Tennis can be played in two ways: singles or doubles. The rules for each type of tennis match are identical, except for the court lines. In doubles, the court is wider, as the alleys--the outside boxes of the court--are considered in bounds. Regardless of which type of tennis you play, picking up the rules is simple and crucial if you want to succeed on the court.
Serving
Players remain on opposite sides of the court when they play. To serve, the server must hit the ball to the service box on the opposite side of the court, which is the box closest to the net. Every serve, the server switches which side he serves from and which box he hits the ball to. The server must stand on the base line when he serves, while the receiver may stand anywhere on his side of the court. The receiver may not hit the ball before the serve bounces.
There are numerous ways in which a fault can occur in a tennis match. If the ball fails to land in the correct service box, the serve is considered illegal, a fault is awarded, and the server must serve again. The same thing occurs if the ball hits the net and fails to go over to the other side. If a server hits two faults in a row, it is called a double fault and the receiver is awarded the point.
Game Preparation
A coin toss determines who serves first and on which side players begin the game. This coin toss occurs before the game and is performed by the official. Rules state that players switch sides every few games, according to Buzzle, in order to be sure there is no advantage due to intangibles.
Scoring
Scoring is done by increments: 15-30-40. It takes four points to win a game in tennis. When a scorer has 0, their score is "love." For example, if the server has no points but the receiver has two, the score is "love-30." If the server has three points and the receiver has one, the score is 40-15. The first player who wins six games wins the set, and the first person to win two or three sets--depending on what rules you play by--wins the match.
If the score is 40-40 in a match, they go to "deuce," which is like overtime. The first player to win a point in deuce gets an "advantage." To win a deuce, you must win by two points. Therefore, if the player who has an advantage wins the next point, the game ends. If the player who does not have an advantage wins the point, it returns to deuce.
Out of Bounds
A ball is out of bounds if it lands outside the outermost white lines. A ball that bounces on the line is legal and still in play.
Penalties
Numerous penalties can occur during the game. This includes hitting the posts that hold the net, touching the other side of the court, touching the net, holding the ball in your racket, catching the ball on your racket or with your hands, hitting the ball twice in succession before it goes over the net, touching the ball--even accidentally--with any part of the body, throwing the racket, or participating in physical and verbal abuse.
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