Padel is a racket sport played in doubles on a court about a third the size of a tennis court, surrounded by glass and mesh walls. It mixes tennis scoring with squash-style play off the walls, and it's quick to learn: most people are rallying in their first hour.
The court
A padel court is 20 metres long and 10 metres wide, split by a net. The back walls and part of the side walls are glass; the rest of the sides are mesh. Lines on the floor mark the service boxes. Courts are either indoor, covered (a roof but open sides) or outdoor.
The serve
- Serves are underarm. You bounce the ball behind the service line and hit it at or below waist height.
- Serve diagonally into the opponent's service box. The ball must bounce in the box before it can hit the walls.
- You get two attempts, as in tennis.
The walls
This is the bit that makes padel different. Once the ball has bounced on your side, you can play it after it hits a wall. You can also hit the ball against your own wall to send it over the net. What you can't do is let the ball hit a wall on the other side before it bounces on the floor: that's a fault.
Scoring
Padel uses tennis scoring: 15, 30, 40, game, with sets to six games. Many clubs play a "golden point" at deuce, where the next point wins the game.
What you need
A padel racket (solid, with holes, and no strings), padel balls, which are slightly lower pressure than tennis balls, and trainers with a grippy sole. Most venues hire rackets, so you only need shoes to start.
Ready to try it? Find padel courts near you.
Questions
Is padel the same as tennis?
No. It uses tennis scoring, but the court is smaller, it's always doubles in clubs, serves are underarm and you play off the walls.
Can you play padel with two people?
Yes, on a singles court, but most UK courts are doubles courts and almost all bookings are for four players.
Is padel easy to learn?
It's one of the easiest racket sports to pick up because the court is small, the serve is underarm and the walls keep rallies going.