The U.S. Open "will use a 25-second serve clock at this year's event, which will be the first time such a system will be deployed in the main draw at a major tennis tournament," according to David Waldstein of the N.Y. TIMES. Players will now have 25 seconds "from the end of a point to serve for the next one." If they do not, the first violation "will incur a warning, followed by the loss of a point and then the loss of a game." The U.S. Open will "also enforce a seven-minute warm-up period before each match to ensure they start on time." Violators could be fined $20,000. USTA Managing Dir of Corporate Communications Chris Widmaier said, "Pace of play is a major issue in sports today. We recognize that and we want to be ahead of it." Waldstein notes the U.S. Open "experimented with the serve clock during last year's non-main draw events." Widmaier noted that there "were no major issues." An on-court clock "will be visible to players and spectators alike, similar to the shot clock in basketball." The chair umpire will run the clock and "be given leeway to delay the start of it in certain situations: after a particularly long point late in a grueling match, in hot and steamy conditions" (N.Y. TIMES, 4/12).
