When you play different sports, you’ll hear all kinds of special words and phrases that help explain how the game works. Like in rugby, they talk about things like scrum and penalty corner. In baseball, they talk about home runs, and in soccer, they talk about free kicks.
But when it comes to keeping score, it’s usually pretty simple. You just add up the points or goals in order.
But tennis is a bit different. It has a scoring system that can seem strange and confusing at first. Even people watching tennis matches in person can sometimes get puzzled by it. So, how does it work?
In this post, we’ll learn all about how tennis scoring works, where it came from, and why it’s unique. If you’re interested in trying your hand at tennis betting, you can check out the 1xbet tennis betting site in India for exciting opportunities.
What is the Tennis Scoring System?
In tennis, players earn points, games, and sets to win a match.
To win a game, you need to get at least four points. To win a set, you need to win at least six games. And to win the match, you usually need to win two or three sets, depending on the tournament rules.
Before Play Commences
At the beginning of a match, the players flip a coin. The winner of the toss gets to decide if they want to serve first or let their opponent serve first. They can also choose which side of the court they want to start on. If they pick the side, the decision of serving or receiving is left to the player who lost the coin toss. The winner can also opt to let their opponent make the choice. However, the player who lost the toss cannot defer the decision again. After this, the players have a brief warm-up before the umpire signals the start of the competitive match.
Tennis scoring terms and what they mean
In tennis, scoring is a bit different from other sports. Instead of just counting points or runs, the first three points are called 15, 30, and 40.
Now, why is it like that? Well, there are a few different ideas about where this scoring system came from:
Some people say that back in the old days, they used to keep score using clock faces. They would move the hands to 15, 30, and 45 minutes to track the score. Then, they changed it to 40 to make room for something called “advantage.” But this theory might just be a story because clocks didn’t have minute hands until much later.
Another idea is that the scoring comes from a French game called “jeu de paume.” In that game, players would move up 15 feet for each point they scored, up to 45 feet. The court was 90 feet long. Eventually, jeu de paume evolved into tennis.
So, there isn’t one clear answer, but these are some of the reasons people think tennis scoring is the way it is!
Tennis score after a deuce
When both players reach 40 points in tennis, it’s not called 40-all; instead, it’s called deuce. At deuce, a player needs to win two points in a row to win the game. The first point won after deuce is called “advantage.” If the player with advantage wins the next point, they win the game. But if they lose the point, the score goes back to deuce.
When the server has the advantage, it’s called “advantage in,” and when the receiver has the advantage, it’s called “advantage out.”
What is a walkover in tennis?
In tennis, a walkover happens when a player moves to the next round of a tournament without playing because their opponent withdraws. This can occur if the opponent is injured, sick, or disqualified from the event. Technically, the term “walkover” should only be used if a player decides before the match not to play, but sometimes it’s also used if a player quits during the match. When a player quits during a match, it’s usually called a “retirement.