Demystifying the Scoring System in Tennis: A Beginner’s Guide

The scoring system in tennis can be complex to understand. This article breaks down the different points, games, sets, and matches in tennis, so you can have a better understanding of how it all works.

The Basics

Overview

Tennis is a sport played on a rectangular-shaped court with different surfaces. It can be played as a singles match with two players or a doubles match with four players. Players stand on opposite sides of the net and use a stringed racquet to hit the ball back and forth.

Gameplay

Each player or team has a maximum of one bounce (two bounces in wheelchair tennis) to return the ball over the net and within the court boundaries. If a player fails to return the ball correctly, the opponent wins a point. The objective in tennis is to win enough points to win a game, enough games to win a set, and enough sets to win a match.

Starting the Match

Before warming up, the players or teams spin their racquets, and the winner of the spin gets to choose from three options: serving or receiving, choosing the side of the court, or deferring the choice to the opponent (the opponent cannot defer back). Once the winner chooses, the opponent gets the remaining choice.

Scoring a Game

Point System

Tennis has a unique point system. Here’s a guide to scoring a game:

• 0 points = Love
• 1 point = 15
• 2 points = 30
• 3 points = 40
• Tied score = All
• 40-40 = Deuce
• Server wins deuce point = Ad-In
• Receiver wins deuce point = Ad-Out

Who Wins?

To win a game, a player must win at least four points. If a player is up 40-30, 40-15, or 40-love and wins one more point, they win the game. If the score is tied in a game or set, it is announced as “all.” For example, if both players have won two points in a game, the score is 30-all.

What is a Deuce?

When both players or teams have won three points each and the score is 40-40, it’s called deuce. To win the game from deuce, a player or team needs to win at least two consecutive points. Winning the deuce point is called Ad-In for the server and Ad-Out for the receiver. If the team with the advantage wins another point, they win the game. Otherwise, it goes back to deuce.

Switching Ends

Players or teams switch ends of the court on odd-numbered games. After the first game, they switch sides, as well as every two games thereafter. Types of Tennis Sets

Let’s look at the two main ways of scoring a set.

Advantage Set

In an advantage set, a player or team needs to win six games by a margin of two to win the set. There is no tiebreak game played at 6-6. The set continues until one player or team wins by two games.

Tiebreak Set

In a tiebreak set, a player or team needs to win six games to win the set. If the score reaches 5-5 (5-all), one player must win the next two games to win the set. If the score becomes 6-6 (6-all), a tiebreak game is played.

Scoring a Tiebreak Game

In a tiebreak game, the next person due to serve starts the tiebreak game and serves one point to the deuce side of the court. The following two points are served by the opponent, starting on the ad side. In doubles, the player on the opposing team due to serve will serve these points.

Players or teams switch ends of the court every six points (e.g., when the score is 4-2). The score is counted as “zero,” “one,” “two,” “three,” and so on. The first player or team to reach seven points, with a margin of two, wins the tiebreak. The score can range from high numbers like 15-13 to as low as 7-0 through 7-5. The winner of the tiebreak game wins the set with a score of 7-6.

Serving After a Tiebreak Set

Since the set ends with an odd-numbered score (7-6), the players or teams switch sides of the court, and the player who started serving the tiebreak game receives serve in the first game of the next set.

Scoring System in Tennis

The most common format for a tennis match is best-of-three tiebreak sets. If the first two sets aren’t won by either player or team, the third set becomes the deciding set.

In March of 2022, the four Grand Slam tournaments (Roland Garros, Wimbledon, US Open, Australian Open) announced a consistent format for the final set. When a match reaches 6-6 in the deciding set at these events, a 10-point tiebreak is played. The first player or team to reach 10 points with a lead of two or more points is declared the winner. This format has been in use at the Australian Open since 2019 and will be implemented at the other three majors starting from the 2022 French Open.

Mastering the scoring system in tennis is essential for beginners and enthusiasts alike. By understanding the rules and structure of scoring, including sets, games, and tiebreakers, you can confidently participate in and enjoy the sport.