Dan Evans was denied a point following an epic rally against Carlos Alcaraz as he fell into the net while the ball was still in play. Under tennis rules, a player immediately loses the exchange if they touch the net mid-point even if it’s unintentional. It came during a marathon 19-minute game with the Brit managing to hold serve after saving six break points.
Evans was the first to pounce in his round of 32 clash with Alcaraz at the Shanghai Masters. The world No 33 saved some break points early on before breaking to love. But the top seed looked to get straight back on serve as the pair found themselves embroiled in a 19-minute game.
With the 33-year-old leading 3-1, he had a game point to solidify his lead over Alcaraz. Evans managed to chase down a dropshot from the Spaniard and hit the ball over the net, responding with a drop shot of his own. As the ball landed on Alcaraz’s side of the court, the Brit fell into the net and immediately lost the point.
Both men were in good spirits with Evans laughing as he held onto the net, having run forward with so much momentum that he couldn’t stop. The 20-year-old came straight over to help him up as they made light of the thrilling exchange.
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In the official 2023 ATP rulebook, a “touch” shot is defined as: “If a ball is intentionally struck twice, or touched before it comes over the net, or while volleying, the ball hits the court after leaving the racket before going over the net, or a player touches the net while the ball is in play, or a ball in play touches a player, or anything that he wears or carries falls into the opponent’s court or touches the net.”
It meant that the pair went back to deuce after Evans fell into the net. And they continued to go back and forth in the game until the world No 33 finally managed to hold for a 4-1 lead. Alcaraz was able to get back on serve, however, with the set going to a tiebreak.
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