Tennis cheat sheet
Tennis
The ITF Rules of Tennis (as USTA Friend at Court), singles, abbreviated. When in doubt, see the official rules.
A serve is a fault if a foot touches the baseline, the court, or the imaginary extension of the centre mark before you strike the ball. Feet may land inside after contact.
Lets replay serves only. During a rally, a ball that clips the net and lands in stays live — play on.
You may follow through over the net after striking the ball, but you may not hit a ball before it has crossed to your side.
Things people get wrong:
- A rally ball that ticks the net and lands in is live — only a serve gets a let.
- The ball is in if it touches any part of the line.
- In a tiebreak, the first server serves one point, then serve alternates every two.
- A ball that curves around the net post and lands in is good, even below net height.
- Touching the net, a post, or your opponent’s court while the ball is live loses you the point.
- If a serve nicks the net and lands in the correct box, replay that serve only — a first serve stays a first serve.
Setup
The court & the serve
78 × 27 ft for singles. Stand behind the baseline between the centre mark and a sideline and serve diagonally into the far service box.
Tiebreak
Serving the tiebreak
First to 7, win by 2. Whoever is up serves point 1 from the right; after that it’s two serves each, and you change ends every 6 points.
01
Scoring & match format
- Points: 0 → 15 → 30 → 40 → game. At 40–40 (deuce) win two in a row — or play no-ad (first to 4 points, receiver picks the side) if the event uses it.
- Sets: first to 6 games, win by 2; at 6–6 a 7-point set tiebreak.
- Match: best of 3 sets (a 10-point match tiebreak may stand in for the third), or one pro set to 8 games.
- Toss: the winner picks serve, receive, or an end; the other player takes what’s left.
02
The serve
- Two serves: a first-serve fault (misses the box, hits a permanent fixture, or foot fault) gives you a second; miss again and it’s a double fault — you lose the point.
- Position: behind the baseline, between the centre mark and the singles sideline. Feet may not touch the baseline, the court, or the centre-mark extension until you strike the ball.
- Delivery: hit the ball before it bounces, over the net, into the diagonal service box.
- Service let: nicks the net and lands in the correct box — replay that serve. The receiver must be ready.
03
Serving order & ends
- Games: the server changes every game.
- Courts: within a game you alternate service courts — deuce (right) then ad (left) — after every point.
- Change ends: after the 1st, 3rd, 5th… game of each set (whenever the games played total an odd number).
- Tiebreak: see the diagram above — 1 serve, then 2 each; change ends every 6 points; the tiebreak’s first server receives first in the next set.
04
In play
- Lines: a ball touching any part of a line is in.
- One bounce: return the ball before its second bounce on your side.
- Net & court: don’t touch the net, posts, singles sticks, or your opponent’s court while the ball is live.
- The net: you can follow through over it, and a ball may pass around the post at any height — but you can’t hit a ball before it crosses to your side.
05
Hindrance & lets
- Deliberate hindrance: you lose the point.
- Unintentional hindrance: replay the point (a let) — same server, same score.
- Outside disturbance: a ball rolls onto the court, a distraction outside anyone’s control — a let.
06
The Code & breaks
- Line calls: call your side promptly and honestly; if you’re not sure, the ball is in — the benefit goes to your opponent.
- Foot faults: with no official, call your own when you’re certain.
- Pace: serve within 25 s of the end of the last point.
- Breaks: 90 s at a changeover (none after the first game of a set), 120 s between sets.
- Medical: one 3-minute treatment timeout per treatable condition.
- Conduct: code violations escalate warning → point → game → default. Coaching only where the regulations allow it.