You want to understand a match or learn the basics before playing.
Tennis Rules: Interactive Guide
Learn serves, volleys, doubles order and line calls with court diagrams. Practice a game, a set or a tiebreak, then try an eight-question quiz.
Start here
Choose a lesson on serving, scoring, tiebreaks or doubles.
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Progress, practice scores and quiz answers stay in your browser and reset on refresh. No name or account is needed. These inputs are not uploaded; normal site traffic analytics still apply.
Useful for
Learn serving and scoring before your first game
TENNIS · LEARN ONE POINT AT A TIME
Standing singles & doublesFollow the ball. Try the score.
Learn serves, points, games and sets, then try eight questions.
Start on your right and serve into the opposite service box. The serve does not bounce on your own side first.
Court viewSingles
ServerAReceiverB
A prepares on the right
A faces up the diagram, so A's right is at the bottom right. Start with both feet behind the baseline, between the imaginary extensions of the center mark and singles sideline. Wait for B to be ready.
About 1.4 seconds per step. Pause or use Previous / Next to inspect a moment.
Rule reference
ITF 2026, Rules 16–17, 20. Positions and paths illustrate the rule; unspecified positions are not mandatory tactics.
Open official rules Quick answer
See the serve, then practice the score
Follow court diagrams to learn legal serves, volleys and doubles turns. Try deuce, a set at 5–5 or a tiebreak at 6–6, with the next server and serving side shown beside the score.
Fixed beginner exercises using advantage games and seven-point tiebreaks, not a full match tracker or a simulation of every tournament format.
Badminton Rules: Compare court boundaries, practice doubles service turns and try 21-point or new 15-point scoring with diagrams and an eight-question quiz.
About this tool
Learn serves, volleys, doubles order and line calls with court diagrams. Practice a game, a set or a tiebreak, then try an eight-question quiz.
Progress, practice scores and quiz answers stay in your browser and reset on refresh. No name or account is needed. These inputs are not uploaded; normal site traffic analytics still apply.
Reminder
An introductory guide checked against ITF 2026 on 12 October 2026, not an umpire or full match tracker. Exercises use standing tennis, advantage games and a seven-point tiebreak at 6–6. Wheelchair tennis, short sets and special event procedures are not simulated. Follow your event's rules for official play.
How to use it
- Choose a lesson on serving, scoring, tiebreaks or doubles.
- Play a diagram or move through one step at a time.
- Award points to A or B, or load a deuce or 6–6 example.
- Compare landing spots in different contexts and answer the eight questions.
Common use cases
- Learn serving and scoring before your first game
- Understand deuce and tiebreaks while watching tennis
- Explain singles and doubles rules in a class or club
Which scoring format are you playing?
| Format | How it ends | In this tool |
|---|---|---|
| Advantage game | From deuce, win two consecutive points | Interactive game practice |
| Standard tiebreak set | Six games with a two-game lead, or a tiebreak at 6–6 | Interactive set practice |
| Seven-point tiebreak | At least seven points, with a two-point lead | Interactive tiebreak practice |
| No-Ad game | One deciding point at deuce | Explanation only |
| Ten-point match tiebreak | Replaces the deciding set; at least ten points, win by two | Explanation only |
| Deciding-set tiebreak at 6–6 | Begins after twelve games; its target depends on the event | Explanation only |
Two examples that prevent scoring mistakes
At 40–40, a point to A gives A advantage. A point to B then returns the score to deuce. A must win two points in a row from deuce to win the game.
At 5–5 in a standard tiebreak set, 6–5 is not enough to win. A further game makes it 7–5 and ends the set. If the score reaches 6–6 instead, play a seven-point tiebreak, win by two. A 7–6 score inside that tiebreak is not enough; 8–6 is. Its winner takes the set 7–6.
After the return, either player can volley
The receiver must let the serve bounce before returning it. Once that return has been played, either side may volley without waiting for a bounce, or choose to play after one bounce. In standing tennis, return the ball before its second bounce.
Unlike table tennis, doubles partners do not have to alternate rally shots. Unlike pickleball's two-bounce rule, the tennis server does not have to let the return bounce before playing it.
Scope and official references
Checked against the ITF 2026 Rules of Tennis on 12 October 2026. The wording and diagrams are original teaching material; player positions and ball paths are illustrative. A regulation court is 23.77 m long, 8.23 m wide for singles and 10.97 m wide for doubles.
Practice fixes A as the first server and does not simulate a complete match. No-Ad, ten-point match tiebreaks and wheelchair exceptions are outside the interactive scoring modes. Confirm the competition's announced format.
FAQ
How do 15, 30, 40 and deuce work?
Zero, one, two and three points are called love, 15, 30 and 40. In an advantage game you need at least four points and a two-point lead. At 40–40, called deuce, one point gives advantage. Win the next to take the game; lose it and return to deuce.
What is the difference between a point, game and set?
A rally awards a point; points win games and games win sets. In the format here, win at least six games with a two-game lead, or play a tiebreak at 6–6. A tiebreak winner takes the set 7–6. Matches may be best of three or five sets, as specified by the event.
When does the server change?
One player serves a whole standard game, then the opponent serves. The server alternates right and left after each completed point; faults and service lets do not switch sides. In a tiebreak the first player serves one point, then each player serves two.
Does reaching seven win a tiebreak?
Only with a two-point lead. A seven-point tiebreak ends at 7–5, but continues at 7–6 and can reach 8–6, 10–8 or higher. Ten-point formats also need a two-point lead; a match tiebreak replacing a set differs from a tiebreak played at 6–6 in that set.
Does a let on a second serve restore the first serve?
No. Under the standard rule used here, an otherwise good serve touching the net is replayed, but an earlier fault remains. A second-serve let is still a second serve. A serve touching the net and missing the correct box is a fault, not a let.
Can the server volley the return of serve?
Yes. The receiver must let the serve bounce, but once that return is made, either side may volley or let the ball bounce once. The server does not have to wait for another bounce. In standing tennis, failing to return the ball before its second consecutive bounce loses the point.
Do doubles partners alternate hits?
No. The designated receiver returns the serve; after that either partner may hit. Both partners may not touch the ball in making one return. Serving order and the receiving sides still stay fixed within a set.
Are lines and doubles alleys in?
Touching a line counts as landing in the court bounded by it. Use the correct area: serves must land in the diagonal service box, singles rallies use the inner sidelines and doubles rallies use the outer sidelines. Doubles alleys are not part of a service box.
When do players change ends?
After games 1, 3, 5 and other odd games in each set. Also at a set's end unless its total game count is even, in which case wait until the next set's first game ends. Standard tiebreaks change ends every six points in total and at the end; other procedures depend on the event.