Andy Roddick Demands Major Rule Change Over Alexander Zverev’s Bizarre Routine at US Open

Tennis’ time rules leave some room for interpretation, and Alexander Zverev’s lengthy service routine brought that issue into focus at the US Open. The German’s habit of bouncing the ball too many times has attracted attention, with former World No. 1 Andy Roddick calling for changes to tennis’ serve-clock rules.

“Yeah, the rules should change. As long as he’s doing it within the 24-second shot clock, yeah, what are you going to say? There needs to be a shot clock for the second serve,” said Roddick in his podcast Served. “Okay, yeah. You cannot bounce the ball 20-something times between first and second serve. Yeah, like you cannot do it. And then act shocked when we finish at 3:00 in the morning. Like, we just can’t do it.”

While players have 25 seconds between points to begin the next service, the rules only require a second serve to be struck ‘without delay’ after a first-serve fault. The chair umpire has the discretion to decide whether the player in question is taking too long to make the second serve, which earned Zverev a time violation in his match against Karen Khachanov in the semifinals.

There is no strict rule on when to start the short clock either, as chair umpires start it once they enter the current score into the system. In cases of long and winding rallies, it is not uncommon for the umpire to give a leeway of a few seconds to the players so that they can catch their breath.

Another way players can gain additional time is by restarting an imperfect toss before completing the service motion. Once the server begins the service motion, the 25-second clock is no longer the relevant trigger for a time violation. That means a player who starts an imperfect toss before the clock expires can catch it and try again.

“If you toss the ball, you shouldn’t be able to catch it. No, I agree. The toss is part of the serve. It’s a waste of time. If you fucked up your toss, that’s on you. It’s not fair to like—like I never had wobbly tosses and I got no credit for it,” said Roddick on the podcast. “Right. Like you shouldn’t be able to catch a toss. It’s part of the serve. Is the toss part of the serve? Is it a skill? Yes. Great. Why do we get do-overs?”

Even though Khachanov made his frustration clear about Zverev’s ball bouncing in their match, Zverev has defended his routine as part of his normal serving process. Still, such a prolonged routine can also disrupt an opponent’s rhythm, particularly at pressure points, which helps explain why Roddick believes the rules should be changed.

Beyond his proposed changes to the time restrictions, Roddick also pointed out a key improvement in Ben Shelton’s game, which could give him the upper hand against Zverev in Sunday’s final.

Andy Roddick Points Out a Key Ben Shelton Improvement Ahead of Final Against Alexander Zverev

While Shelton’s serve has long been one of the defining features of his game, the American’s backhand has been the glaring chink in the armor. However, in the last two matches against Frances Tiafoe and Carlos Alcaraz, Roddick noticed an improvement in Shelton.

“Ben’s backhand is holding up like I’ve never seen it hold up before. Ben has been able to neutralize Carlos, not most of the time, but a decent amount of the time, and was able from the third set on to neutralize Foe when he got into that pattern where he was kind of bending Ben off the court,” said Roddick on his podcast. “The weakness has turned into something that looks a lot more stable, right?”

One of the major reasons why Zverev has an unbeaten record against Shelton and has a tremendous record against left-handed players is that the lefty forehand is easily countered by the German player with his two-handed backhand. However, if Shelton’s own backhand has improved, he can get into long backhand rallies with the top seed and not rely on his forehand alone.

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