Shot Clock Discussed By ATP Players

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 2nd April 2013

Sony Open tennis tournament on Key Biscayne, Florida

Shot Clock Discussed By ATP Players

epa03644720 Tommy Haas of Germany returns the ball against David Ferrer of Spain during their semifinals match at the Sony Open tennis tournament in Miami, Florida, USA, 29 March 2013 Ferrer won 4-6, 6-2.6-2. EPA/RHONA WISE |

Installing on-court shot clocks to help the players know when they are about to go over the 25-second time violation rule may not be in the sports near future, but it’s not out of the question entirely if an affordable solution can be found.

But some ATP players are talking up the idea.

“I think it would help just because, as a player, when you’re playing in a tiebreak like that at the end of the match, I’m not thinking about how long I’m taking between the points,” Andy Murray said. “If you have the clock there on the court, the crowd can see it, the players can see it. Everyone knows whether someone is going over or not and not just the umpire. Because, you can ask the umpire how long you took after a point, and often they don’t actually know exactly how long it was. So I think if there was a clock on the court, then that would help the players to concentrate better.”

Former player and coach Brad Gilbert has encouraged it, as has Tommy Haas, 34, who has seen a number of changes proposed for the tour over the years.

“If I play a 15-20 shot rally, I don’t know where I am for 5 to 10 seconds, so if I can have a shot clock that shows me I have 4 seconds left to get to line to serve, then it’s much easier. So I am trying to encourage them to put a shot clock in place not to distract the players, but so I have a feeling how much time I have left.”