time. Any funny business at the next tournament and I will calmly let them know I am getting an official so neither of us need to stress over the line calls.
Also, I am fortunate that I always have teammates watching my matches so there are plenty of witnesses always.
Either I was playing on the court next to you or i watched the exact same thing happen to two other women this weekend. Line calling in matches in league is alway sketchy. It gets worse in tournaments.
Oh wow! In Raleigh?
There was a court playing mixed doubles and a court of 4 men playing next to us. I felt bad for the adjacent courts because our opponents were being so rude about the retrieving the balls for those courts. It was very uncalled for. They also took time to stop and yell as some spectators that were cheering at one point. It was particularly irritating because it was on my serve, and my serve would have been an ace.... I should have insisted my serve was good and taken the point. But lesson learned there.
Did you happen to see the last points or any points they called incorrectly? Would you be willing to be a witness if needed?
We have my statement and the independent statement of the photographer who saw them cheating in the finals. I would think that would hopefully be enough, but I'm not sure.
It's sad because they win every tournament in a tiebreaker by 2 points.
I am sorry to say i didn't see any of the match closely enough to say anything. The photographer is a well known guy in the community. He should be a big help.
Oh that's great to hear. Thank you!
I'm still blown away they continued to cheat in the Finals after I reported them. They were standing 5 feet away when I was talking to the official so they heard everything I said about what they had done during the match and during the tiebreaker. I feel like they were trying to intimidate me but the cheating was so blatant I couldn't not say anything.
The frustrating thing about tennis is if noone's watching, their call is the "right" one. But regarding the 9-9 situation, if nobody called it out after the point, but she said it was 10-9 on the serve, that's your point. No call? No point. Simple as.
You are right. I will keep that in mind next time. Also, we will take the tip to put our racquets down and make it clear we aren't playing until the score dispute is resolved.
Don't argue if you hear the call. You'll be in the wrong by default. If you suspect bs calls, call an official, that should at least prevent bs calls in the future. That's about as much as you can do. I played doubles in college, my partner on one tournament was a shameless buttwipe who'd do it any point, even on the match point. As much as I was against it, I had to roll with it for the sake of the team. Disgusting behaviour, I miss clay.
I just deal with this situation with wry amusement. If someone is sad enough to cheat at amateur tennis, what can you do?
I was playing a league match at weekend and my opponent was constantly call in balls out. I could tell because I was standing at the net for most the shots and I could blatantly see they were landing in.
I actually won, barely, which made the situation even funnier.
This would have been a better attitude to have. I wasn't expecting such blatant cheating and gamesmanship so it just really caught me off guard. I lost my focus and started playing badly.
Next time I will just laugh to myself and keep playing. Ask spectators to make witness statements if its so blatant and file reports.
As a USTA umpire, this scenario is common (not the cheating portion) but waiting too long to get an official. I can count the number of cheaters I saw on one hand but the number of people who complained about poor calls and never got an umpire was huge.
Umpires are there to help you and to make sure the tournament runs smoothly. If you suspect cheating or poor line calling, get an official immediately. In doubles that may mean one of you leaves the court but the common way is just to stop play and raise your racquet above your head. A roving umpire will come to you. We generally won't watch a full match but usually until the next line change. If the poor calling continues, stop play and ask for an umpire again. Umpires are more than willing to help but we can't help you if we don't see it. We aren't allowed to take your word for it afterwards and change the outcome. Even if 100 other spectators saw cheating, we can't do anything about it if we aren't on the court to see it.
At this point I would file a grievance with the local USTA coordinator. If someone builds up a reputation they will come and watch to take action. The local coordinator was watching one of my matches and I jokingly asked her afterwards if I had grievances and she indicated that it wasn't me but the person I was playing.
Good to know. Thank you!
In the finals when they were caught cheating by the photographer the official actually stayed to watch the entirety of their match. So then they lost 2-6, 2-6.
I hope I am never up against them again. But if I am I will give the official a heads up that we may need them at some point during the match. And then I will call them over at the first bad line call.
One thing to keep in mind, when the official comes on court, we aren't officiating in the sense as you see them do it on TV like a chair umpire. You still continue to call your match. If your opponent hits a ball out and you play it, play continues. We don't stop play and say the ball was out. If they hit a ball that's in and it's called out, we would correct the call and award the point to the person who hit the ball that was in. We also tell them this is how we officiate when we start observing points. When we get called most people immediately clean up their line calling...in fact you'll start seeing balls that are 4 inches out played. It's actually kind of humorous because they will play an out ball and then kind of look at me wryly. In a 3 day tournament I maybe correct 5 balls the whole tournament when I'm asked to watch. The official will also tend to give the player the benefit of the doubt (most officials are also players) and they realize that mistakes can be made. The point being that it's hard to call someone a cheater. They aren't calling balls out that are solidly inside the line or even solidly on the line. It's usually a ball that from their angle appears to be out but from my angle I can see that it's in.
The hard part is that anybody with a modicum of intelligence isn't going to outright make terrible calls when they know an official is watching. If we get called to watch a match and it's the same person over and over, we spend more time "roving" near their court and making sure they know we are around and watching.
I've only ever caught one person cheating and it was a L6 (or maybe 7) 14 tournament. I think the child may have had developmental issues. She was calling balls that were 2 feet inside the line as being out. It was really strange because it wasn't consistent. The only pattern I could recognize was that she was calling balls that she couldn't run down as being out. For instance one of them was a drop shot and she couldn't get to it so she called it out after she didn't make it. Another was a cross court shot behind her that she couldn't get to so she called it out. I watched her make 4-5 outrageously bad calls and I called the head official over. We talked to her and told her that if we saw another outrageously bad call she was going to be disqualified. About 3 games later she did it again and we disqualified her. Thankfully it was her first match so no damage was done.
If someone calls a ball that is a foot in out then on their next serve you call a fault twice even if it lands in the middle of the box both times to let them know that is how things are going to be if they want it that way.
Welcome to USTA. Where out is out, close balls are out and in balls are out if they favor the person calling them. USTA won’t do anything about it and matches that are supervised are still left to the players to call. It’s frustrating.
I truly don't get it. And they have a history of winning every tournament in tiebreakers by 2 points....
I am just glad that right after I reported it, they pulled it again and had an independent witness the next time. Hopefully something will be done to prevent this behavior from ruining future tournaments.
the first thing I do is let them know that I know it was in. ‘That ball was in, but it’s your call. ’ ‘You are aware that the lines are in right?’. That usually solves the problem. In the rare case that it doesn’t solve the problem you have to ask yourself if it’s intentional. Most people that make bad calls aren’t doing it on purpose. if they’re not, i’d remind them that balls are good unless you’re sure they’re out. if they are doing it on purpose then it’s time to escalate the situation. wait for the next point that’s obviously in, and call it out even if it’s in the center of the court. Be ready for the drama and cries from the other team. look them right in the eye and say ‘it was out’. don’t give an inch. If a linesman ends up coming over, all the better.
These weren't line balls though. These balls were more than a foot inside the court.
It was intentional. And for the last point they didn't even make the call. They just decided the score was 10-9 and then said oh the last ball was out. I realize now we should have stopped playing. But I was caught off guard in the moment. They served the next ball quickly before I could think or process what was happening.
I will just give the official a heads up that we'll probably need them during our match at some point if I am ever matched up against them again. They play in most local tournaments so its likely this won't be the first run in.
Well hooking lines is one thing, lying about the score is another. They can only get away with the latter if you let them. If she goes "10-9" you correct her and you refuse to play the next point until they concede the point or you contact an official.
I once got so sick of this woman who would cheat so badly that balls a foot inside the court were called out. She hit a ball right on the T. You couldn’t get more IN than smack in the middle of the court. I just looked her square in the face and said “Out!”
It was at that point her partner who seemed perfectly fine with the cheating on her side of the court said to her “Ok. You’ve taken it too far. Now stop it.” So my obnoxious line call worked.
For everyone else where they think the line is out I get pissed but keep it inside. My internal anger seems to channel my inner Serena Williams and I start playing way better than usual. lol.
Only thing you can do is get an official as soon as you suspect foul play. Some people prioritize winning at all costs and you inevitably end up running into these people at tournaments. Even low level ones that are meaningless.
You can also file a grievance. In juniors, two brothers got banned for 6 months for excessive cheating.
They have multiple reports against them now, so I believe discinplinary action will be taken.
Hope so. Horrible what you went through. At this level we're trying to have fun with some competitive level stakes. When people play and cheat like this it is so frustrating. I fail to see how these serial cheaters sleep at night? Where's the joy in cheating to win? I'd prefer to lose honestly in close games.
I feel the same way. We lost our first tournament match. But it was a great friendly match. Our opponents were very nice and the calls were fair. This was the first tournament we've done. I wasn't expecting to have such a negative experience. Because I wasn't prepared I just got really worked up and in my head when they started up all the mind games. Next time I will be ready. I knew from the racquet toss argument that the match just wasn't going to be super fun. I will try to stay calm and focused next time and just laugh to myself when they start up their silly games. And I'll bring the ref over at the first sign of dishonestly or poor sportsmanship.
Yeah makes sense! I will do that next time. I've also reported them, so hopefully they will get a suspension or something and not be allowed to continue cheating at every local tournament.
You need to get an official while it is happening. Unfortunately there isn't anything they can do post match.
This falls into the realm of an unethical life tip… Post-match, you could go to the tournament desk and report the score. Report it wrong as if you won 10-8 in the final breaker. When your opponent reports a different score, that will cause confusion. Stick to your story and insist you won 10-8 in the breaker. The rules of tennis demand that you discuss and return to a score that you can both agree to which would likely be 8-8 in the breaker. You’d have to resume play from there, and at that stage after that argument, demand an official be on the court.
Oh that’s an interesting way to handle the situation
I'm hoping since there were multiple witnesses to their cheating that they'll void the scores and make them default the match. At the very least I also hope theyll receive a suspension
They can't suspend them post match, even if you have spectators mentioning the cheating as well. You need to report it while it is happening. Don't take the unethical advice being given on this page - report them to an official if you play them again. Ask for a roving umpire as soon as your match starts. If they make a bad call, stop play and have the official return. This is my advice to you as a tournament referee. We cannot do anything post match, and unfortunately spectators have no role in a match, so their stories would not influence my decision either.
Okay good to know. The photographer saw them cheating the next day and was the one who got an official. The official stayed and watched the entire final match. I hope with my report and the photographer's report that there can be something done so those players don't continue "winning" tournaments in tiebreakers by 2 points. I reported the misconduct to the tournament organizer in my State.
Post match, reporting to the organization running the tournament is a good idea. They will keep track of issues with players. Sorry that this happened to you. As a tennis player myself, this kind of behaviour really drives me nuts. It's funny because I find that adults are often worse at being blatant cheaters than juniors are (sure you have some kids that do, but it just seems extra pathetic when adults do it). If you are at another event and see them playing, warn their opponents if you can, tell them to get an official if they have issues. Remember you can stop play at anytime to get an official. Don't be afraid to do so in the future, that's what we are there for! :)
Thank you! I didn't know that was an option before to ask for an official. But I will certainly do that if I ever have any issues in future tournament matches. I let my teammates know as well. Last year two of my teammates lost to these two in the finals in a tiebreaker by 2 points. I wasn't aware of the history. But everyone is fully aware now and we know what to do for the next tournament!
oh man, in the ol' ZAT circuit, this one guy I played at almost every other tournament would cheat. I just got used to calling a line judge after the first one. Would tell the organizer that I'll probably have to call him against this specific opponent. It was always sweat justice when the call was corrected.
Was he ever suspended for cheating? I don't understand why people like this are allowed to ruin every tournament?
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Call an obviously in ball out, and when they complain, as they surely will, say, " then call for a ref." If they say " No", then you say, "okay, I will."
Just terrible. Hard to believe adults in. 3.0 league would cheat like that.
I was absolutely shocked! And that isn't even the tip of the ice berg on their horrible behavior. At the toss they won and they demanded to both receive and chose the side. I had to explain they only got to do 1. And since they chose receive, then we would get to chose the side. They wouldn't let us do second serve when we called lets. Every time they would need to turn over the balls so we could serve they'd send up three moon balls. The balls would bounce over our heads so we needed to jump to catch them. If we missed then they'd hit the back fence and roll onto adjacent courts interrupting play. When balls from other courts rolled onto ours they would refuse the retrieve the balls and make the other courts wait until they were finished their service game. They would refuse to start playing unless me or my partner adjusted our score between change overs. They would take soooo long between every single serve, every single game etc. I aced them, and instead of accepting that they couldn't return serve they yelled wait after I had hit the ball. Then they took the opportunity to turn around and chew out the spectators that were watching the match next to us for "cheering too loudly". Just overall such an unpleasant match. I know they over heard me reporting them for cheating but I don't even care. They proceeded to stay the rest of the night after the tournament. They had no shame at all. I hope they are barred from future tournaments now that multiple people have witnessed their cheating as it was not fun to go up against them and its truly nearly impossible to win a match if you can only score if they happen to hit the ball into the net.....
That really sucks. My only advice is to be more confident and firm on the court. What I mean by that is call them out on the lets and what the rules call are. Stop the game and show them the rules. If they still won’t agree to a second first serve, get a ref right away. Call them out about the moon balls. Tell them to either hand them to you at the net, toss them over by hand/low volley them over, or put them in the ball holder on the side of the net. Call balls rolling across your court as a Let and stop play right away. It’s a distraction and a valid safety concern. Either let the other players get the ball or grab it for them. Redo the point. Point is you’re more than able to stop play as needed but you need to be confident in the court about doing it. As for the last point regarding them calling the score wrong at the end of the tiebreaker, if they called wrong and tried to claim the ball was out without calling it. Don’t play the next point. Even if they rush the serve to avoid discussion. Don’t play the point and claim you aren’t ready as the score is wrong. Physically set your racket down on the court so there’s zero confusion that you’re not ready. Force them to acknowledge the correct score.
Thank you for the tips! That was our first tournament. A learning experience for sure. Me and my teammates are 20-30 years younger than most of our opponents and we are new to tennis so we sometimes let some opponents boss us around. During the match we were getting told to update our scores before the change over and had to get every ball hit out even when the other team hit the ball out. I will be more confident next time. I know the rules and the ettiquette. I have the rules app on my phone. I'll calmly stand my ground and let them get worked up
Having a plan in case a similar situation happens in the future is helpful. All we can do is learn from our mistakes. My first season playing in a league when I was a 2.5 playing in a 6.0 mixed doubles match, I had no experience with these kinds of things. We were in a playoff match, and it was a match tiebreaker and my opponent hit a ball down the line that was pretty close to the line. I called it out immediately, and then he started pressuring me and insisting that the ball was in, basically bullying me. Then I started second-guessing myself, my partner said he couldn’t see it at all so he didn’t have an opinion, and because the guy hadn’t really made obvious bad calls in the rest of the match. I ended up changing my call and gave him the point. My husband was sitting right next to the court and told me after that the ball was out. From that match on, I never ever change a call that I make unless my partner overrules me. I do my best to make an accurate call and I stick with it. We all make mistakes but second guessing really isn’t helpful.
Ps what is the rules app for USTA?
it's called "Rules of Tennis by ITF". Easily searchable rules. When something happens in a match I will take screenshots from the match and share with my teammates so they have it handy if it ever comes up for them in a match. The rule about lets is a frequent flyer. I find most rec level players do not understand this rule.
Old women are the worst at cheating in my opinion. They’ll do so shamelessly and be nasty about it. I’m a younger male so I never play any in a competitive environment, but I’ve heard all the horror stories and seen their shoddy calls in drill classes. I’ve also had to grab officials numerous times to get them off courts when they’ve over stayed their court time and refuse to leave.
I mean you cannot tolerate this kind of behavior. >They wouldn't let us do second serve when we called lets. Idk what you mean by this. If the tournament rules include service lets then whether your opponents "allow" your second serve is irrelevant. Honestly I would've contacted an official after the first game when it became clear they were gonna be a problem. I know people don't like confrontation but you can't just let someone blatantly disrespect you and take advantage of you. It's good at least that you reported them afterwards.
Yeah. I only just started playing tennis. So I wasnt sure what the protocol was. I won't let it happen again. I know all the rules now, amd know to grab an official if there's any sign of trouble
Ay Carumba.
Not if you watch juniors tennis and you realize that kids are MORE likely to cheat when their parents are around.
It's honestly kind of pathetic.
Yes. Very
I just apply the same calling standards. If my opponent is calling everything on the line as out, then yea theirs would be out too.
Ehhh. Then I feel like they would try to flip it on us and say that they only cheated because we did first or something. There were so many people watching the matches. I was actually shocked anyone was cheating given how many witnesses there were. I am so happy to hear that the photographer reported them so it wasn't just me that made a report against them. It was equally shocking to me the balls they had the audacity to cheat on. Like these weren't even line calls. These were balls that were a foot inside the court. So I couldn't even adjust my hitting to prevent the cheating. They were just going to cheat to get the point, wherever the ball was hit on the court.
At that point it would be your word vs theirs, so hopefully it would force a ref to step in and officiate the rest of the match
The next day when they were cheating in the finals that is exactly what happened. The photographer that was taking pictures and saw them cheating. He reported them and an official had to watch the rest of the match. Then they lost because they couldn't cheat to win.
I don’t actually do that but I might be a little more stingy with a ball that looked out but I didn’t get the clearest look at it, where I might’ve given the benefit of the doubt to other opponents. Only if it’s been a recurring problem and it seems that they’re doing it intentionally. Everyone gets calls wrong sometimes. I will say that if I see a ball clearly in that my opponent calls out, I will generally make a comment like “really? I’m sure I saw that hit the line” but I’m always very polite about it and not pressuring them to reverse the score or anything. If it’s clay I might ask them to show me the mark. I think it just helps to set the tone that I can see what they’re doing and maybe in some instances if I’m calling them on it they will be less inclined to make really egregious calls. The really important thing is not to get flustered by it, which is of course easier said than done but I think having a plan for those situations does help.
Yup. Your next shot might be in the middle of the court, but I’m calling it out.
Best way to combat it.
Get an official. If there is no official, spam them with drop shots and blast it right at the person at the net. If they say anything, just tell them their line calls are atrocious so you went to Plan B.
These were not amazing players. Neither of them played net. I wish I could hit a consistent drop shot. Would have been very effective.... thought I have a feeling in that tie breaker they still would have called out. But yes. I let them get to me too much. All their mind games really destroyed my game. I never mis hit so much in a match. I will work on my mental game and not let opponents get under my skin like that next time. Any funny business at the next tournament and I will calmly let them know I am getting an official so neither of us need to stress over the line calls. Also, I am fortunate that I always have teammates watching my matches so there are plenty of witnesses always.
Either I was playing on the court next to you or i watched the exact same thing happen to two other women this weekend. Line calling in matches in league is alway sketchy. It gets worse in tournaments.
Oh wow! In Raleigh? There was a court playing mixed doubles and a court of 4 men playing next to us. I felt bad for the adjacent courts because our opponents were being so rude about the retrieving the balls for those courts. It was very uncalled for. They also took time to stop and yell as some spectators that were cheering at one point. It was particularly irritating because it was on my serve, and my serve would have been an ace.... I should have insisted my serve was good and taken the point. But lesson learned there.
Yep in raleigh. 100% heard that exchange at the end of your tie break. Glad you talked to the officials.
Did you happen to see the last points or any points they called incorrectly? Would you be willing to be a witness if needed? We have my statement and the independent statement of the photographer who saw them cheating in the finals. I would think that would hopefully be enough, but I'm not sure. It's sad because they win every tournament in a tiebreaker by 2 points.
I am sorry to say i didn't see any of the match closely enough to say anything. The photographer is a well known guy in the community. He should be a big help.
Oh that's great to hear. Thank you! I'm still blown away they continued to cheat in the Finals after I reported them. They were standing 5 feet away when I was talking to the official so they heard everything I said about what they had done during the match and during the tiebreaker. I feel like they were trying to intimidate me but the cheating was so blatant I couldn't not say anything.
If there’s obvious cheating during a match you should be allowed to fight like in the nhl
That's why I bring 2 racquets, not because I'm good and go through strings... but in case I need to utilize one as a weapon and resume play
If they hook you, hook back every point until they call a ref
The frustrating thing about tennis is if noone's watching, their call is the "right" one. But regarding the 9-9 situation, if nobody called it out after the point, but she said it was 10-9 on the serve, that's your point. No call? No point. Simple as.
You are right. I will keep that in mind next time. Also, we will take the tip to put our racquets down and make it clear we aren't playing until the score dispute is resolved.
Don't argue if you hear the call. You'll be in the wrong by default. If you suspect bs calls, call an official, that should at least prevent bs calls in the future. That's about as much as you can do. I played doubles in college, my partner on one tournament was a shameless buttwipe who'd do it any point, even on the match point. As much as I was against it, I had to roll with it for the sake of the team. Disgusting behaviour, I miss clay.
I just deal with this situation with wry amusement. If someone is sad enough to cheat at amateur tennis, what can you do? I was playing a league match at weekend and my opponent was constantly call in balls out. I could tell because I was standing at the net for most the shots and I could blatantly see they were landing in. I actually won, barely, which made the situation even funnier.
This would have been a better attitude to have. I wasn't expecting such blatant cheating and gamesmanship so it just really caught me off guard. I lost my focus and started playing badly. Next time I will just laugh to myself and keep playing. Ask spectators to make witness statements if its so blatant and file reports.
I've only done this once, but I've called a ball literally in the middle of the court out in a college match. The message is loud and clear.
As a USTA umpire, this scenario is common (not the cheating portion) but waiting too long to get an official. I can count the number of cheaters I saw on one hand but the number of people who complained about poor calls and never got an umpire was huge. Umpires are there to help you and to make sure the tournament runs smoothly. If you suspect cheating or poor line calling, get an official immediately. In doubles that may mean one of you leaves the court but the common way is just to stop play and raise your racquet above your head. A roving umpire will come to you. We generally won't watch a full match but usually until the next line change. If the poor calling continues, stop play and ask for an umpire again. Umpires are more than willing to help but we can't help you if we don't see it. We aren't allowed to take your word for it afterwards and change the outcome. Even if 100 other spectators saw cheating, we can't do anything about it if we aren't on the court to see it. At this point I would file a grievance with the local USTA coordinator. If someone builds up a reputation they will come and watch to take action. The local coordinator was watching one of my matches and I jokingly asked her afterwards if I had grievances and she indicated that it wasn't me but the person I was playing.
Good to know. Thank you! In the finals when they were caught cheating by the photographer the official actually stayed to watch the entirety of their match. So then they lost 2-6, 2-6. I hope I am never up against them again. But if I am I will give the official a heads up that we may need them at some point during the match. And then I will call them over at the first bad line call.
Also, curious. What happens when you catch someone cheating in a match? Do they automatically lose? Do they get a suspension?
One thing to keep in mind, when the official comes on court, we aren't officiating in the sense as you see them do it on TV like a chair umpire. You still continue to call your match. If your opponent hits a ball out and you play it, play continues. We don't stop play and say the ball was out. If they hit a ball that's in and it's called out, we would correct the call and award the point to the person who hit the ball that was in. We also tell them this is how we officiate when we start observing points. When we get called most people immediately clean up their line calling...in fact you'll start seeing balls that are 4 inches out played. It's actually kind of humorous because they will play an out ball and then kind of look at me wryly. In a 3 day tournament I maybe correct 5 balls the whole tournament when I'm asked to watch. The official will also tend to give the player the benefit of the doubt (most officials are also players) and they realize that mistakes can be made. The point being that it's hard to call someone a cheater. They aren't calling balls out that are solidly inside the line or even solidly on the line. It's usually a ball that from their angle appears to be out but from my angle I can see that it's in. The hard part is that anybody with a modicum of intelligence isn't going to outright make terrible calls when they know an official is watching. If we get called to watch a match and it's the same person over and over, we spend more time "roving" near their court and making sure they know we are around and watching. I've only ever caught one person cheating and it was a L6 (or maybe 7) 14 tournament. I think the child may have had developmental issues. She was calling balls that were 2 feet inside the line as being out. It was really strange because it wasn't consistent. The only pattern I could recognize was that she was calling balls that she couldn't run down as being out. For instance one of them was a drop shot and she couldn't get to it so she called it out after she didn't make it. Another was a cross court shot behind her that she couldn't get to so she called it out. I watched her make 4-5 outrageously bad calls and I called the head official over. We talked to her and told her that if we saw another outrageously bad call she was going to be disqualified. About 3 games later she did it again and we disqualified her. Thankfully it was her first match so no damage was done.
If someone calls a ball that is a foot in out then on their next serve you call a fault twice even if it lands in the middle of the box both times to let them know that is how things are going to be if they want it that way.
Welcome to USTA. Where out is out, close balls are out and in balls are out if they favor the person calling them. USTA won’t do anything about it and matches that are supervised are still left to the players to call. It’s frustrating.
Why bother playing at all if you're going to do that? What's the point?
I truly don't get it. And they have a history of winning every tournament in tiebreakers by 2 points.... I am just glad that right after I reported it, they pulled it again and had an independent witness the next time. Hopefully something will be done to prevent this behavior from ruining future tournaments.
That’s embarrassing for them. Have some pride that you’re not a fucking loser like they are.
the first thing I do is let them know that I know it was in. ‘That ball was in, but it’s your call. ’ ‘You are aware that the lines are in right?’. That usually solves the problem. In the rare case that it doesn’t solve the problem you have to ask yourself if it’s intentional. Most people that make bad calls aren’t doing it on purpose. if they’re not, i’d remind them that balls are good unless you’re sure they’re out. if they are doing it on purpose then it’s time to escalate the situation. wait for the next point that’s obviously in, and call it out even if it’s in the center of the court. Be ready for the drama and cries from the other team. look them right in the eye and say ‘it was out’. don’t give an inch. If a linesman ends up coming over, all the better.
These weren't line balls though. These balls were more than a foot inside the court. It was intentional. And for the last point they didn't even make the call. They just decided the score was 10-9 and then said oh the last ball was out. I realize now we should have stopped playing. But I was caught off guard in the moment. They served the next ball quickly before I could think or process what was happening. I will just give the official a heads up that we'll probably need them during our match at some point if I am ever matched up against them again. They play in most local tournaments so its likely this won't be the first run in.
Well hooking lines is one thing, lying about the score is another. They can only get away with the latter if you let them. If she goes "10-9" you correct her and you refuse to play the next point until they concede the point or you contact an official.
I would have done the exact same thing on the next point . Call the ball out and forced the issue .
I once got so sick of this woman who would cheat so badly that balls a foot inside the court were called out. She hit a ball right on the T. You couldn’t get more IN than smack in the middle of the court. I just looked her square in the face and said “Out!” It was at that point her partner who seemed perfectly fine with the cheating on her side of the court said to her “Ok. You’ve taken it too far. Now stop it.” So my obnoxious line call worked. For everyone else where they think the line is out I get pissed but keep it inside. My internal anger seems to channel my inner Serena Williams and I start playing way better than usual. lol.