Pickleball is a paddle sport played as singles or doubles on a badminton-sized court, using a net, a perforated plastic ball, and paddles. The rules promote fair play, ensure fast rallies, and emphasize both strategy and skill. Here are the essential rules for playing pickleball:

Basic Rules of Play

• Court & Teams: Games can be played as singles (1 vs. 1) or doubles (2 vs. 2), with doubles being more common. Both singles and doubles use the same size court and rules
• The Court: Includes a 7-foot non-volley zone known as “the kitchen” adjacent to each side of the net.

Serve

• The serve starts every rally and must be hit underhand, with paddle contact below the server’s waist, and with an upward arc motion.
• The paddle head must not be above the highest part of the wrist upon contact.
• The serve is made diagonally crosscourt and must land within the opposite diagonal service box, beyond the non-volley zone (“the kitchen”).
• Only one serve attempt is allowed per server (except in cases of let serves, depending on local rules).
• At least one foot must remain behind the baseline until the ball is struck.

Two-Bounce Rule

• After the serve, the receiver must let the ball bounce before returning, and then the server’s team must let it bounce before playing their shot. After these two bounces, the ball may be volleyed (hit out of the air) or played off the bounce.

Non-Volley Zone (“The Kitchen”)

• The 7-foot zone nearest the net is the non-volley zone (“the kitchen”). Players cannot volley (hit the ball out of the air) while standing in this area or touching the kitchen line. The ball can be played from within the kitchen only after it has bounced.

Scoring

• Only the serving team can score points
• Games are commonly played to 11 points, but a team must win by at least two points (i.e., 11-9 is not enough; the winner must reach 13-11 or similar if necessary).
• Servers switch sides with their partner after winning a point (right to left, left to right).
• Doubles Scoring Announcement: The score is called out as three numbers: serving team’s score, receiving team’s score, and server number (1 or 2, indicating which partner is serving).

Faults

A “fault” ends a rally. Key faults include:

• Failing to serve into the correct area.
• Volleying from the kitchen or while touching the kitchen line.
• Hitting the ball out of bounds.
• Ball bouncing twice before being returned.

Service Sequence (Doubles)

• Both players on the serving team have a chance to serve until their team commits two faults (with an exception for the first service turn of the game, which allows only one partner to serve).
• After both partners lose their serves, it’s a “side out,” and the opposing team gets to serve.

Other Key Points

• Before serving, the correct score must be called aloud.
• Serving starts from the right side of the court, and the server switches sides after each point scored.
• A “let” serve (ball touches the net but lands in the correct court) may be replayed, depending on local or tournament rules.

These core rules keep pickleball fast-paced and accessible, regardless of skill level. For exact regulations and most recent updates, always refer to the official rulebook from USA Pickleball or the relevant national association.