By Nicole Jennings, Mixed Doubles League Vice President
Learning the correct terminology for the ALTA rules regarding defaults vs. forfeits can be a bit frustrating, so here is a great way to remember which one refers to which scenario. Let’s start with defaults. Defaults are when a team cannot put players on the courts. In this scenario, a team does not have enough players to fill their scorecard so the team will default a line(s). The Adult Rules define a default as “The loss of a match or matches by failing to be present for play within twenty minutes (default time) after the scheduled starting time.” Under IV. DUAL MEETS, Section E. “When a match is defaulted, it must be the lowest position.” When communicating with another captain about not having enough players to fill line five, the correct phraseology is “our team will be defaulting line five.”
Forfeits are when a team does provide players for the lines on a scorecard, but a rule was broken and the point taken. Forfeits are defined as “The automatic loss of any point(s) for any violation of these rules or as otherwise imposed as a penalty deemed appropriate by the respective league vice president.” Examples of a forfeit are ineligible players, players not on roster, movement violations, or a player playing under an assumed name.
The most important detail to remember about defaults and forfeits is that defaults count against a team and forfeits do not. A team may have an average of one default per week/per season and avoid any penalties. This does not apply to forfeits.
The takeaway from this is that a team should always do their best to field all five lines. The Adult Rules have been modified as follows: Adult Rules I. TEAMS AND PLAYERS G. 6. “In order for a player to be eligible to play in a regularly scheduled dual meet, the player may be added up until the scheduled start time of the dual meet.” This is an important change in the rules to help avoid defaults.
Remember: A default is when players do not show, so points are given up by the team. A forfeit is when players show up and play but there was a failure to follow the rules, so points are taken by ALTA.
