Racket: ITF-approved per Rules of Tennis Appendix II; Ball: ITF-approved (yellow felt-covered, 65-67 mm diameter, 56-59 g); Court surface: hard court (most NCAA), clay, or indoor — must be ITF-approved
Why people argue about this
People often assume that all NCAA tennis matches are played on hard courts, forgetting that the default surface type is specified as hard courts, but other surfaces like clay can be used if agreed upon by both teams before play begins. This oversight leads to confusion and sometimes disputes about which rules apply depending on the court's condition.