I personally believe allowing MTO (Medical Time Out) exception rule is one of the worst rule changes they ever made in tennis. It completely contradicts two other rules which states that the umpire is to not allow player extra time to recover, and the basic tenet in tennis that play must be continuous.
When I played, if one got hurt enough to not be able to continue the match, one defaulted, that's it. You either are fit enough to play without aid or not. Now they pump you with anti-inflammatory medication or give whatever treatments to help you get out on the court and finish the match.
The rule also creates a lot of controversy as one notices. It allows one to manipulate the flow of the match. Some use it as gamesmanship for disruption of the match, some as a timeout to catch a breather, some as a real aid in recovery from an injury incurred on the court.
This rule is more for the fans who paid to see a whole match and probably for the advertising sponsors, but is not good for tennis or the players in my opinion. Playing with actual injury can be more injurious to a player in the long run. On occasion it can allow a player to win a match that would not likely have been won without it, which might be good for the player that got injured, but not for the opponent.
If anything, they should dispense with the MTO and just allow all players 1 timeout per match to be used for anything they want. At least it would be more honest. But I would prefer no time out. But that's me, and I'll probably be called inhumane for this opinion.
If one gets hurt so that one cannot continue the game, then default the game to get to a changeover if necessary and get some treatment during regulation time, if one cannot recover in the time of a changeover, then default the set if necessary, and if still unable to play, default the match.
Edited title to match poll question..
Respectfully,
masterclass
When I played, if one got hurt enough to not be able to continue the match, one defaulted, that's it. You either are fit enough to play without aid or not. Now they pump you with anti-inflammatory medication or give whatever treatments to help you get out on the court and finish the match.
The rule also creates a lot of controversy as one notices. It allows one to manipulate the flow of the match. Some use it as gamesmanship for disruption of the match, some as a timeout to catch a breather, some as a real aid in recovery from an injury incurred on the court.
This rule is more for the fans who paid to see a whole match and probably for the advertising sponsors, but is not good for tennis or the players in my opinion. Playing with actual injury can be more injurious to a player in the long run. On occasion it can allow a player to win a match that would not likely have been won without it, which might be good for the player that got injured, but not for the opponent.
If anything, they should dispense with the MTO and just allow all players 1 timeout per match to be used for anything they want. At least it would be more honest. But I would prefer no time out. But that's me, and I'll probably be called inhumane for this opinion.
If one gets hurt so that one cannot continue the game, then default the game to get to a changeover if necessary and get some treatment during regulation time, if one cannot recover in the time of a changeover, then default the set if necessary, and if still unable to play, default the match.
Edited title to match poll question..
Respectfully,
masterclass
