United Cup rules row erupts as supervisor called to court in ususual incident | Tennis | Sport

Flavio Cobolli got a lesson on the tennis rulebook at the United Cup on Sunday after a ball fell out of his pocket mid-rally. The world No. 22 was serving for the first set against Stan Wawrinka in Italy’s tie against Switzerland and found himself 0-15 down when a second ball fell out of his shorts and rolled onto the court. Cobolli decided not to play on and lost the point as a result.

Convinced that they should have replayed the point as a let, Cobolli asked for tour supervisor Gerry Armstrong to come to the court and explain. And there was a brief delay as Cobolli and the Italian team captain – Cobolli’s father Stefano – tried to argue their case. Wawrinka, meanwhile, had to explain the issue to the rest of the Italian squad, who were watching from their courtside bench.

After a ball fell out of his pocket, Cobolli did not continue the point while trailing 0-15 on his serve. No call came from the umpire, and the Italian ace marched to her chair, surprised that she hadn’t called a let. “It’s not about looking, because you can’t hinder yourself,” the umpire said.

“I cannot hit the ball because the [other] ball was there,” Cobolli argued. Players are often allowed to replay a point for inadvertent issues that interrupt a point, but the umpire explained that Cobolli could not hinder himself and should have played on.

Commentator Ryan Harrison told viewers: “So if a hat falls off, I know that you get a potential one-time reset. And I think he’s calling the supervisor out for clarification at the moment.” Experienced supervisor Armstrong took to the court as Wawrinka joined them by the umpire’s chair, offering to watch a replay of the moment.

But Armstrong explained that a replay was irrelevant, as Cobolli explained why he left the match ball instead of returning it. “You can’t hinder yourself. Flavio, you can’t hinder yourself. But that’s down to you. It’s nothing to do with Stan,” Armstrong said. 

Wawrinka, a former world No. 3 and experienced tour veteran, realised what was happening and told his opponent: “So that’s the rule. That’s not because the ball out, that’s because the rule is, if you drop it, you lose the point.”

Wawrinka, a former world No. 3 and experienced tour veteran, realised what was happening and told his opponent: “So that’s the rule. That’s not because the ball out, that’s because the rule is, if you drop it, you lose the point.”

Cobolli continued his conversation with the supervisor while Wawrinka went to the Italian team captain, Stefano Cobolli, to explain. “Gerry, if I hit the ball, I risk to injure myself,” the 23-year-old told Armstrong.

The umpire then told the RAC Arena crowd what had happened, awarding the point to Wawrinka, giving the Swiss star a 0-30 lead on Cobolli’s serve. “Ladies and gentlemen, the ball fell out of Mr Cobolli’s pocket. Per the rules, he cannot hinder himself in play, therefore the point cannot be replayed, and it goes to Mr Wawrinka,” she said.

Conversations continued between Cobolli, the Italian team captain, and the supervisor. But play eventually resumed, and the world No. 23 was able to close out the first set 6-4.

Commentators were still confused by the rules, as one said: “I’m willing to put my hand up and say I was wrong. I was confident that, if a ball comes out of a pocket of either player, you replay the point. Then if it happens a second time, you lose the point. But obviously I’m wrong.”

But Harrison – a former ATP player who now works as a pundit and coaches his brother, doubles ace Christian Harrison – went to find answers. He later explained that Cobolli needed to continue playing in order for the umpire to intervene and call a let, and the issue was that he stopped the point himself.

“Alright guys, I’ve got an answer for us, and I consider myself to be pretty court-savvy out there, knowing what to do in certain situations, but I did not know how to handle this situation I was just informed on what the letter of the law is. So if that happens, if Cobolli would have continued to play and did not stop himself, then the umpire, at that point, can say, ‘This is now a hindrance to both players’, and a let would be played,” he relayed.