Tennis retirement bet settlement depends on the accepted market. A tournament draw shows who advances; it does not explain every entry on a betting account. Start with the ticket and the rules attached to it.
This guide uses Betfair Sportsbook's public rules, checked on 18 October 2026. Its general rules distinguish Sportsbook from Exchange and give sport-specific rules precedence. The examples below are fictional cash bets, not tested account transactions or recommendations to place a bet.
Read the market name before the result
Keep the whole selection description. "Match winner", "first set winner" and a tournament outright ask different questions. A screenshot of a player progressing to the next round cannot identify which of those contracts you accepted.
The same caution applies to a television score or an app notification. Record the competition, the event's status and how much play had taken place. Then compare that evidence with the wording of the relevant rule. BETTIMES explains the wider process in how sportsbook bet settlement works.
Betfair Sportsbook retirement and walkover rules
The following is a dated summary of the operator's tennis rules, not a rule for every bookmaker.
| Situation | Match-winner treatment | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Retirement or disqualification: ITF, UTR or exhibition | Void | Any stage |
| Other competitions: before first set completed | Void | Both selections |
| Other competitions: after first set completed | Advancing player wins; retiring player's stake returned | Not two-sided win/loss settlement |
| Walkover or match not played | Void | That match, not the whole tournament |
For other markets, a retirement or disqualification means void unless the outcome was already unequivocally determined. A completed outcome can therefore need a different entry from an unresolved match market.
This table does not cover format changes, annual specials or every tournament outright. Check their own clauses rather than extending a match-winner example to them.
Two hypothetical singles, two account entries
Assume two separate ordinary cash singles on a fictional ATP match. The first set is complete before a player retires. The advancing-player ticket has a £10 stake at decimal odds of 2.40; the retiring-player ticket also has a £10 stake. These are invented figures chosen solely to show the calculation.
For the advancing-player ticket, the illustrative gross return is £10 × 2.40 = £24. That includes the £10 stake, leaving £14 profit. For the retiring-player ticket, the £10 stake return produces £0 profit. The second ticket has not earned the first ticket's price-based payout.
Those entries illustrate the win/void distinction in the named rule. They are not evidence of a real match, an available price or a payment successfully received. A bonus-funded ticket, promotion or previously cashed-out bet would require a separate review of its terms and history.
What a void means inside a multiple
Betfair's void-bet help distinguishes singles from multiples: a void single returns its stake, while a void selection reduces a multiple rather than cancelling the whole bet.
For example, assume an ordinary £10 double with accepted prices of 2.40 and 1.50. If the tennis leg is void and the remaining selection wins, the illustrative return is £10 × 1.50 = £15. There is no additional £10 refund in that calculation. If the remaining selection loses, the example returns £0. An unsettled remaining leg is not yet a winning return.
The accumulator recalculation guide covers that arithmetic in more detail. First establish whether the tennis selection was void; only then recalculate the surviving bet.
Keep a record that explains the grade
If a ticket looks wrong, assemble the evidence before sending a query:
- Save the complete market and selection names, including any set, game or tournament qualifier.
- Keep the accepted price, stake, product, competition and acceptance time. Separate cash stakes from promotional funds.
- Retain the event record showing whether play started, whether the first set finished and how the match ended.
- Capture the settlement entry and any later adjustment. Ask the operator which clause it applied to that specific ticket.
A useful question is: "Which competition category and market rule produced this grade?" It is more precise than asking why a player advanced but a particular ticket did not pay. Keep copies of the answer and the rule version used; this guide does not adjudicate an individual dispute.
Frequently asked questions
Is a returned stake the same as profit?
No. In the fictional £10 single above, returning £10 gives back the original stake and creates £0 profit. A £24 gross return includes both the stake and £14 profit. Compare like-for-like account entries rather than treating every credited amount as a win.
Does a void tennis selection cancel the whole double?
In the ordinary cash-multiple example here, the surviving selection continues and determines the revised return. Do not treat a still-open leg as already won. Check any promotion separately and retain the accepted ticket, because the example does not model every enhanced or bonus product.
Can this Sportsbook table be used for Exchange bets?
No. Betfair publishes separate Sportsbook and Exchange rules, and their settlement can differ. Identify the product on the accepted ticket before using a rule from either. The Exchange versus sportsbook guide explains the underlying product distinction.