Competition Rules

Basic Rules

Pickleball is played either as doubles (two players per team) or singles. Doubles is the more common format.
The same court size and rules apply to both singles and doubles.

Serve

When serving, the server’s arm must follow an upward arc motion.
The paddle must make contact with the ball below the waist level.
A "drop serve" is also allowed; in this case, the above elements do not apply.
At the time of serving, the server's feet must not touch the court, the sideline, or the centerline, and at least one foot must be behind the baseline.
The serve must be diagonal, landing within the crosscourt service area.
Each server is allowed only one serve attempt.

Serving Sequence

In doubles, both players of a team serve and can score points until they commit a fault (except at the beginning of a game).
After a side out, the first serve starts from the right (even) side of the court.
If the team scores, the server switches sides and serves from the left (odd) side.
When the first server loses the serve, the second server serves from the correct side of the court (except at the beginning of the game).
The second server continues to serve until the team commits a fault and the serve is lost.
After a side out, the first serve of the new serving team begins from the right (even) court, and both players will have an opportunity to serve until two faults are committed.
In singles, the server serves from the right/even court when their score is even, and from the left/odd court when their score is odd.

※ At the beginning of each game, only one player on the first serving team serves until a fault occurs, after which the serve passes to the receiving team.

Two-Bounce Rule

The receiving team must let the serve bounce before returning it. The serving team must also let the return bounce before hitting it. This is called the "two-bounce rule."
After the ball has bounced once on each side, both teams may either volley (hit without bounce) or hit off the bounce (groundstroke).
This rule eliminates the serve-and-volley advantage and promotes longer rallies.

Line Calls

Except for the non-volley zone line on the serve, any ball that touches a line is considered "in."
A serve that touches the non-volley zone line is considered short and is a fault.

Non-Volley Zone

The non-volley zone refers to the 7-foot area on both sides of the net.
Volleying is prohibited within this zone, meaning players cannot smash from inside this area.
If a player volleys while touching the non-volley zone, including the line, or if any item worn or held (e.g., hat or sunglasses) falls into the zone due to momentum, it is a fault.
If a player’s momentum carries them into the non-volley zone after a volley—even if the ball is already dead—it is still considered a fault.
Players may legally enter the non-volley zone after the ball has bounced.
The non-volley zone is also commonly referred to as the “kitchen.”

Faults

A fault by the receiving team results in a point for the serving team.
If the serving team commits a fault, it results in either a server change or a side out.

Determining Serve and Side

The choice of side or serve/receive can be determined through a fair method such as a coin toss.

Scoring and Winning

A game is usually played to 11 points (or sometimes 15 or 21), and must be won by a margin of 2 points.
The first team to win 2 out of 3 games wins the match.
Points can only be scored by the serving team.
Balls landing on a court line are considered in.
The server continues serving until their team commits a fault.

How to Call the Score

Players must call out three numbers in this order:

Their own score
Their opponent’s score
Whether they are the first or second server on the team

At the beginning of a game, only one player from the serving team serves. Therefore, the third number is "2" (treated as the second server).
For example, the starting call would be: “0 – 0 – 2” (zero-zero-two).
The third number can only be 1 (first server) or 2 (second server).