In tennis, tiebreaks are played to bring a set to a close when neither player or team can gain a two-game advantage after reaching six games. The rules for when tiebreakers are played vary by the level of tennis. High school tennis matches play tiebreaks differently from college matches. When a tiebreaker is played can even vary at the professional level depending on the tournament.
When a Tiebreaker Is Played
In professional tennis matches, a player wins a set when he reaches a score of six games and has a two-game advantage over the other player. If both players reach a score of six games with neither player gaining a two-game advantage, a tiebreak is played to end the set. A notable exception to this rule occurs at the major tournaments--Wimbledon and the French, Australian, and United States Opens. At these tournaments, the final set of a match--the fifth for males and third for females--is an advantage set, not a tiebreak set. This means that regardless of the game score, players continue to play games until a two-game margin is achieved. The other sets in the matches can end with tie-breaks. High school and low-level college matches sometimes consist of a single pro-set. Pro sets can end with a tiebreak with the coaches deciding when the tiebreak is played--usually it will be when the players reach a six-to-six or eight-to-eight tie.
How a Tiebreak Is Played
A tiebreak begins with the player who received during the last game serving the first point from her deuce court. The other player then serves the second point from the her ad court. The serve changes players every two points after the first point. After six points are played, the players change sides. The first player to reach a score of seven points wins the tie-break, as long as she is ahead by a two-point margin. If the neither player achieves a two-point margin at a score of seven, play will continue without end until a two-point margin is achieved. All the while, the players will continue to switch sides every six points. The United States Tennis Association sometimes uses a variation called a Coman tiebreak. This type of tiebreak is scored same way, but the players switch sides after the first point and every four points thereafter. Sometimes, tiebreaks are played to a score of five, eight or 10 instead of seven, depending on tournament rules or the discretion of coaches or umpires.
Example of A Tiebreak
If player A and player B reach a score of six games to six in a tiebreak set, a tiebreak will begin. If player A served the 12th game of the set, player B will serve the first point of the tiebreak from his deuce court. After the first point is played, player A will serve the second point from his ad court and the third from his deuce court. Then player A serves the fourth from his ad court and fifth from his deuce court. After player B serves the sixth point from his ad court, the players will switch sides. Player B will serve the seventh point from his deuce court before giving the serve back to player A. If the score becomes six points to six, the players will switch sides with player A serving the 13th point. If player A wins that point, the score will be seven to six, but the tiebreak will not end because no two-point margin has been achieved. If player A wins the next point and achieves an eight to six lead, the tie-break will end with player A the winner.
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