Introduction to Tennis

In this video you will learn the general rules for tennis.

A singles tennis match is played one-on-one between two men, or two women on a rectangular tennis court

The length of the court is 78 feet

The width, which excludes the alleys, or the tramlines, is 27 feet

The length of the court for a doubles match remains the same but the width is increased to 36 feet, to include the alleys

A game is begun by one player serving the ball to the other from behind the baseline into the diagonally-opposite opponent's service box

Players rally the ball back and forth to one another in an attempt to beat their opponent and score a point

A point is won when any one of the following scenarios occurs: The ball is hit outside of the court's boundaries

Note that if the ball bounces on the line itself, it will count as a legal shot

If the ball bounces more than once, the opponent wins the point

Players can return the ball to their opponent either with a volley, where the ball does not bounce, or after a maximum of one bounce

If the ball fails to go over the net, the opponent wins the point

If the ball hits the net but still falls into the opponents court in open play, it is deemed a legal point

Although players will often apologise for points won in this way which disrupt the flow of the game and are often unintentional

Check out our video on the scoring system to learn more on this

The ball's in your court

Enjoy your game!