Pickleball is quick to learn, but a few rules make the game genuinely different from tennis or padel. The two-bounce rule and the kitchen are the two that trip up new players most often. Below are all the rules in one place.
The court and the equipment
A pickleball court is 13.41 by 6.10 metres, the same size as a badminton court for doubles. The net sits at 0.86 metres in the middle. You play with a solid paddle and a light plastic ball with holes in it. The same court is used for both singles and doubles.
The serve
The serve is underhand and diagonal, from behind the baseline into the opposite service box. In the classic serve you strike the ball out of the air below hip height. The drop serve, where you let the ball bounce first, is also allowed. The serve has to land beyond the kitchen, otherwise it is a fault.
The two-bounce rule
This is the most important rule for new players. After the serve the ball has to bounce once on the receiving side, and then once again on the serving side, before either team is allowed to hit it out of the air (a volley). Only after those two bounces can you start volleying. It stops the serving team from rushing straight to the net.
