indiana wrote:

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Well, Andy better not do too well. He's one guy that I had already updated his ranking points to 17/02, with no addition before then :)

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A little extra work on your part is a sacrifice I am sure you would be willing to make

He has got 6 zero-pointers on his ranking at the moment. I agree that the zero-pointers for Roland Garros, Paris and Shanghai are mandatory and will remain part of his 18 scores for 52 weeks but the other three zero-pointers (Basel, Tokyo and Washington) are for 500 events.

Clearly one of those zero-pointers has to remain until he next plays a post-US Open 500 event but I thought the other two could get replaced once he had played more 500s this year. Even if just one of them can be replaced (because it's possible that he withdrew late from Washington and got a mandatory zero-pointer for that), he'd be able to add the full score for Rotterdam once he has played it.

I'm basing this on ATP Rule IX.9.03.C: 

C. ATP World Tour 500 Ranking Penalty.

A players (Commitment and Non-Commitment players) withdrawal from an ATP World Tour 500 event whether on time or after the 12 noon deadline, shall result in a zero (0) point ranking penalty. Further non-consecutive withdrawals shall result in a zero (0) point ranking penalty assessed for each additional withdrawal. Players with multiple consecutive withdrawals who are out of competition for 30 days or longer due to injury will not be subject to a ranking penalty as long as verified and approved medical forms are provided; or, a player shall not have the ranking penalty imposed if he completes the Promotional Activities requirement as specified under Repeal of Withdrawal Fines and/or Penalties or if the on-site withdrawal procedures apply. Players may also appeal withdrawal penalties to a Tribunal who will determine whether the penalties are affi rmed or set aside.

* A commitment player who has received a zero (0) point ranking penalty for withdrawing from an ATP World Tour 500 event may replace the zero (0) point by playing an additional ATP World Tour 500 event in that same calendar year for a total of four (4) played. The replacement tournament must be after the 500 withdrawal that has resulted in a ranking penalty. Only one (1) additional ATP World Tour 500 event per year may be used to replace an ATP World Tour 500 ranking penalty.

*NOTE: Commitment players who are unable to fulfill their commitment, are not eligible to appeal the ranking penalty.

While it does say at the end of that rule that a commitment player who has received a zero-point ranking penalty can only replace it by playing another 500 later in the same year, the earlier part of the rule that I have put into bold type suggests to me that the zero-pointers for Tokyo and Basel are not withdrawal penalties that cannot be replaced, but simply filler scores for not having played four 500 events in the last 12-month period, though one of them will have to stay on there until he has played another post-USO 500 event.

Am I still missing something? It is as clear as mud, admittedly! 

P.S. This isn't a battle, Drew, we're just genuinely trying to work out what the stupid rule means! 

Well those rules aren't entirely clear but I think you are confusing the matter by talking about withdrawal penalties. Andy only played one ATP 500 last year (Monte Carlo Masters to be precise) so he received 3 mandatory zeros. They all stay on for 52 weeks from when they were first added regardless of how many ATP 500 events Andy plays this year.

In 2012 Rafa only played 2 ATP 500s (Monte Carlo and Barcelona) because he didn't play after Wimbledon. Therefore he received 2 mandatory zeros that Autumn for Tokyo/Beijing and Basel/Valencia. When he returned in 2013 he played 3 ATP 500 events in the spring (Acapulco, Monte Carlo and Barcelona) but he still had the two mandatory zeros on his score. This resulted in him only being able to count 4 optional tournaments in his 18 (the 3 already mentioned plus Sao Paulo). His 150 points from Vina Del Mar were not included so for a number of weeks he was in the highly unusual position of having more points in the "Race to London" than actual ranking points. Even after he played Beijing when he had then played 4 ATP 500s including one after the US Open he still carried his mandatory zero from Basel/Valencia. It was only after that came off at the end of October that he was able to count Vina Del Mar towards his 18 scores.

Wasn't the position in 2012 that commitment players could only count 2 250s, even if they had a higher score in a 250 than in one of their 500s? Then last year it was changed so that up to six 250s could be counted as long as they had played 4 500s? That might make a difference between Rafa's 2012 situation and now. I have to say I have read elsewhere somewhere that the penalties could be replaced as soon as they played a 500 this year - they may also be wrong, of course. We'll see next Monday I suppose.