To understand tennis, you must learn the terms and rules that define the sport. In addition to the official rules sanctioned by the International Tennis Federation, learn the unofficial rules. The United States Tennis Association details these regulations in "The Code." Examples include always shaking hands with an opponent at the end of a match, calling the score before serving in an unofficiated match and calling a ball that touches any part of a line as good.
Point
Tennis calls its points "love," or zero points; 15, or one point; 30, or two points; 40, or three points; and "game" for the fourth point.
Deuce
Deuce occurs when opponents tie each other at 40 points all. It takes two points from deuce to win a game.
Advantage
The player who scores the first point from deuce has what is called the advantage. If she scores again, she wins the game. If her opponent scores the next point, the score returns to deuce.
Game
To win a game, you must win four points. Games are scored in numerical order: one, two, three, etc., all the way up to six in a standard set, or seven in a tiebreaker.
Tiebreaker
If the score is six games all in a set, a tiebreaker decides the winner. Tiebreakers use numerical scoring--1, 2, 3, etc.--rather than love, 15, 30 and 40. Winning a tiebreaker requires winning at least seven points and having at least two more points than the opponent. The person who wins the tiebreaker also wins the set.
Set
A player wins a set by earning at least six games by two more games than her opponent. A player who wins two sets in a best-of-three match, or three sets in a best of five match, is the victor.
Changeover
Players change ends of the court after the first game of a set, and then after every odd game. They also change sides between sets when the number of games is odd. When the games are even, the change after the first game of the next set.
Service
Players serve diagonally over the net to their opponents. The first attempt is the first serve. If the player serves out of bounds, he gets a second serve.
Fault
Foot faults occur when a player steps on the center mark or baseline when lining up to serve. Service faults occur when a player serves out of bounds. If the player gets two faults, he loses the point.
Let
A let occurs if a player's serve is good but hits the net, in which case she gets to redo the serve without penalty. A let also occurs if something impedes play--a ball rolls onto court, a person in the audience calls a ball out, etc. When this happens, players replay the entire point.
Baselines and Sidelines
Baselines are the boundary lines at each end of a tennis court, parallel to the net. Players stand behind the baseline to serve. Sidelines bound the outer length of the court, perpendicular to the net. A ball that lands outside the baseline or sidelines is considered out of bounds. The player who hit the ball loses a point.
Service Boxes
The service lines 21 feet away from and parallel to the net, along with the center line that runs from service line to service line, bisecting the court around the net, form service boxes. The left service box is the "ad" box. The right service box is the "deuce" box. When serving, a player serves from the deuce side first, across the net into the opponent's deuce box. Servers then alternate sides for the rest of the game.
References
- USTA.com: The Code
- International Tennis Federation: Rules of Tennis 2010
- "Game/Set/Match: A Tennis Guide"; James E. Bryant, James S. Bryant; 2007
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