Some interesting Padel rules and regulations

Most of us Padel addicts know 95% of the rules and regulations in Padel, but when we did some research into this, we found some really interesting points to share with you. 

Continue reading to find out more.

Padel Ball       

• The use of yellow Padel balls is mandatory.
• According to the FIP Padel rules, the diameter of the ball must be between 6.35cm and 6.77cm and its weight between 56.0 and 59.4 grams.
• The ball must guarantee a bounce height of 135cm to 145cm when falling from a height of 2.54m.
• When play is at an altitude of more than 500m above sea level, another type of ball may be used. These should be identical in shape and size, but the bounce from a height at of 2.54m at sea level, should be more than 122cm and less than 135cm.

Padel Racket

• Padel rackets must not be bigger than 45.5cm long, 26cm wide and 38mm thick.
• The surface of the racket cannot exceed 26cm wide and 30cm long. It can be rough or smooth, but it must be perforated with an unlimited number of holes.
• A wrist strap of approximately 35cm long is attached to the handle of the racket and must be worn around the wrist of all players. This is mandatory to prevent accidents.
• The handle can have a maximum length of 20cm and a maximum thickness of 50mm.

Padel Court

• The court must measure 20m long by 10m wide, with a wall height of 3m and a maximum cage height of 4m, with a 0,5% tolerance.
• The court is divided in half by a net hanging from a cable around two side posts. The net will be 10m long and must be 88cm high in the middle and 92cm high at the side posts.
• The side posts must be separated from each other by a minimum of 9.25m.
• The service lines are drawn parallel to the net and at a distance of 6.95m. The centre service line is located in the area between the service lines and the net. It is a perpendicular line that divides the area in two. Each line should be 5cm thick, preferably white in colour.
• For out-of-court play, each side of the court must have 2 access/exit points. There mustn’t be any obstacles outside the court within an area of no less than 2m wide and 4m long on either side.
• There must be a minimum of 4 lights on each court, 1 in each quadrant. The lights must be at a minimum height of 6m.

Padel Time

• A walk over (win for one team) is awarded to a team if one or both of the other players are not on the court 10 minutes after the due start time.
• A warm up is 5 min long at the beginning of every match.
• A maximum of 20 seconds is allowed between points. Ie from the finish of the last point, to the start of the next point serve.
• A maximum of 90 seconds is allowed for the change of sides.
• A maximum of 120 seconds is allowed at the end of each set, before the start of a new set.
• Each players is granted a 3 min medical time out and it cannot be ceded from one player to the other. They may only receive medical attention once in a match.

Padel Serve

• The player will place both feet behind the service line. The ball must be bounced behind the line, not on or in front of.
• The ball cannot be hit above waist height.
• A player cannot jump when serving.
• The ball must then land in the opponents service box diagonally opposite.
• It cannot hit the fence/cage. If it does, it is out.
• It cannot hit the side glass/wall without a bounce first.
• You get two serves per point.
• If the balls brushes/hits the net and still lands in, the player still has two more serves. This is called a “let”.

Scoring

• Same as in Tennis, 15-30-40-game, with a Deuce and Advantage at 40-40 (Deuce). On the WPT (World Padel Tour) they play a golden point at Deuce, meaning whoever wins the next point, wins the game.
• 6 games is a set and best of 3 sets is a match.
• In the tie break (6 games all) the points are called one by one. The team that reaches seven points first, wins the set. There must a 2 point winning margin in a tie break.

Other points to note

• The first serve at the beginning of a match is decided by the flip of a coin.
• The side losing the coin toss, can choose which side they would like to start on.
• Players must change sides after the 1st, 3rd and every subsequent odd game in the set.
• In the “tie break” the players will change ends (sides) after every 6 points.

To read the full FIP Padel rules, click on this link, https://www.padelfip.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/2-game-regulations.pdf