Tennis retirement rules for betting

When betting on tennis, you need to be aware that the rules on how bets are settled can vary significantly between bookmakers. In particular, this applies to tennis retirement rules - ie what happens to your bet when a player retires or a match is abandoned?

It's important to know because, if you bet with the wrong bookies, you could end up losing both of your bets - the back and the lay.

Warning - These terms are correct at the time of posting this. If unsure of the rules, you should ALWAYS check them for yourself (use the links provided below). If you do find any changes, then please let us know via support.

Generally, bookies can be put into three different groups with regards to tennis rules. Note that these rules only apply to betting on the winner of the match, and not necessarily to other markets.

You can use the Outplayed Dutching Calculator to dutch bets between bookies with matching rules.

Also read about match bet calculator and casino offers matched betting


Tennis rules type 1 - Bets are valid if one set is completed

With this category, all bets are valid if at least one set is completed in the match. All of the exchanges fall into this category, so if you're backing a tennis bet with one of the bookies in this group, you can safely lay your bet on one of the exchanges.

21.co.uk - See terms here
32Red - See terms here
Bet600 - See terms here
Betdaq - See terms here
Betfair Sportsbook - See terms here - Rules allow Betfair Sportsbook back bets to be laid on the exchange as well as dutched with any other group. *
Betfair Exchange - See terms here
Betfred - See terms here
BetGoodwin - See terms here
Betsafe - See terms here
BetUK - See terms here
Bwin - See terms here
Casumo - See terms here
Coral - See terms here
Corbett Sports - See terms here
Dafabet - See terms here
Fitzdares - See terms here
Grosvenor - See terms here
Ladbrokes - See terms here
LeoVegas - See terms here
Matchbook - See terms here
Mr Green - See terms here
Paddy Power - See terms here - Rules allow Paddy Power back bets to be laid on the exchange as well as dutched with any other group. *
Party Casino - See terms here
Party Poker - See terms here
QuinnBet - See terms here
Redbet - See terms here
Sky Bet - See terms here - Rules allow Sky Bet back bets to be laid on the exchange as well as dutched with any other group.
Smarkets - See terms here
Sportingbet - See terms here
Sporting Index - See terms here
The Pools - See terms here
Unibet - See terms here

* Note on Paddy Power and Betfair Sportsbook - Although the rules match up with the exchanges, the disqualification rules don't. If your selection gets disqualified in the first set then your back bet would lose and your lay bet would be void. This is incredibly rare though (6 players have been disqualified since 1990) so although it isn't much of a risk, you should be aware. If you want to avoid this entirely then you can dutch your bets with Paddy Power or Betfair Sportsbook (the bookie you didn't place your initial bet with).


Tennis rules type 2a - Bets are only valid if the full match is completed

In this category, bets are only valid if the full match is completed. If a player retires early, all bets are void. There are no exchanges in this category, so you should not lay bets off against bookies in this category. Instead, you would need to dutch your bets between bookies in this group.

10Bet - See Terms here
12Bet - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
19Bet - See terms here
21.co.uk - See terms here
888sport - See terms here
Betboro - See terms here (Click Gaming Rules on the bottom left and then scroll down to tennis)
BetRegal - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
BetVision - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
Betzone - See terms here
Bob88 - See terms here
Boylesports - See terms here
Fun88 - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
Geoff Banks - See terms here
Karamba - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
LiveScore Bet - See terms here
Lottoland - See terms here
McBookie - See terms here
MobileWins - See terms here
mr.play - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
NetBet - See terms here (Click Rules at the bottom)
Planet Sport Bet - See terms here
RhinoBet - See terms here
Royal Panda - See terms here
SpaceCasino - See terms here
SportPesa - See terms here (Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
Sportsbetio - See terms here
Spreadex - See terms here
StarSports - See terms here
TLCBet - See terms here Rules located on the left hand side under list of sports)
UK-WL - See terms here
Vickers - See terms here
Virgin Bet - See terms here
William Hill - See terms here (Click Help at the top of the page and the search for "tennis")


Tennis rules type 2b - Bets are only valid if the full match is completed, however matches do not need to be complete if a player is disqualified

In this category, bets are only valid if the full match is completed. If a player retires early, all bets are void. There are no exchanges in this category, so you should not lay bets off against bookies in this category. Instead, you would need to dutch your bets between bookies in this group. The difference here is that if a player is disqualified, all bets will be settled on the player progressing to the next round/deemed the winner.

Disqualification is incredibly rare (9 players have been disqualified since 1990). If you're prepared to take the small risk then you can dutch this group with group 2a. In the event of a disqualification you will have one losing bet and one void bet.

Avabet - See terms here
Bet365 - See terms here
Betway - See terms here
BetVictor - See terms here
BinkBet - See terms here
CopyBet
Hollywoodbets - See terms here
Kwiff (See terms in the app by searching rules)
Parimatch - See terms here
PokerStars - See terms here
talkSPORT BET - See terms here
VBet - See terms here


Bets are valid as soon as the match starts and the player progressing to the next round will be deemed the winner. If the match fails to start, all bets will be void.

There are no exchanges in this category, so you should not lay bets off against bookies in this category. Instead, you would need to dutch your bets between bookies in this group.

Midnite - See terms here


These rules can change at any time so it is critical that you double check the rules yourself. We will not be responsible for any losses arising from out of date information in this post.

Also read about odds matching software