It’s a big point and you feel like it will decide the match outcome (unless it’s a match point then it really won’t decide the outcome). Maybe it’s happened on an ace or on a cross-court forehand after a lung busting rally but it’s happened….your opponent has called the ball out and you disagree.
Your brain starts replaying the shot over and over again and you are convinced that the shot was in. So what should you do next?
Stay Calm
It is important to remember that in the vast majority of cases your opponent has not cheated. They are closer to the bounce of the ball than you are so they have a better view of the line.
Too often a questionable line call results in a player becoming frustrated and this then carries on in to other points. A questionable line call should only impact one point in a match containing hundreds of points. So stay calm and move onto the next point.
Cheating
On very rare occasions your opponent will call a ball wrongly out on purpose. This unethical tactic is usually a ploy to make you lose your cool which will impact your ability to focus on future points.
If you think this is taking place then calmly ask to replay the point. We recommend that you don’t do this on the first questionable call in case it is a genuine mistake by your opponent. However if a pattern starts to form then you need to take action.
You can also ask for an umpire in extreme cases but this requires your opponent to agree to this request and it will leave a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.