'I hate it': Stars fume as off-court coaching rule changed by International Tennis Federation

Off-court coaching has been at the centre of discussion in the tennis world in recent years, but from January it will no longer be up for debate.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has confirmed off-court coaching will be legalised in the next calendar year following the success of recent trials in the men's ATP and women's WTA tours.

The ITF says the rule change aims to make the competition "fairer and, potentially, more entertaining" as players will be able to receive "brief and discreet" instructions from their team.

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While the change has been legalised, it will not be implemented at every tournament.

The ITF states tournaments will be eligible to elect if they wish to implement the rule change.

Various competitions set to be hosted on Australian soil in January including the United Cup, Brisbane and Canberra International are among those expected to introduce the change.

Coaching from the stands has been a controversial topic in the tennis world, with players accused of illegally receiving assistance from their team.

Serena Williams infamously received a code violation for receiving instructions from her coach during the 2018 US Open final against Naomi Osaka, while Daniil Medvedev was accused of the soon-to-be legal act during his 2022 Australian Open clash with Stefanos Tsitsipas.

World No.5 Taylor Fritz has been a vocal critic of the looming change, declaring it is a "dumb rule."

"Tennis is an individual sport, why are we making it not an individual sport?" Fritz said following a match with Nick Kyrgios in 2022.

"Tennis is as much mental as it is physical, and a big part of it is you need to figure things out on the court for yourself.

"I think it's ridiculous that you can be mentally not good, analytically not good at working through things and coming up with strategies... and you can have someone tell you what to do - I hate it."

Canadian tennis great Denis Shapovalov took to social media to express his disappointment to the changes, writing: "Why are you (ITF) trying to change the beauty of this game?".

But Stuart Miller, ITF senior executive director for integrity, says the organisation had met with various "key stakeholders" before approving the permanent change.

"Players felt it was a positive development and makes tournaments more interesting for them," Miller said.

"Coaches have said it helps player development and helps to improve the standing of their profession.

"Chair umpires have said it improves their ability to focus on monitoring the game and making the right decisions, rather than whether or not a coach is coaching against the rules."