Game Open ยท Playbook
Overhead view of a tennis player tossing the ball to serve on a clay court Find Tennis Opens
Love ยท Deuce ยท Advantage

Tennis

The scoring sounds like a secret language โ€” love, 15, 30, 40, deuce. It's actually a simple ladder, and once you see it drawn out you'll never be confused again.

1 v 1 / 2 v 2Singles or doubles
4 pointsWin a game
6 gamesWin a set
2 servesPer point

01The objective

Hit the ball over the net into your opponent's court so they can't return it before it bounces twice. Rallies build points, points build games, games build sets, sets build the match. The ball may bounce once at most on your side โ€” or you can volley it out of the air.

Baseline

Outlast them

Deep, consistent groundstrokes force errors. At amateur level, the player who misses less wins.

Net

Finish up close

Volleys cut the court's angles off. Approach on a short ball, punch the volley away.

Serve

Free points

The only shot you fully control. A reliable second serve wins more amateur matches than a flashy first one.

02The court & its lines

Net โ€” 0.91 m at centre Service box (deuce side) Ad-side box Baseline to baseline: 23.77 m Doubles: 10.97 m Doubles tramline โ€” only in play for doubles Serves must land inside the diagonal service box; rallies can use the whole court
A ball touching any part of the line is in. In amateur opens without umpires you call the lines on your own side โ€” when in doubt, it's in.

03The scoring ladder

Three nested layers: points โ†’ games โ†’ sets. The weird numbers only live in the bottom layer.

Points within a game 0 "love" 15 30 40 GAME โ€ฆif you lead by 2+ 40โ€“40 = "deuce" win a point โ†’ advantage win the next too โ†’ game lose it โ†’ back to deuce Games build a set First to 6 games, 2 clear โ†’ set 6โ€“6 โ†’ tiebreak to 7 points (win by 2) Best of 3 sets โ†’ match amateur opens often swap set 3 for a 10-point tiebreak Score is always called server-first: "30โ€“15" means the server has 30.
Why 15-30-40? Medieval clock-face scoring โ€” 15, 30, 45 later slurred to 40. "Love" likely from l'ล“uf, the egg โ€” a zero.

04Serving โ€” a service game, animated

Singles: P1 serves the whole game, alternating sides of the centre mark after every point โ€” deuce box, then ad box. Doubles adds P2 and P4 at the net, but only server and receiver positions are fixed.

Singles ยท one server, alternating boxes centre mark deuce box ad box P2 P1 Point ends โ†’ P1 crosses the centre mark โ†’ serves the other box Doubles ยท starting positions P1 P2 P3 P4 P1 serves cross-court past P4 ยท net partners P2 & P4 roam freely Serving player = highlighted ยท after this game, the other side serves the next one
Deuce box first, always โ€” every game of tennis ever played starts from the right-hand side.
  1. Behind the baseline, diagonal targetServe from behind the baseline into the diagonally opposite service box. Points alternate right (deuce) side, then left (ad) side.
  2. Two attemptsMiss the box on the first serve, take a second. Miss both = double fault, point gone.
  3. Lets are freeServe clips the net cord and still lands in the box? Replay it โ€” no limit, no penalty.
  4. Feet stay putTouching the baseline before contact is a foot fault โ€” it counts as a missed serve.
  5. Service alternates by gameYou serve a full game, then your opponent serves one. In a tiebreak it flips every two points.

05How points are lost

service line P1 P2 โœ— FIRST SERVE โ€” NET. ONE MORE TRY โœ—โœ— SECOND SERVE LONG โ€” DOUBLE FAULT, POINT TO P2 A serve must land inside the diagonal service box โ€” the box ends at the service line, not the baseline.
The double fault, on loop โ€” the only way to lose a point without your opponent touching the ball.
Two bounces

Get there in one

Ball bounces twice on your side โ€” point over, even if you scoop it up a millisecond late.

Out

Beyond the lines

Your shot lands outside your opponent's court (singles lines in singles, tramlines included in doubles).

Net

Into or touching

Shot into the net loses the point. So does touching the net or crossing onto their side while the ball is live.

Body touch

Racket only

Ball grazing your body or clothes = opponent's point, wherever you're standing.

Double hit

One clean strike

Deliberate double contact is a fault. (An accidental double-hit in one motion is legal โ€” rare trivia.)

Rally net cord

Legal, annoying

Unlike the serve, a rally ball that clips the tape and dribbles over is completely fine. Play everything.

06Formats you'll meet in opens

Standard

Best of 3

Two full sets, 10-point match tiebreak if it's one apiece. The weekend-league default.

Fast4

Sets to 4

First to four games, tiebreak at 3โ€“3, often no-ad scoring: deuce = one deciding point, receiver picks the side.

Pro sets

One set to 8

A single long set to 8 games โ€” common in box leagues and time-boxed court slots.

07Quick FAQ

Who calls the lines with no umpire?

Each player calls their own side, out loud and promptly. The etiquette is absolute: if you're not sure, the ball was in. Persistent bad calls are how you never get invited back.

What's the difference between deuce and no-ad?

Traditional: at 40โ€“40 you must win two points in a row. No-ad (common in doubles and Fast4): the very next point wins the game, and the receiver chooses which box it's played to.

Do doubles partners take turns hitting?

No โ€” unlike table tennis, either partner may hit any rally ball. Only serving and receiving positions are fixed within a game.

Which balls should I bring?

Tournaments provide match balls. For practice, pressurised balls go dead in a few weeks once opened โ€” check the can date, and expect a slower, higher bounce on clay than hard courts.

08What's new ยท latest regulations

Two changes have reshaped how modern tennis is decided and officiated โ€” both now standard across the pro tours and filtering into amateur opens.

Standardised

10-point final-set tiebreak

All four Grand Slams now settle a 6-6 final set with a first-to-10 tiebreak (win by 2). No more marathon deciding sets โ€” expect the same in most opens.

New

Electronic line calling

Most pro events โ€” including Wimbledon โ€” have replaced line judges with automated calling, so there are no player challenges at those tournaments.

Common in opens

No-ad & Fast4

Amateur draws increasingly use time-savers: no-ad deciding points at deuce, Fast4 sets to 4, and a 10-point match tiebreak instead of a third set.

Official rulebook โ€” ITF Rules of TennisThe governing Rules of Tennis, updated annually by the International Tennis Federation. Open โ†—
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