ATP Tour to trial off-court coaching, includes US Open
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Published 21/06/2022 at 14:25 GMT
Off-court coaching will be trialled at all ATP Tour events for the rest of the season, from the week after Wimbledon, which will also take in the US Open. The ATP says “the trial aims to create additional points of intrigue and insight to enhance the fan experience” and will also ensure “consistency”, as the WTA is also trialling the same thing.
Carlos Alcaraz receives coaching at the Next Gen finals
Image credit: Getty Images
The ATP Tour is to join the WTA in trialling off-court coaching, starting the week after Wimbledon finishes.
It will take in the US Open, meaning all matches across the men’s and women’s draws will take part in a similar trial, which the ATP says will ensure consistency, while aiming to “create additional points of intrigue and insight to enhance the fan experience”.
The trial will begin on July 11 and conclude at the end of the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin.
Organisers say the trial will be limited to certain conditions, with coaches having to sit in a designated seat. They will not be able to call-out to distract an opponent and verbal coaching will only be permitted when their player is at the same end of the court.
Among some of the other conditions are no conversations - though the details of what that constitutes has not been confirmed and is only limited to having a “few words and/or short phrases”, and coaches can not follow their player off court if they leave for a comfort break or a medical time-out.
Coaching has been a hot topic in recent seasons, with Stefanos Tsitsipas the most high profile player who has been regularly warned about receiving advice from the stands.
Fines and penalties will be introduced if any of the ATP’s trial rules are broken.
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