How to Play Padel: Serve, Rally, Walls and Positioning

This guide explains what to do once you step onto a padel court: how to start the point, return the ball legally, use the walls, keep score, and move with your partner. It deliberately leaves booking and equipment decisions to the UK beginner's guide so that the two pages answer different questions.

The rules below are aligned with the LTA's official beginner rules. Individual leagues and competitions may specify alternative scoring or match formats.

The objective

Padel is normally played two against two. Your pair wins a rally when the opponents cannot make a legal return.

A legal return must cross the net and bounce inside the opponents' court before it touches their wall or cage. The opponents must return it before it bounces for a second time on their side.

You can play the ball after one bounce or volley it before it bounces, except when returning the serve. The walls and cage become relevant after the ball has bounced in the court.

The court and equipment

A standard padel court is 20 metres long and 10 metres wide. The net divides it into two halves. Each half contains two service boxes, separated by the centre service line.

Players use solid, perforated padel rackets rather than strung tennis rackets. The ball resembles a tennis ball but is manufactured to padel specifications.

Exact measurements are clearer than describing the court as a fraction of a tennis court because those comparisons change depending on whether the marked court or the full facility footprint is being measured. The court-dimensions guide contains the full layout.

How to serve legally

The serve starts behind the service line. Begin each game from the right-hand side of the court.

1. Stand behind the service line with at least one foot on the ground.
2. Bounce the ball on the floor behind the line.
3. Strike it underarm at or below waist height.
4. Send it diagonally over the net into the opposite service box.
5. Alternate between the right and left service positions after every point.

The same player serves throughout that game. The pairs alternate which team serves from game to game, while each pair follows the serving order it chose at the start of the set.

You receive two attempts. If a serve clips the net and otherwise lands correctly, the applicable let rule may require it to be replayed. A serve that bounces in the correct box and then hits the glass remains in play; if it hits the metal cage after that bounce, it is a fault.

The returner must let the serve bounce. They cannot volley it.

For a fuller treatment of foot position, lets, and service faults, see the padel serve rules.

How a rally works

After a legal return of serve, either pair can play a groundstroke after one bounce or volley before the bounce.

The ball must cross the net and land inside the opponents' court. If it hits the opponents' glass or cage before bouncing in their court, the return is out. If it bounces in their court first, a later rebound from the glass or cage can remain live.

A pair loses the rally when, among other faults:

• The ball bounces twice on its side.
• Its return fails to cross the net.
• Its return lands outside the opponents' court without a legal rebound or permitted out-of-court play.
• Its return hits the opponents' wall or cage before bouncing in their court.
• The ball touches a player or something the player is wearing.
• Both partners hit the ball during the same return.

Padel has no kitchen or no-volley zone. You may volley close to the net after the serve has been returned, but you cannot touch the net or strike the ball before it crosses to your side.

How the walls and cage work

The simplest rule is to watch where the ball bounces first.

When your opponents hit the ball towards you, it must bounce in your court before hitting your wall or cage. After that first bounce, you may let it rebound from the enclosure and return it before it bounces again.

You do not always have to wait for the rebound. During a rally, you can volley the incoming ball before it bounces, or play it after the floor bounce and before it reaches the wall.

You may also use your own glass wall to help send a difficult ball back over the net, provided the return crosses the net and bounces in the opponents' court. The metal cage is not used in the same way for a return from your side.

In venues that permit out-of-court play, a player may leave through the doors to retrieve a ball that has bounced correctly and travelled out. Do not assume this is available at every venue; the court must have the required safe area and the organiser must allow it.

The wall-rules guide covers common rebound examples in more detail.

How scoring works

Standard padel scoring follows tennis:

• First point: 15
• Second point: 30
• Third point: 40
• Fourth point: game, provided the pair leads by two points

At 40-40, traditional advantage scoring requires one pair to win two consecutive points. Some competitions use an alternative deciding-point format, so check the event or league rules.

A set is commonly won by the first pair to reach six games with a two-game lead. A tie-break is usually played at 6-6. Matches are commonly best of three sets, although social sessions may use shorter formats.

Every rally awards a point to the winning pair, whether it served or received. Standard padel does not use side-out scoring.

For examples of deuce, tie-breaks, and service order, see padel scoring explained.

Where to stand

Padel positioning changes between defence and attack.

The receiving pair starts near the back because the serve must bounce. The serving pair commonly moves towards the net after serving, while the receiver tries to make a controlled return.

At the net, stand far enough back to react to a lob and close enough to volley comfortably. There is no single distance that suits every player or situation. Avoid treating “one metre from the net” as a fixed rule.

Move with your partner. If one player advances while the other stays deep, opponents can exploit the gap between them. Imagine the pair connected by a rope: move forward, backwards, and sideways together while preserving useful spacing.

When defending near the back glass, give deep balls enough space to rebound. Rushing towards the ball often leaves no room to play the shot after it comes off the wall.

The first shots to practise

A reliable serve

Accuracy matters more than pace. Practise landing the ball in both diagonal service boxes while keeping the contact point legal.

A compact volley

At the net, use a short controlled movement rather than a large backswing. Aim for depth and placement before trying to finish the point.

A defensive lob

A controlled lob can move opponents away from the net and give your pair time to advance. Aim high enough to clear them but deep enough that the ball does not become an easy overhead.

A back-glass return

Start with slow feeds that bounce, reach the glass, and return towards you. Wait for the rebound, create space, and use a compact swing.

Common beginner errors

Trying to hit every ball hard. The court rewards placement, patience, and compact technique. Large swings make recovery more difficult.

Standing in two different formations. Partners should generally defend or attack together rather than leaving one player at the net and one at the back.

Forgetting the serve must bounce. A padel serve is not struck directly from the hand.

Volleying the return of serve. The receiver must allow the serve to bounce.

Treating every wall contact as out. A ball that bounces in the court before reaching the wall or cage can remain live.

Waiting for the wall unnecessarily. After a floor bounce, you may return the ball before it reaches the wall if that is the better option.

Reaching across the net too early. Make contact only after the ball has crossed to your side, subject to the rules governing follow-through after a legal strike.

What to learn next

Use a coached session to practise these mechanics safely. Once the serve, scoring, and basic rally rules feel familiar, concentrate on moving with your partner and controlling net position.

If you have not booked a session yet, the padel beginner guide explains how to find a venue and what to bring. Keep the official LTA rules as the reference when a fault or unusual situation is disputed.