How do code violations and point penalties work?
Rule- South Africa
- Tennis South Africa
- ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors
- Juniors 13-18
- ITF Rules of Tennis
- 2026
- Players
Offences such as audible or visible obscenity, racket or ball abuse, verbal or physical abuse, unsportsmanlike conduct and coaching violations are penalised on the Point Penalty Schedule:
| Offence | Penalty |
|---|---|
| First | Warning |
| Second | Point penalty |
| Third and each later offence | Game penalty |
- After the third code violation, the ITF Supervisor decides whether each further offence is a default.
- A penalty under the schedule is final and can't be appealed.
- The Supervisor can also default you immediately for a single serious violation.
- Your coach's behaviour counts against you. For this rule a "coach" includes any representative or relative, so parents are covered too.
- Time violations between points are handled separately: a server gets a warning then loses a serve for each later violation; a receiver gets a warning then a point penalty.
Added 21 Oct 2026