Ten Basic rules of pickleball
1. **Court Size**: A pickleball court measures 20 feet in width and 44 feet in length, similar to a badminton court. The court is divided into two halves by a net, with the net height being 36 inches at the sides and 34 inches in the middle.
2. **Paddles and Ball**: Pickleball is played with solid paddles, which are usually made of wood or composite materials, and a hard plastic ball that has holes.
3. **Serving**: The serve must be made underhand from behind the baseline, and the ball must be hit in the air. The serving side gets only one serve attempt per inning, and the ball must land in the opposite diagonal service area.
4. **Scoring**: Points can only be scored by the serving side. The game can be played to 11, 15, or 21 points, with a win typically requiring at least a two-point lead.
5. **Doubles and Singles**: Pickleball can be played both as singles and doubles. In doubles, the two players alternate serving and receiving.
6. **Non-Volley Zone (Kitchen)**: The area 7 feet from the net is known as the non-volley zone, or "kitchen." Players are not allowed to volley the ball from within this area unless the ball bounces first.
7. **Ball Play**: After the ball is struck in the air, it must bounce once on the opposite side before it can be returned. This is called a "one-bounce rule."
8. **Boundaries**: The ball is out of play if it lands outside the court boundaries. Boundaries include the line, meaning if the ball touches the line, it is still in play.
9. **Faults**: Faults occur if the ball is hit in the non-volley zone, a player volleys from the non-volley zone, the ball is caught before bouncing, the ball strikes a player or their clothing, there is a serving error, or the ball lands out of bounds.
10. **Service Change**: Service switches to the opposing side when the serving team commits a fault. In doubles, both team members will serve in turn until a fault is made.
These are some of the fundamental rules of pickleball, which allow beginners to quickly learn and enjoy the game.
