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An unreturnable ball is when your opponent can't hit back across the net. Then the point is yours.
To win the match, a player or team either needs to win two sets (in a best-of-three match) or three sets (in a best-of-five match).
Whether you're following along at home or playing a match yourself, there are some important serving and receiving rules and terms to know.
The first player to win seven points, by two, wins the tie-break game and the set. However, there are different point totals for different tournaments.
Before putting the ball into play from the service box, the serving player typically announces the score, with their points listed first.
A player must win at least six games to win a set, but they must be ahead by two games.
The term "all" refers to a tied score. For example, if both players have scored one point each, it's announced as "15-all."
If the serving player makes two mistakes in the same point, it's called a double fault, and they lose the point and the point is awarded to their opponent.
Deuces matter because, if you want to win a game, you need to score twice in a row.
If the ball hits the net during an exchange of shots, the player that hit the shot into the net loses the point.
You're going to need to score points if you want to win games, and there are a number of ways to get this done.
"Out of bounds" refers to the area outside the lines that mark the official playing court and court boundaries. If the ball lands out of bounds, the serving player loses the point.
A hold is the name for a game that the serving player wins.
Sources: (Self) (Sporting News) (PopSugar)
See also: 60 illustrious members of the International Tennis Hall of Fame
The first tie-breaking point is the "advantage" and the next one wins the game. If the serving player wins the deuce point, it's called "advantage in," whereas if the receiver gains the next point it's "advantage out."
There are no limits to how many deuces can occur in a game. Some of the longest matches in history have featured games with more than 35 deuces.
Rather than using traditional tennis scoring, a tie-break game is scored one, two, three, and so forth.
For example, the point is yours if you serve and the returner can't get it back into court, not even getting a racket on the ball. This is known as an ace.
So if a game is played to a 6-5 score in the set, then the leading player must win a seventh game to win the set.
Typically, when the score is tied, the referee will make the call with "all." For instance, games start at "love-all." However, when both players are tied at 40-40, that's called a deuce.
However, the score is announced with the server's score mentioned first. So, 30-15, for example, means the server has scored two points and their opponent has earned one, while 15-30 indicates the reverse.
Rules are a little different for a tie-break set. If a set should make it to 6-6, a tie-break game is played to determine a winner of the set, resulting in a 7-6 set score.
A game is won when a player scores four, or more, points: 15, 30, 40, and the game-winning point.
Tennis scoring is pretty easy to digest once you learn a few basic terms: Love = zero points, 15 = first point, 30 = second point, 40 = third point, and Game = fourth point.
A game is played until a player scores four points, which a player can earn in several different ways.
Chances are you've heard the phrase "game, set, match" before. This is because those are the three phases of a tennis match.
A set is a collection of games, played until a player wins six games, or more.
A match is played to the best of three or five sets. Usually, championship matches are played to five sets.
This occurs when the receiving player has the opportunity to score a winning point in a service game. The receiving player is required to score at least three points for a breakpoint to happen.
This is a game in which you are the serving player.
Tennis has become one of the most-seen and talked-about sports in recent times, but with terms like "deuce," "ace," and "double fault" floating around, you might be a bit intimidated by how the game actually works. Don't worry, though: while tennis scoring is unorthodox, it's actually quite simple when you break it down piece by piece and point by point.
To help you follow along, click on and learn all about how tennis scoring actually works.
How does tennis scoring actually work?
Love? Deuce? Advantage? This is what it all means
LIFESTYLE Sports
Tennis has become one of the most-seen and talked-about sports in recent times, but with terms like "deuce," "ace," and "double fault" floating around, you might be a bit intimidated by how the game actually works. Don't worry, though: while tennis scoring is unorthodox, it's actually quite simple when you break it down piece by piece and point by point.
To help you follow along, click on and learn all about how tennis scoring actually works.