By Karen Sullivan, Thursday Women League Vice President
It is always a good idea to refresh your knowledge of the rules regarding inclement weather. These can be found in both the adult league rules and the captain’s handbook. A regularly scheduled dual meet cannot be called a rainout before waiting one hour to determine if conditions improve. This wait time can be extended by the league VP and is usually applied at the last match of the season, during playoffs, and City Finals. When a match is officially determined to be rained out, it is important that all times and dates for makeup matches be confirmed electronically by both captains. It can happen that one captain may assume that a line is scheduled, but until they get confirmation from the other team captain, it is not officially scheduled.
Once a date and time has been confirmed by both teams, the match must be played on that date unless there is inclement weather. The default date is the last date that a match must be made up, and I certainly would never advise a team to wait until that date to make up any match. If a team has waited until the default date, which is then rained out, a team may run into other league make-up dates, not to mention being unable to confirm the legality of lineups as the following match will be played before the previous week has been completed. Rain certainly can complicate things, so it really is worthwhile to be familiar with the basic rules regarding inclement weather.
I would also like to remind everyone of our league’s fabulous group of volunteers! They spend untold hours helping captains through all the many nuances and situations that can arise in a season. We certainly would be unable to run our league without this great team of people. I encourage you to take the time to thank your coordinator.
One last thing! I know we all enjoy this special privilege of being able to play tennis on Thursdays. Please remember to treat your opponents with respect and good sportsmanship. Our league works so much better when we play together in a spirit of cooperation!
Hoping for a rain-free fall season!
