Topic: Call from next court a hindrance?

[Tennis4you]

New one just emailed to me.  Hit it up Big Jim, I am not 100% clear on the answer...

This morning in our women's doubles game, my partner was serving to the ad court.   Her serve hit the wide side line (good), but just as it landed a loud "OUT" call was heard.  The receiver returned the ball, but my partner thought our opponent had called it out & was walking back to serve a second serve.  (BTW, the return was not a winner at all....just a down the middle regular shot.)  I also had been confused by the "out" call, thinking  it had come from the receiver. 
 
The call had come from the next court & just by coincidence at the exact moment when an "out" call for this close serve would have been made by our opponent had it been out.
 
Is it a "hindrance" situation since my partner thought her good, close serve had been called out by the receiver & she had her back to the return?    Is it our opponents' point because the serve was returned?
 
(It was such an obvious misunderstanding that we played it over, but there was grumbling from the returner who muttered that it should have been their point.) 

[Jamesdster]

In an unofficiated match, I think playing a let would be the fair and right thing to do.  However, if I was a roving or chair umpire, I would have given the point to the receiver.  Since the player who called out was where she was supposed to be, that is, ON HER COURT, she really didn't cause a hindrance.  Now if she had been running over near or on the court where the player was returning serve, I would have called a let.  Take this example and maybe it helps clarify the situation....let's say Scott is playing on the ad side and runs onto the adjacent court to chase down a wicked angle.  In doing so he runs into a player on that court.  He asks for a let due to this interference (hindrance.)  Welllll, he will be denied because that other player was where he was supposed to be (he was on his own court.)  Now if that player had run onto Scott's court and hindered him, then that is a let since Scott was on the court that he was supposed to be on.

[Tennis4you]

Oddly enough that situation happened to me at districts 3-4 years ago.  Our opponent hit an angled overhead that I read and took off running for it.  I was almost in the middle of the neighboring court as I was getting ready to swing at the ball, but sadly my swing path was in the way of none other than MM who was playing next to us.  We lost the point since I could not return the ball.  Afterwards I asked a USTA official what the call would have been, he was not sure.  He found me 30 minutes later and told me I could have called a let and I think he said he discussed it with the others.  At least that is how I remember it.  I think what Jim D is saying above makes more sense though.  But regardless, the game of tennis requires me to be next to the ball to hit it, so how could I be "not where I was suppose to be" if I was just chasing down a ball?   

[Jamesdster]

Oddly enough that situation happened to me at districts 3-4 years ago.  Our opponent hit an angled overhead that I read and took off running for it.  I was almost in the middle of the neighboring court as I was getting ready to swing at the ball, but sadly my swing path was in the way of none other than MM who was playing next to us.  We lost the point since I could not return the ball.  Afterwards I asked a USTA official what the call would have been, he was not sure.  He found me 30 minutes later and told me I could have called a let and I think he said he discussed it with the others.  At least that is how I remember it.  I think what Jim D is saying above makes more sense though.  But regardless, the game of tennis requires me to be next to the ball to hit it, so how could I be "not where I was suppose to be" if I was just chasing down a ball?   

That official was DEAD WRONG!  No way you can call a let on that.   You ran into him on his court, he didn't run into you on your court.  But maybe we need a special rule just for you and your stupid crazy speed   

[Tennis4you]

I like your reasoning better, although it does not help my case.

Thanks Jim!