Tennis Betting: What Happens When A Match Is Suspended?
Written by
Joe - Poker PlayerLast updated:
January 3, 2024
Tennis matches can be affected by a variety of factors leading to their suspension. Excessive heat, rain, darkness, and injuries are common reasons that tennis officials will temporarily stop or pause a tennis match. When matches are suspended, players must leave the court entirely and wait for officials to deem conditions safe and appropriate for match resumption. Suspended matches require players to maintain focus and game readiness during the delay to be able to restart competitively. This can prove challenging after long suspensions, like rain delays over multiple days requiring players to come back the next day.
Tennis match suspensions are as frustrating for the players as it is for the fans and, most specifically, for tennis bettors. When a match is delayed, stopped, or paused, the outcome of tennis bets will also be suspended, and rules vary between sportsbooks. Knowing what happens to your bet when a tennis match is suspended is crucial to making sound decisions and placing wise bets, as suspensions are not uncommon in tennis matches. Read on to find out what happens to tennis bets when a match is suspended, and learn tips to minimize your losses when rain hits the court hard!
What Does “Suspended” Mean In Tennis And When It Happens?
Suspended is a term used in tennis to refer to when a match is temporarily stopped or postponed due to issues like bad weather or lack of light. A tennis match can be suspended by the umpire, referee, or tournament organizers if conditions make it difficult or dangerous to continue playing. Common reasons for suspending play include rain, darkness/lack of light, extreme heat, or wet court conditions. When a match is suspended, the scores, game/set counts, and player positions on the court stand as they are. The match picks up at the exact place where it left off once play resumes. This could be on the same day or even days later in some cases. Matches at major tournaments often have contingency plans in place for completed suspended matches. This may involve moving the match to another court or having players finish at a rescheduled time.
If a match can’t be completed within the timeframe of the tournament, the player who is ahead at the point that play is suspended is declared the winner. For example, if a match is suspended due to rain with one player leading 2 sets to 1, they would be awarded the match victory. So, in essence, a suspended tennis match is one that has been temporarily halted but will resume play exactly where it stopped at the earliest opportunity allowed by the tournament organizers or officials.
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What Happens To Your Bet When A Tennis Match Is Suspended?
In general, when a tennis match is suspended due to rain or any other reason, bets are announced as “no action,” which means nobody wins nor loses, and all bettors get their money back. However, there may be minor differences in rules when it comes to suspended tennis matches between online sportsbooks. Hence, to help you make more sound decisions, let’s review tennis betting rules for suspended matches at the top four US online sportsbooks.
1. Betonline Suspended Tennis Match Rules
According to the Betonline sportsbook tennis rules, if you wager on a tennis match and it is suspended or postponed for any possible reason, your wager will stand provided the match is played or resumes within 72 hours of the main start time. Otherwise, all bets will be refunded.
2. Suspended Tennis Matches At FanDuel Sportsbook
FanDuel sportsbook has a general rule for temporary suspensions, weather cancellations, and postponements. Still, you better refer to the rules applicable to your state, as FanDuel may have differing rules from state to state.
Typically, when the tennis event is not completed within 48 hours after the scheduled completion date, all bets on markets for that event will be void. The exception would be wagers placed in markets whose results have already been fully decided. All bets on a match/event that is officially deemed a forfeit will be void. It means your money will be refunded.
3. DraftKings Tennis Match Suspension Rules
Similar to Betonline, DraftKings will wait for the postponed/suspended match to be replayed. It means that if a tennis match is postponed due to weather, darkness, or some other reason, all wagers will stand until the play is resumed and the match is completed.
4. Sportsbetting.ag Sportsbook Tennis Rules
Just like Betonline and Drfatkings, when a tennis match is suspended or postponed for any reason, all wagers at SportsBetting will stand until the match is resumed within 72 hours of the original start time. Otherwise, wagers will be voided, and stakes will be refunded.
4 Tips To Avoid Losing Your Bet When A Tennis Match Is Suspended
- Read the sportsbook suspension and postponement rules carefully before placing any bets. Typically, bets are voided if an event is suspended. Still, as seen in the previous section, at some sportsbooks, bets stand if the match resumes within a defined period, usually 48-72 hours.
- Monitor conditions pre-match. If inclement weather or other issues threatening suspension are forecasted, be more cautious about betting on matches that day. Or bet on matches at indoor/covered venues.
- Consider suspension record. Some tournaments have a higher rate of suspensions due to rain or extreme heat. Factor a tournament’s suspension history into your betting decisions.
- Don’t bet on close matches. Avoid betting super competitive, close matches if bad weather looms. Suspensions add huge variability to these coin flip-type contests.
Wrap-Up
Suspensions are not uncommon in tennis matches and tournaments. Any tennis match can be suspended, temporarily stopped, or postponed due to rain, extreme heat, strong wind, wet court conditions after heavy rain, cold temperature, lack of light, etc. Hence, it is very important to monitor weather and match conditions before placing any bet. Also, make sure to read the sportsbook tennis rules regarding suspended matches to avoid possible losses.
May your bets never get suspended!
