QUESTION: This is a weird one. I was playing a rec-play match with my partner, preparing for a national-level tournament. My partner and I are both 4.0+ players and have been in several tournaments, so we find playing hard matches before the tournament really helps. During an energetic rally, I dropped my paddle. I bounced far enough that I couldn't retrieve it quickly, but it landed near my partner. He luckily had just hit a high lob and was able to grab my paddle and toss it back to me.
We continued the rally, but lost the point. After the game, one of my opponents mentioned that it was just 'karma' that we lost the point where my partner tossed me my paddle. My opponent said that if there had been a referee, we should have lost the point immediately because my partner helped me pick up my paddle.
So, here's the question. Is it true that your partner cannot help you retrieve a dropped paddle during a rally?
ANSWER: This is a great question! And close to home. I've actually officiated at a tournament where this happened. The bad part is that the referee on court (not me!) did not catch it immediately, but we discussed it during a ref meeting.
The right answer is your opponent was right, but not for the right reason. Here's the rule:
11.N. One Paddle. A player shall not use or carry more than one paddle during a rally. A violation of this rule is a fault.
What this means is that as soon as your partner picked up your paddle, he had violated rule 11.N. It does not matter why he picked up your paddle. It matters that he did pick up your paddle.
Further, I have also seen players having two paddles ready during a game. They sometimes switch paddles between rally's or games, which is allowed as long as each paddle has been verified legal by referee. However, according to rule 11.N, switching paddles during a rally is not allowed.
Hope this helps!
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