The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word BASELINES
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
B
A
S
E
L
I
N
E
S
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Court limits" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case court limits = baselines.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does BASELINES mean?
BASELINES noun- A line that is a base for measurement or for construction.
- A datum used as the basis for calculation or for comparison.
- A line used as the basis for the alignment of glyphs.
- The line at the farthest ends of the court indicating the boundary of the area of play.
- A configuration of software, hardware, or a process that is established and documented as a point of reference.