20 21 bhgrecollection.com | | THE DISTINCTIVE LIFE® Volume 13 WHAT IS PADEL TENNIS? Padel tennis is a racket sport combining fast action and fun. People from all age groups join in playing this game that's more about strategy than strength or power. To play padel, you need a pair of partners and an enclosed court (a padel court is a third of the size of a full-sized tennis court). Families, casual sports enthusiasts, and hard-core athletes love padel because it’s a challenging and social game that accommodates a variety of skill levels. HOW DO YOU PLAY PADEL TENNIS? Padel is easy to play once you familiarize yourself with the court, equipment, and rules. It’s similar to tennis, but there are key differences you need to know. THE COURT Padel takes place on a 33x66-foot court surrounded by glass or mesh. A net runs down the middle of the court, as in tennis. But, the lines marking the playing areas are different for padel. The various padel tennis court surfaces you’ll find alter the playing experience. Artificial grass has become popular due to its durability and low maintenance, but coated concrete provides a better ball grip and faster pace. L I FE & LEISURE THE RULES You play padel in doubles with the same scoring system as in tennis. Start each point with an underhand serve (the server bounces the ball first, then hits it below waist level). Servers have two serve attempts. As in tennis, the ball can only bounce once on your side, and you can only hit it once. Once you have put the ball into play, all balls that cross the net have to first bounce on the ground of the opponent’s side before hitting a wall. You can return a ball by first hitting it on the wall on your side of the court. SCORING Padel tennis is typically played with a ‘best of three or five sets’ scoring model, each set comprising six games. Points are 15, 30, 40, and game. You must win a game by two points. To win a set, a team has to win at least six games with two games difference. A tiebreak plays until one side has seven points or more and you must win by two points.
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