SPORTSMANSHIP CREED FOR INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL TENNIS

Tennis comes with a bloodline of sportsmanship that few other sports can match.  Amateur tennis competitors are entrusted to make their own line calls, even in championship matches. A fundamental principle of tennis calls for competitors to give the benefit of the doubt to their opponent when unsure about a close line call. Competitors are required by rule to make calls against themselves in some situations, such as a double-bounce or touching the net while the point is in progress. Fans are expected to remain silent while a point is in progress.  And win or lose, all tennis matches traditionally end with a handshake at the net.

Recognizing that good sportsmanship – like poor sportsmanship – is habitual, the Indiana High School Tennis Coaches Association encourages all coaches, players and fans to practice exemplary sportsmanship on a daily basis.  In any tennis match, half the competitors will win and half will lose.  Each of us is likely to have many opportunities to experience both winning and losing.  Learning to win with class and humility and to lose with grace are important life skills.

Examples of good tennis sportsmanship that should be practiced include but are not limited to:

• The server should clearly call the score prior to each point.

• Players should make line calls promptly, both audibly and visually.

• All players should shake hands in a sincere manner at the conclusion of a singles or doubles match, win or lose.

• Coaches, spectators and players not participating in the match should refrain from jeering, whistling, or otherwise registering displeasure with any competitor’s line call. On many occasions, coaches and spectators get more upset by calls than the players on the court do.  Respect the fact that the players on the court have the best view of the calls and that the vast majority of players do their best to call lines fairly.

• Team members and spectators should refrain from cheering at inappropriate times, such as after a competitor’s double fault or simple unforced error.

• Players who are on court should be careful not to disrupt nearby matches by repeatedly cheering loudly for teammates on other courts. A brief word of encouragement or acknowledgment of a winning shot when warranted is acceptable, but such celebrations should be short in duration.

• Competitors should carefully and promptly return the balls to the opponent following each point, being certain to not make the opponent chase after errant returns.

• Spectators and coaches should remember that high school athletes are not professionals and that at all levels of tennis, errors typically outnumber winning shots.  Seek out opportunities to praise effort, hustle, and good sportsmanship.

Each school’s head coach is in the best position to set the bar high for the level of sportsmanship that is expected to be displayed by his or her team members and fans.  Coaches are urged to remember this responsibility and to model appropriate behavior on a consistent basis – win or lose.