Pickleball Magazine 6-2 WD | Page 24

RULES

GURU

We
’ d Like to Hear From You ! Send your questions to rules @ thepickleballmag . com .
By Bob Unetich
USA PICKLEBALL-CERTIFIED REFEREE

1

Can a player use more than one medical time-out in a match under the 2021 rules ?
A player can only have one “ player-requested ” medical time-out ( see Rule 10 . B . 3 . c ), but under Rule 10 . H . 2 . a , the referee can call time-out and request medical staff to determine if a player can continue to play in a match . That time-out is considered a referee time-out and can happen even if that same player has used a playerrequested medical time-out .

2

In a recent tournament , I saw a referee call a fault on a server who hit the ball while the referee was calling the score . I thought that the ball was now considered dead until the server has hit the ball .
According to Rule 3 . A . 19 , the ball is live and in play “ when the referee or server starts to call the score .” That means it is no longer a fault if a player serves the ball before the score is called . Once the server or referee starts to call the score , however , it is a fault if the server serves the ball before the complete score is called .
A report on USA Pickleball new tournament requirements will be provided in the next issue !
My team received a Technical Warning last year from a referee for us talking with our pickleball instructor during a change of ends . Is it true that this year I can talk with my coach during this time ?
Yes , you may ! The change of ends is now considered a time-out and you can talk with anyone you like during a time-out . This 2021 rule change was one of several made to minimize , if not eliminate , conflict between players and referees .

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