rules to play wheelchair tennis

When learning the basics of tennis, an everyday wheelchair can suffice, but as players become serious about the sport, most opt to invest in a wheelchair made for court sports. A sports chair provides a player more agility, faster response and turning quickness. The difference between a sports chair and a standard chair is its very lightweight. With no armrests, no brakes, no push handles, essentially nothing to get in the way of the swing, said Munn. Sports chairs typically have only one front caster, similar to a roller blade, he said. There is also an anti tip wheel in the rear that is sometimes used to help power a serve. Some newer models now have two front casters and or anti tippers. The large wheels of the chair are cambered to allow a quicker turning radius.

But a beginner doesnt need a sports chair right away. Its a big investment. Usually the wheelchair athlete will play for one to two years before they make the purchase. They get more involved, depending on their commitment level and have learned what specifics they want on their own sports chair, said Munn. Munn added that amputees can also play wheelchair tennis, as long as it is in the chair. We dont require anyone be in a chair for all activities, Munn said. Sometimes an amputee is ambulatory but will use the chair for play. The only requirement to be a wheelchair player is that you cannot play able bodied tennis. Many of Gaylords patients have gotten interested in playing the game after watching the Hornets practice on Gaylords courts. The team practices one to two times per week and plays competitively throughout the country.

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As of 2012, people with physical disabilities are eligible to compete in this sport.Male and female athletes with a physical disability as defined by the IPC can compete in Quad tetraplegia or Open divisions.[citation needed] To be eligible to play wheelchair tennis, a competitor must have a medically diagnosed, permanent, mobilityrelated physical disability and then meet one of several criteria which includes Neurological deficit at the S1 level or proximal, anklylosis, severe arthrosis or joint replacementin the lower half, amputation of any lowerextremity joint proximal to the metatarsophalangeal jointor a functional disability equivalent to the above.Lower leg amputation competitors are allowed to participate in wheelchair sport following classification rules for them based on functional mobility.

There are two classes for the sport, the tetraplegic class commonly known as Quad class and the open classification. Athletes are classified into these classes as followsOpen. Competitors in this class have lower limb impairment but normal upper limb and handuse function.Quad. Competitors in this class have impairment to both upper and lower limbs. Their ability to apply control to the wheelchair and racket is more limited than those in the Open class.The rules for wheelchair tennis are similar to ablebodied tennis except that the ball is allowed to bounce twice so long as the first bounce falls within the court. Use of a powerwheelchair may be allocated to athletes who are unable to manoeuvre a manual chair due to their disability.