Padel is played two against two, so where you stand always depends on where your partner is. British No.1 Christian Medina Murphy told the LTA that players should learn positioning "at the net, in defence and on the transitions".
Below are the six positions you'll find yourself in, drawn from above. Each one comes with a single cue: the thing to watch for that tells you where to go next. The positions come from the LTA, the FIP rules and two coaching sites. The cue lines are shorthand written for this page, short enough to remember mid-rally.
How to read the diagrams: your side is the bottom half. Y is you, P is your partner, o is an opponent, ^ shows which way to move and * is the ball.
The rule that frames all of this
The rulebook only pins down one person. The server must start with one foot behind the service line (FIP Rule 6). Everyone else, the receiver, their partner and the server's partner, can stand anywhere on their own side (Rule 3.2). The one other limit is that the receiver has to let the serve bounce before hitting it (Rule 8.1). The rest is tactics, not law. For the full rulebook in plain English, see padel rules.
1. Serving
+---------------------+
| o o |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| | |
|==========+==========|
| P | |
| | ^ |
|----------+----------|
| | Y |
+---------------------+
You serve from behind the service line, and the first point of each game is served from the right. The LTA says the server stands at the back of the service box. The Padel School suggests starting from the middle of the box, not out by the wall, because in the normal formation the server covers the centre.
Your partner is already up at the net on the other side. Padel Browser says the server's partner is usually the more aggressive net presence, which is why it tells returners to aim cross-court, away from them.
The Padel School says most pros serve from the Australian formation instead: server and partner both start on the same side, the server starts next to the centre line and moves across the box after serving, and the partner takes the middle. It says club pairs don't have to use it, and it suits a pair where one player is clearly stronger on one side.
Cue: serve, then go. The moment the ball leaves your racket, run forward, angling slightly towards the middle line. The LTA's target is a spot level with the second post on the side fence, about a racket's length from the centre line. That puts you in diagram 3.
2. Receiving
+---------------------+
| o |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| | o |
|==========+==========|
| | |
| | |
|----------+----------|
| P Y |
+---------------------+
You receive diagonally across from the server. Stand back. The Padel School points out you're allowed to start inside the service line, but a good serve becomes very hard to defend from there. Padel Browser suggests stepping in half a step against a soft server and staying deep against a heavy topspin one.
Where your partner goes is where coaches disagree. The Padel School recommends standing back in line with the returner. Padel Browser puts the partner at the net or just inside the service line, depending on level. Level with the returner is the safer default while you're learning.
Cue: did your return push the net player back? If you lobbed over them and they've turned to chase it, you both move in (diagram 6). If they're still at the net with the racket up, you both stay back (diagram 4).
3. Both up
+---------------------+
| o o |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| | |
|==========+==========|
| Y | |
| | P |
|----------+----------|
| |
+---------------------+
This is where you want to be. The LTA calls the net the attacking position, where volleys and smashes put the other pair under pressure.
How close? Padel Browser says about 2 to 2.5 metres from the net, and lists standing within touching distance of the net as a common mistake, because one decent lob turns the point into a scramble. It also says the pair shouldn't stand in a flat line. Whoever is on the side of the ball sits a little tighter; the other drops about half a step back to cover the middle and read the lob.
The LTA calls the bandeja "the antidote to the lob", the overhead that lets you keep your place at the net. Its advice is to use the momentum of the shot to get back towards the net, level with your partner.
Cue: if the lob goes over your head, you both go back. If you can't hit it in front of you, don't try. Turn, run back together and reset in diagram 4.
4. Both back
+---------------------+
| |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| o | o |
|==========+==========|
| | |
| | |
|----------+----------|
| Y P |
+---------------------+
The LTA calls the back of the court a defensive position. You're there because the other pair has the net. Padel Browser places you a step behind the service line, about 1 to 1.5 metres off the back glass, so the ball has room to come off the wall. The Padel School says to avoid getting stuck halfway between net and back.
Your job here is patience: play off the glass and wait for the right ball to lob. The LTA's lob guide says a good one lands past the service line and short of the back glass. For where to stand as the ball comes off the wall, see padel back glass defence; for where to aim, see how to lob in padel.
Cue: you lob, it lands deep, and their backs turn. That's your moment. Both of you start moving forward together into diagram 6.
5. The split (one up, one back)
+---------------------+
| o o |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| | |
|==========+==========|
| Y | |
| x x |
|---------x x---------|
| P |
+---------------------+
This is the position to get out of. Padel Browser calls one player at the net with a partner stranded at the back "the worst formation in padel". The x marks the problem: a diagonal gap between you that any decent opponent will aim through.
It usually happens when one player runs back alone after a lob, or charges in behind a weak shot while the other stays put.
Cue: copy your partner. If the shot you just played doesn't buy time to get both of you forward, the net player drops back to join the back player. Padel Browser puts it simply: "get all the way to the net, or get all the way back." The Padel School's version is to move forward together and defend backwards together.
6. Transition
+---------------------+
| o * o |
|----------+----------|
| | |
| | |
|==========+==========|
| | |
| ^ | ^ |
|----Y-----+-----P----|
| |
+---------------------+
The walk from the back to the net. Medina Murphy's advice is that after a lob, passing shot or chiquita, you get to an attacking position at the net. Padel Browser lists the shots that buy enough time to go: a deep lob, a low chiquita at the net player's feet, or a heavy deep drive. Don't follow a weak ball in.
Padel Browser's advice is to move in stages: two or three quick steps, then a split-step (a small hop to land balanced on both feet) as the opponent starts their swing. If the reply is weak, keep coming. If they lob, you're balanced enough to turn and go back together. The full walk-through, including how to cross no man's land, is in padel net position.
Cue: split-step on their swing, then keep coming. Finish level with your partner at the net. You're back in diagram 3.
The loop at a glance
| Position | Where you are | The cue | Goes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serving | Server back, partner at the net | Serve, then go | Both up |
| Receiving | Both back | Did your return push them back? | Transition or both back |
| Both up | 2 to 2.5 m off the net, staggered | Lob over your head | Both back |
| Both back | A step behind the service line | Your lob lands deep | Transition |
| Split | One up, one back | Copy your partner | Both up or both back |
| Transition | Moving forward together | Split-step on their swing | Both up |
The right-hand column has only two homes: both up or both back. Everything else is a short trip between them. That matches what the LTA tells beginners: you'll usually be up at the net with your partner or both towards the back defending.
Coming from tennis? See tennis habits that lose padel points. The basics of moving as a pair are in padel tips for beginners.
Turn up as a pair
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FAQ
Does the padel rulebook say where I have to stand?
Only for the server, who starts with one foot behind the service line (FIP Rule 6). The receiver, their partner and the server's partner can stand anywhere on their own side (Rule 3.2). The receiver just has to let the serve bounce before playing it (Rule 8.1).
How far from the net should I stand when volleying in padel?
Coaches vary. Padel Browser suggests about 2 to 2.5 metres. The LTA uses a landmark instead: level with the second post on the side fence, about a racket's length from the centre line.
Is one up, one back ever right in padel?
At the start of a point it's normal. The server starts back while their partner is at the net, then closes the gap straight away, and some coaches put the receiver's partner forward too. Once the rally is going, it's a position to leave: Padel Browser calls it "the worst formation in padel", so either both move up or both drop back.
What should we do when we get lobbed at the net?
If you can hit it comfortably in front of you, a bandeja keeps you at the net. If it's over your head, both of you go back together and defend from the glass. Running back alone opens the diagonal gap.
