The Division I Championships/Sports Management Cabinet tabled a proposal that recommended several changes aimed at reducing the length of matches in the Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Championships.
The cabinet, which met Tuesday in Indianapolis, referred the proposal back to the Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Committee and asked them to gather feedback from the sport’s student-athletes. Committee members were also asked to try to reach more consensus and understanding in the coaching community, particularly among women’s coaches.
Cabinet members also suggested another survey be sent to the membership and that it originate from the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Committee.
“We put a lot of time and effort into this, so we’re disappointed,” said D.J. Gurule, former chair of the Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Committee and the head women’s coach at Gonzaga. “But we know we’ve got to reengage with the entire tennis community of coaches and student-athletes to come up with a model that is in the best interests of the sport and is more broadly supported.”
The recommendations from the Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Committee included playing all matches with no-ad scoring. For example, in games tied at 40-all, the player who wins the next point would win the game.
In dual-match play, the recommendation called for:
• No-ad scoring in singles and doubles
• Three doubles matches played with each match consisting of one set to six games, with a tiebreak at six-games-all. After a 10-minute intermission, the six singles matches will begin with each match played in a best-of-three sets format with tiebreakers at six-games-all
• No warm-up with opponents
In the individual singles and doubles championships, the proposal called for:
• No-ad scoring in both
• The doubles championship matches would be played in a best-of-three sets format, with a match tiebreak in lieu of a third set.
