“I can’t count on my opponent to be fair-play” – Match Points excerpt
In the latest episode of Match Points, host Josh Cohen is joined by Noah Rubin, Ben Rothenberg and Simon Cambers to talk about the dilemma of calling points and whether video assistance can come in play in tennis.
Controversy in tennis sometimes arise from the littlest things, like a possible double bounce. It has happened in Roland-Garros again, with Kristina Mladenovic clearly affected by the missed called against Laura Siegemund.
The crew (Noah Rubin, Simon Cambers and Ben Rothenberg) debates how this should be handled, perhaps differently at different points, and if technology should come in play. Rubin was authentic about the situation, especially with which part of the match the players were at. If it’s in a close spot in terms of action, he might opt to take the point to his advantage.
“I’m going to be honest. In the heat of the battle, when there’s a lot going on, I’m not going to be that person that’s going to put his hand up like Tim Smyczek to Nadal.”
Cambers thought that in the end, it should not be the players’ obligation to spot the error. The umpire should be on top of things, and the players’ decisions ultimately might differ again depending on the state of the match.
“I don’t think she had an obligation. The umpire should have seen it, didn’t, and therefore we should have the technology to fix this situation. You can’t trust tennis players to be the worthy ones.”
