Simple Basic Rules of Padel (Beginner Friendly)

Padel is almost always played as doubles (2 vs 2) on a small enclosed court surrounded by glass walls. It shares tennis scoring but has unique wall & serving rules. Below is simplified official FIP rules for casual play.

1. Court & Gear Basics

Court: 20m long × 10m wide, fully enclosed by glass walls (back walls higher than side walls)

Low net in the middle (lower than tennis net)

Solid, small padel racket (no strings); softer tennis-style ball

Walls count as part of the court during rallies

2. Serving Rules (Most important difference from tennis)

1. Serve is always underhand only, hit below waist height

2. You must drop the ball, let it bounce once behind the baseline, then strike it

3. Serve travels diagonally into the opponent’s service box

4. You get 2 serve attempts per point (2 faults = you lose the point)

5. If your serve hits the back wall before bouncing in the service box = serve fault

6. Server switches right/left side after every point within one game

3. Rally & Wall Rules (The core of padel)

Legal play:

The ball may bounce max once on your side of the court (same as tennis)

After bouncing on the ground first, the ball can bounce off side walls / back wall on your side — you can still hit it back over the net

Volleys (hitting before the ball bounces) are allowed

The ball can bounce multiple times off walls after the first ground bounce

Illegal = you lose the point:

Ball bounces twice on your side

Ball hits your wall before bouncing on the floor

You hit the ball straight into the net

Ball flies over/through the outer walls

You touch the net or ball twice in one swing

4. Scoring System (Exactly the same as tennis)

Points per game

0 = Love

1 point = 15

2 points = 30

3 points = 40

Win 4 points, with a 2-point lead = you win the game

40–40 = Deuce: keep playing until one team wins two points in a row

Set

First team to win 6 games, ahead by at least 2 games wins the set

6–6 tie → play a tiebreak (first to 7 points, win by 2)

Full Match

Standard: Best of 3 sets (win 2 sets to win the whole match)

5. Quick Common Situations for Beginners

1. After your opponent hits a deep shot to your back: let the ball bounce once, hit it off the back wall, then return over the net (classic padel shot)

2. You can’t hit the ball directly into the opponent’s wall without it bouncing on their court first

3. After each game, the serving team switches; players swap ends of the court every odd game

6. How you win a point

You win the point when your opponent:

Lets the ball bounce twice

Hits the ball out of bounds

Makes a serve fault twice

Hits the net or violates wall rules