From Acapulco to Richmond

Padel is played by two teams of two players. The goal is to win more points than the other team by hitting the ball over the net so it can’t be returned before it bounces twice.

Matches are usually the best of three sets. A set is six games, and games are scored 15, 30, 40, game.

A coin toss or spin of the racket decides who chooses first. The winners can pick whether to serve or receive (and the opponents pick the end), pick the end (and the opponents choose to serve or receive), or hand the choice to the other team.

Teams swap ends after the first, third and every following odd game of each set, with up to 90 seconds of rest. If a change of ends is missed, it happens as soon as someone notices.

Warm-up lasts 5 minutes. Players get up to 25 seconds between points and 90 seconds at a change of ends. After an injury or accident, play can pause for up to 3 minutes of treatment — but not for ordinary fatigue.

Treat opponents, partners and officials with respect. No smashing the ball away in frustration, no throwing or striking the racket against the net, walls or fence, and no abusive language or gestures.

Stand behind the service line, between the centre line and the side wall. Bounce the ball once behind the line, then hit it underhand at or below waist height, with at least one foot touching the ground.

The serve goes diagonally over the net into the opponents’ service box. Walking, running or jumping during the serve isn’t allowed. The first serve of each game is taken from the right-hand side, then sides alternate.

A serve is a fault if it breaks the serving rules, lands outside the correct service box (a ball on the line is good), hits the server’s partner, or hits the mesh fence on the receiver’s side before its second bounce.

You get two attempts. A second fault loses the point, and the same player serves the next point from the other side.

The serving team decides who serves first in each set, and the partners alternate serving games for the rest of that set. The order can only change at the start of a new set.

If the wrong player serves, the right player takes over as soon as it’s noticed. Points already played still count.

The receiver must let the serve bounce and return it before the second bounce — volleying a serve loses the point. A serve that comes off the back or side glass after bouncing is still in play and must be returned.

The receiving team picks who takes the first return each set and keeps that order until the set ends. The server should wait until the receiver is ready; a receiver who attempts a return is considered ready.

A serve that clips the net and lands in the correct box is replayed — unless it then hits the mesh fence before bouncing twice, in which case it’s a fault. A let is also called if the receiver wasn’t ready, or if something outside the players’ control interrupts the point.

Once the ball bounces on your side, it can rebound off any glass wall or the fence and you can still return it — as long as it hasn’t bounced twice on the ground.

You can also play the ball against your own glass walls to send it over the net, as long as it goes straight over without hitting the opponents’ walls or fence first.

Any ball can be hit before it bounces, except the return of serve.

On courts with open exits, a ball that bounces and then leaves the court can be chased and returned from outside, provided it hasn’t touched the ground a second time.

• The ball bounces twice on your side before you return it.
• Your shot hits the opponents’ wall or fence before landing on their side of the court.
• You or your racket touch the net or posts, or reach into the opponents’ court, while the ball is in play.
• The ball touches you or your clothing — anything other than your racket.
• You hit the ball twice, or both partners hit the same ball.
• You volley the serve, or your shot hits the fence on your own side.

If a player is hindered by something outside their control, the point is replayed. A deliberate hindrance by one team gives the point to the other.

Points go 15, 30, 40, then game. At 40–40 the score is “deuce”. Win the next point for “advantage”, then win again to take the game. Lose the point after advantage and it’s back to deuce.

Some social and competitive formats use a “golden point” instead: at deuce, one deciding point wins the game.

The first team to six games with a two-game lead wins the set. At 5–5, play continues until one team leads by two — or, if a tiebreak is in use, until 6–6.

• At 6–6, a tiebreak decides the set 7–6. The first team to 7 points with a two-point lead wins it.
• The player due to serve takes the first point from the right. After that, each team serves two points in a row, alternating right and left. Teams change ends every six points.
• The team that received first in the tiebreak serves first in the next set.

Matches are the best of three sets, or the best of five in some events. In a five-set match, players can request a 10-minute break after the third set.