Sports
29 May, 2025
You always hear terms like “Grand Slam,” “best-of-five sets,” “net cord,” “break of serve,” and “tiebreak game.” Why are tennis rules so hard to understand?
Don’t worry, this article will use the simplest way to help you fully understand tennis rules, how to keep score, and common terms－so you can become the one who understands tennis best when watching a match!
A tennis match is made up of many games, simply put, it starts with "points" (love, 15, 30, 40), accumulates into "games," then into "sets," and finally the player who wins the most sets wins the entire match.
You can remember it like this: points → games → sets → the player with the most sets wins!
For example: To win a men's French Open match, you need to win "three sets" (five-set, three-win format).
Usually, winning 6 games (and leading by 2 games) takes a set, and each game requires at least four points (and leading the opponent by two points).
Tennis scoring doesn’t use 1, 2, 3. Instead, the first point is called 15, the second point is 30, and the third point is 40 (PS: 40 is the maximum). The next point after 40 wins a “game”.
Zero points in tennis is called Love.
It is said that in medieval France, they used a clock face to calculate tennis scores, so 15, 30, and 45 represented positions on the clock.
But later, to make it sound better, they changed 45 to 40 — and that became what we use today!
Tennis scoring starts from 0. The first point is 15, the second is 30, and the third is 40. If you score again, you win a Games!
0 points is called “Love,” which is said to come from the French word “L’oeuf” (meaning egg, the shape of it is similar to the number 0).
If both players reach 40 points (40-40), it’s called Deuce. At this point, you need to win two consecutive points to take this GAMES!
After winning the first point, you enter Ad (Advantage). If you win another point, you take this Games ; but if the player with Ad loses a point, the score returns to Deuce.
When you win enough "points" (usually by at least two points more than your opponent), you win a GAMES.
You need to win 4 points (at least two more than your opponent) to take a GAMES; for example, at 40-15, if you score again, you win that GAMES!
Example:
| Score Situation | What Happens on the Next Point? |
|---|---|
| 40-0, 40-15, 40-30 | Win one more point to win the GAMES |
| 40-40 (Deuce) | First gain Advantage, then win one more point to win the GAMES (must win two points in a row) |
If you are the player leading 40–30, you only need to win one more point to win the game.
Only when the score is tied at 40–40 (Deuce), you need to win two points in a row (Advantage + Game).
When you win enough GAMES, you win a SET.
The player who first wins 6 games wins the SET.
But here’s an exception:
If the score reaches 6–5 (you have won 6 games and your opponent has won 5), you must win one more GAMES to extend the lead to 7–5 in order to win the SETS.
If both players reach 6–6 in GAMES, a Tiebreak is played!
In a tiebreak, the score is counted as 1, 2, 3, and so on.
The first player to reach 7 points (with at least a 2-point lead) wins the SET.
When both players score 40-40, they enter a special state called Deuce (even score), and the scoring doesn’t go up to numbers like 50, 55, or 60.
The score will enter the following cycle:
On-site staff will announce the score verbally: Deuce ↔ Advantage ↔ Deuce… until one player wins two points in a row.
In a tennis match, what happens if the ball goes out of bounds or hits the net (called a net cord) and lands in the opponent’s court—is that a win? I’ll answer your questions!
With just ₹100, you can place bets on the four Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open) through online casinos, as well as popular ATP and WTA matches!
Try match winner (pick the winner), set winner (guess who wins a set), or total games over/under (predict if games exceed, like 22.5).
The four tournaments－Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open — use the same basic scoring system, but slightly different:
In tennis, a player usually wins a SET by winning 6 GAMES with at least a 2-game lead, such as 6–4. But if the score reaches 6–6, the set goes into a tiebreak.
Unlike regular scoring (15, 30, 40), the tiebreak uses simple points: 1, 2, 3, and so on.
The first player to reach 7 points and lead by at least 2 wins the SET.
If the score in the tiebreak becomes 6–6, they keep playing until someone leads by 2 points, like 8–6 or 9–7.
The tiebreak was introduced to help matches finish faster.
In the past, without a tiebreak, players had to keep playing until someone led by 2 GAMES — like 10–8 — which could be exhausting!
Each Grand Slam has a different court surface, which greatly affects the pace of play.
The Australian Open and US Open use hard courts (medium speed).
The French Open is played on clay (slow speed, slippery surface).
Wimbledon uses grass (very fast speed, with low bounce).
Top players all aim for the achievement of a Career Grand Slam — winning all four of these tournaments across different years and surfaces.
As of 2025, there are 7 male players who have completed the Career Grand Slam:
As of 2025, there are 6 female players who have completed the Career Grand Slam:
A Calendar Grand Slam means winning all four Grand Slam titles in the same season.
At Wimbledon in 2010, John Isner vs. Nicolas Mahut lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes — the longest match in tennis history.
The fifth set alone took 8 hours and 11 minutes, with a final score of 70–68.
Correct — tennis matches have no time limit. They continue until a winner is decided.
The tiebreak was first introduced at the 1970 US Open, to avoid matches from going on forever.
This comes from British aristocratic tradition. White clothing doesn’t show sweat and is seen as “elegant and clean.”
Even today, Wimbledon strictly requires players to wear white.
On average, playing tennis burns 400–700 calories per hour, depending on the intensity and the player’s body weight.
Men: Michael Chang, who won the French Open in 1989 at the age of 17 years and 3 months.
Women: Martina Hingis, who won the Australian Open in 1997 at the age of 16 years and 3 months.
Yes! It’s called a vibration dampener, and it’s placed below the strings — usually a small rubber or silicone piece located near the bottom of the string bed (close to the handle).
It helps reduce hand vibration and discomfort.
Hawk-Eye is a computer tracking system used to replay and judge whether the ball is in or out. Players can challenge line calls.
It uses multiple high-speed cameras from different angles to track the ball’s path and uses computer analysis to accurately determine if the ball landed inside or outside the line.
Rafael Nadal is known as his heavy topspin and high-bounce shots that create pressure at the net－often resulting in lucky net cord winners.
This type of point is commonly seen with players who specialize on grass and clay courts.
© 2025 Vegas11 Official Blog
Home
Cricket
Play
Tips