Craig Tiley lobbying for ‘lets’ to be removed from the game to encourage continuous play

Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley is pushing for a dramatic change to the rules of the game, saying “it would be crazy not to”.

Craig Tiley says ‘the most important thing is to get to a position where the game itself is not too long’. Picture: Getty

Tennis Australia will mount a game-changing bid to remove “lets” from the Australian Open and grand slams around the world, to speed the sport up and make it more appealing to fans.

Australian Open boss Craig Tiley will lobby the world’s best players, the Wimbledon, US and French Opens and the game’s governing bodies in a dramatic attempt to change the rules of the game at the top level.

“We’re looking at the entire puzzle and how to make it better for the fan and better for the player,’’ he said.

“We want to make the game faster and continue to grow its appeal … which is why we look at things like lets … it’s a decision for the entire sport.’’

Craig Tiley says ‘we’re looking at the entire puzzle and how to make it better for the fan’. Picture: Getty

A “let” in tennis occurs when a player’s serve clips the top of the net and the ball falls inside the correct lines on the opposite side of the court.

All four grand slams stop play and allow players to replay the point when a service let occurs.

But in a break from tradition, Mr Tiley wants to remove lets from the game to encourage continuous play.

“I definitely want to speed the game up,’’ he said.

“For us the most important thing is to get to a position where the game itself is not too long. We’ve got to keep people’s interest in it.’’

The change would apply to the Australian Open and other grand slams, under the proposal. Picture: Getty

Mr Tiley said let calls at this month’s Open alone had held up play by more than 15 hours.

“That’s an incredible stat,’’ he said.

“I’ve asked players that before and most said they thought maybe one or two hours. But 15 hours?”

It comes amid pressure to stop night matches stretching into the early hours of the next morning and to keep young audiences interested in tennis.

In an exclusive interview with the Herald Sun, Mr Tiley vowed to lobby world tennis to change the rules to speed up the pace of grand slams.

There has been pressure to stop night matches stretching into the early hours of the next morning. Picture: AFP

“We will do it all in collaboration with the tour,’’ he said.

“It would be crazy not to.

“The more the rules can be consistent from event to event, the better it is for the game.”

He will also call for a review of the 25-second service shot clock system, suggesting it adds extra time to matches rather than its intended goal of making them quicker.

“We need to review the shot clock because it has seemed to add more time into matches when it was supposed to add less,’’ he said.

“It’s when the official behind the clock waits for someone to be ready and then you push the button for 25 seconds, that player might bounce the ball for 25 times before they serve. I think that has got to be looked at.

“I think the use of the shot clock, which was a new innovation and a good one, has got to be looked at.’’

Mr Tiley will take both matters to the Association of Tennis Professionals and Women’s Tennis Association in the hope of changes being made for next year’s Australian Open.

It comes after Mr Tiley told the Herald Sun last week that tennis needed to be sped up to avoid losing relevance.

“A lot of people will say go to three out of five sets or two out of three but that will be a decision for the playing group, and as it stands today there are not a lot who would want that,’’ he said.

“There is a lot of drama around that.’’

Mr Tiley also backed calls for later trains to run each year during the Open, to prevent fans having to leave matches early to catch the last service.

“We will keep making some adjustments to the schedule to make sure matches finish at a decent hour,’’ he said.

“We will work with the government and authorities to make sure we have transport that gets our fans home safely, because everyone wants that.”