THE RULES GURU
The
Rules Guru
RULES Q AND A
You can submit your questions to rules @ thepickleballmag. com for consideration in an upcoming column.
BY CHRISTINE BARKSDALE, USAPA MANAGING DIRECTOR OF COMPETITION
Is the“ Erne” shot legal? The Erne shot is named after Erne Perry, who popularized this maneuver. It is the act of stepping around the non-volley zone( NVZ) to the outside of the court and volleying the ball. Players at all levels use this movement during a straight-ahead dink rally. It not only creates added angle, it surprises the opponent.
The simple answer to this question is that when this move is executed properly, it is legal. For an explanation, we can refer to Rule 9D:“ A fault will be declared if a player violates the intent of the non-volley zone rule. All volleys must be initiated outside of the non-volley zone. A maneuver such as standing within the non-volley zone, jumping up to hit the volley, and then landing outside the non-volley zone is prohibited. If a player has touched the non-volley zone for any reason, that player cannot volley the return until both feet have made contact with the playing surface completely outside the non-volley zone.” Stepping around the NVZ to the outside of the court does not violate any of these statements. However, there are four common mistakes that will generate a fault with this quick movement:
• If the player steps in the NVZ as he / she moves to the outside of the court, the player must be careful to establish contact with both feet outside of the NVZ prior to volleying the ball, as stated in Rule 9D.
• If any part of the player crosses the plane of the net and the player does not strike the ball. Rule 12. H:“ A player, or anything the player is wearing or carrying, may not cross the plane of the net( or the extension of the net beyond the post) except when striking the ball …”
• If the player strikes the ball before it crosses the plane of the net as stated in Rule 7. K
• If the player touches the net or the post. Rule 7. E:“ A player, player’ s clothing, or any part of a player’ s paddle touches the net or the net post when the ball is in play.”
Was it out or not?
My partner and I were playing a doubles match the other day, when our opponents called the ball out just before the ball bounced. One opponent returned the shot, but my partner caught the ball and stopped play. It turns out our opponents were not actually calling the ball out but were talking to each other and the ball did land on the line. We requested a replay but were denied. Is this right?
According to Rule 6. D. 12:“ If, while the ball is in the air, a player yells“ out,”“ no,”“ bounce it,” or any other word to communicate to his or her partner that the ball may be out, it shall be considered player communication. If the ball lands in, play will continue. If the out call is made after the ball has hit the playing surface, it shall be considered a line call and play shall stop.”
During the match, it is up to the referee to determine when the out call was made. In this case, you indicated it was prior to the ball bouncing so it would be considered a fault for your team.
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