Padel Rules and Regulations

Padel is a popular racquet sport that combines elements of tennis and squash. The game is played on a smaller court surrounded by walls, and it’s typically played in doubles. Here are the basic rules and regulations of padel:

Court and Equipment:

  1. Padel courts are smaller than tennis courts and enclosed by walls. The standard court dimensions are approximately 10 meters wide and 20 meters long.
  2. The court is divided by a net into two equal halves. The net is lower than a tennis net, and it’s 88 cm high at the center.
  3. Padel rackets are solid and perforated to allow airflow. Padel balls are similar to tennis balls but slightly less pressurized.
  4. Players are required to wear appropriate non-marking footwear.

Scoring:

  1. Padel uses a traditional tennis-style scoring system (love, 15, 30, 40, game), and matches are typically best of three sets.
  2. A set is won by the first team to reach six games with a lead of at least two games. If the score reaches 6-6, a tiebreaker is played.
  3. The tiebreaker is won by the first team to reach seven points with a lead of at least two points. pressurized.

Serving:

  1. The server must stand behind the baseline and serve underhanded diagonally, hitting the ball below waist level.
  2. The serve must land in the diagonally opposite service box, bouncing once in the service box and then hitting the walls.

Scoring and Faults:

  1. The receiving team cannot return the serve until the ball has bounced once on their side of the court.
  2. After the serve, the game is played similarly to tennis, with teams hitting the ball back and forth over the net.
  3. The ball can be played off the walls, and it must clear the net and land within the boundaries to be in play.
  4. The ball can only bounce once before being returned, either on the ground or off the walls.
  5. Players can enter the opponent’s side of the court, but they must not touch the net, walls, or cross the central line.
  6. A point is won when the opposing team fails to return the ball within the rules. This includes hitting the ball out of bounds, hitting the ball into the net, or failing to hit the ball before it bounces twice.

Let Rule:

  1. If the serve touches the net but still lands in the correct service box, it’s called a “let” and the server gets another attempt.

Double Bounce Rule:

  1. In padel, after the serve, both teams must let the ball bounce on their side before hitting it in the air.
  2. This means the receiving team must let the serve bounce, then the serving team must let the return bounce before hitting it.

Rotation:

  1. Players rotate positions after each point. The player who served will move to the back of the court on their team’s side.

These are the basic rules of padel. Keep in mind that there might be variations or additional rules depending on specific tournaments or locations. It’s recommended to familiarize yourself with the specific rules of the padel facility or organization you’re playing with.