Korrine and District Tennis Association

Player Eligibility & Membership

Eligibility

• Players must be age 18 and under as at December 31 of the season commencement year ie. if the season commences in 2025, players must be 18 or under on 31 Dec 2025.

Fees & Membership

• All players in the K&DTA must be fully paid members of their nominated club.
• The K&DTA committee will decide on team/player fees before the commencement of each season.

How Teams Are Formed & Placed

Team Requirements & Forfeits

• Summer: Min 2 players need to be available for Pennant and 3 players for Sections 1 - 5
• Winter: Min 2 players need to be available for all sections
• Extra Players: Teams may have an extra player and either rotate weekly or share a position during the season.
• Forfeits: If the required number of players are not available 1 hour prior to the commencement of play the offending team must notify the opposing team manager and their match will be forfeited. Play must commence within 30 minutes of start time or the match is forfeited.

Grading & Regrading

• When possible all sections to be graded by the K&DTA committee in the interest of the Association.
• At the end of round five (5) the K&DTA committee may review teams, if a team is over or under graded, it may re-grade that or those teams to different sections to even out the competition.
• Teams that are affected will be allocated half of the available points for the five matches played.

Player Positions, Order of Merit & Section Movement

• Team managers set the Order of Merit (players positions). During rounds 1–5 (trial): players may rotate positions. After Round 5: the Order of Merit is fixed.
• Absences: players may only move up to cover an absent teammate; no one may be moved down.
• Change requests: a club may request a change in player position up to the final home-and-away round by emailing the K&DTA Committee. 
• Finals: no changes are permitted.
• Once a player has played three (3) matches in a higher section in a single season, they may not return to play in the lower section except by application to the K&DTA Committee.

On-Court Rules & Behaviour

Match Structures & Scoring

Serving Rules

• Overarm serves are mandatory in all sections, except Section 5 where the rules are modified to the following: if children feel comfortable playing a full court they can do so. However, if the child does not feel comfortable serving from the baseline after their first serve, they are permitted to modify their second serve from 3 quarter court (halfway between the service line and the baseline, on the correct side), or throw the ball (overarm) into the service box from the same modified position, using their hitting hand. It will then be up to the player to recover to the center of the court and play out the point

Tie Break Rules

If the score reaches 6-6, or (7-7 for Pennant and Section 1) in a set, a standard tie-break is played. The first team to reach 7 points wins the tiebreak, provided they lead by at least 2 points.

Change of Ends: Teams change ends after every 6 points played in the tie-break.

Serving Order:

• The player / team whose turn it is to serve, serves first in the tie-break.
• The first player / team serves one point to the forehand side (right court).
• The opposing team will then serve the next two points, starting on the backhand side (left court).
• The first team will then serve the following two points, starting on the backhand side.
• This pattern continues, with teams alternating serve every two points until the tie break ends.

Umpiring & Supervision

• Parents of younger players in Sections 4 and 5 are required to help with scoring and guiding players in learning the rules on court.
• As players progress through the season, they are encouraged to take on these responsibilities themselves by calling scores and umpiring their own matches.
• Players in Section 3 and above should aim to umpire their own matches whenever possible.
• If there is a discrepancy or dispute, players may request an impartial umpire, usually being a team manager or impartial parent.

Court Access & Safety

• For safety and to minimise distractions, only players and umpires are permitted inside the court area. The only exception is in Sections 4 and 5, where parents are assisting.

Game-Day Logistics & Weather

Injuries & Substitutions

• If a player is injured or needs to leave and is unable to complete the set, this set will then be forfeited. This person must have incurred the injury during the match and can’t be replaced due to pre-existing injury or be replaced through matters such as lack of physical condition.
• The games that have been played to the point of injury will stand.
• Another person who is qualified can participate in the remaining sets applicable to the injured person.

Weather (Washouts/Extreme)

• In the case of rain, if the match is not commenced 30 minutes after start time then a washout is declared. Washouts may also be declared if both teams are in agreement.
• In case of extreme weather refer to the Tennis Australia Extreme Weather Policy.
• Cancellations due to extreme weather may also be declared if both teams are in agreement.

Balls & Equipment

The following balls are to be supplied by the home team:

• Pennant & Section 1: New yellow balls.
• Sections 2 & 3: Good used yellow balls.
• Section 4: Good used green dot balls.
• Section 5: Good used orange dot balls.