Plenty of padel players came from tennis. The LTA estimates that about two-thirds of Britain's one million padel players also play it. That's a head start. It's also a set of habits that quietly hand points away.
This page covers only those habits: the tennis rule that built each one, the padel rule that replaces it, and a drill to retrain it. For court size, rackets and kit, see my padel vs tennis guide.
I make clothes, I'm not a coach. The rules come from the 2026 FIP Rules of Padel and ITF Rules of Tennis. Two drills are the LTA's own. The other three need one mate and a basket of balls.
The five habits at a glance
| Tennis habit | Tennis rule | Padel rule | Drill |
|---|---|---|---|
| High toss, feet off the ground | Hit before it lands, feet can leave the ground (ITF 16, 18) | Bounce it, hit at or below the waist, one foot down (FIP 6) | Freeze-frame serves |
| Stopping once it's past you | Bounce then back fence: hitter's point (ITF 13) | Bounce then glass or mesh: still live (FIP 12) | LTA back glass feed |
| Aiming at the lines | Lines decide in or out (ITF 12, 24) | Any bounce on their floor is in; their glass on the full is out (FIP 13, 14) | Glass-reset ladder |
| Your back fence is a dead end | Hit the backstop before a bounce and you lose (ITF 24) | Your own glass is allowed, your own mesh isn't (FIP 13, 14) | Back-glass escape |
| Smashing for the winner | Bounce then back fence: winner (ITF 13) | It comes back off the glass (FIP 12) | Smash, then defend |
1. The high toss and the leap
Tennis rule. You release the ball "in any direction" and hit it before it lands (ITF Rule 16). The ITF also lets you have one or both feet off the ground (Rule 18).
Padel rule. FIP Rule 6 switches that off. Stand behind the service line without touching it. Bounce the ball in your own box. Hit it at or below waist height with at least one foot on the ground. There's a second trap. A serve that lands in the box and runs into the back glass is fine. One that runs into the metal mesh before the second bounce is a fault (Rule 7).
Drill: freeze-frame serves. Twenty serves from each side. Hold your finish for a second after each one. Was contact below your belt? Did your back foot stay down? Once both are automatic, put a towel in the back half of the box and aim for it. Anything that clips the mesh is a miss.
2. Stopping once the ball is past you
Tennis rule. If their shot lands in and hits the back fence, they win the point (ITF Rule 13).
Padel rule. If the ball bounces on your side and then hits the glass, the mesh or the frame, it stays in play until the second bounce (FIP Rule 12). The LTA calls playing off the glass the biggest learning curve in padel. Its reason fits tennis players exactly: in tennis you redirect a ball coming at you, but off the glass it's already heading for the net, so you help it on its way.
Drill: the LTA back glass feed. Both of you on the same side. Your partner throws the ball at the floor just in front of the back wall. Wait for the rebound and play it softly back into their hands. Stand side-on, racket up, and let the ball come in front of your leading foot. When that's easy, move into the corner so it comes off two walls.
3. Aiming at the lines
Tennis rule. Touch the line and it's in (ITF Rule 12). Land past it and you lose the point (Rule 24).
Padel rule. Padel's lines just mark out the service boxes, so once a rally starts no line decides anything. Your shot is good if it bounces anywhere on their floor, and it can then hit their glass or mesh (FIP Rule 14). The out to watch is their back glass. Hit it before the ball bounces and you lose the point (Rule 13). You're not aiming for a line any more. You're aiming for a bounce before the glass. The LTA's beginner advice agrees: short backswing, placement over power.
Drill: the glass-reset ladder. The LTA's ladder rally, with one tweak. Half a court each. Rally two shots in a row, then three, then four. Any mistake sends you back to the start. My tweak: a ball that hits the glass on the full counts as a mistake, even if your partner could have reached it.
4. Treating your back fence as a dead end
Tennis rule. If your shot hits a permanent fixture before it bounces, you lose the point (ITF Rule 24).
Padel rule. Your own back glass is a tool. A return is good if it hits the wall on your side first and then bounces in theirs (FIP Rule 14). The LTA suggests it when you're stuck defending. The catch is the mesh. If your shot touches the metal fence on your own side, you lose the point (Rule 13). Glass yes, mesh no.
Drill: the back-glass escape. Your partner at the net sends a ball deep past you into the corner. Let it bounce, then play it up into your own glass so it rebounds over the net and lands in their court. Ten good ones, then swap. For every surface and how it's ruled, see can the ball hit the fence in padel?
5. Smashing for the outright winner
Tennis rule. A smash that bounces in and flies into the back fence wins (ITF Rule 13 again).
Padel rule. The same smash bounces, hits the back glass and comes back into play (FIP Rule 12). It ends the point outright if it bounces and leaves the court, and even then the LTA says players can chase it through the doors where the court allows. That's why better players hit softer overheads like the bandeja, which the LTA describes as a smash with underspin to keep the bounce down.
Drill: smash, then defend. Your partner lobs, you smash. They play it back off the glass, and you have to be set at the net for the next ball. Score a point only for rallies you win after the smash.
Next up is moving with your partner. My padel tips for beginners cover it.
The rules you can keep
These work the same in both rulebooks:
- Two serves. Miss both and it's their point (FIP 6 and 13, ITF 20 and 24).
- The return must bounce. Volley it and you lose the point (FIP 8, ITF 24).
- Net-cord serves are a let if they land in the right box (FIP 9, ITF 22). In padel, only if they then miss the mesh.
- Touch the net while the ball's in play and you lose the point (FIP 13, ITF 24).
- One player per shot. Both partners hitting it loses the point (FIP 13, ITF 24).
A one-hour session for tennis converts
Book a court with one mate:
- 10 minutes: warm up and rally gently.
- 10 minutes: freeze-frame serves.
- 15 minutes: back glass feed, back wall then corner.
- 10 minutes: back-glass escape.
- 10 minutes: glass-reset ladder.
- 5 minutes: smash, then defend.
Then count the points these five habits cost you in your next match.
After the session
Drills mean standing around, especially for whoever's feeding, so you cool down fast in winter. For what to play in when it's cold, see my winter padel guide.
What I make is for afterwards. Our heavyweight tees are 100% cotton, 305 g/m2 and oversized, so size down for a regular fit. Any two £48 tees are £90 at checkout, which clears free UK delivery at £75. Colder? Our 350 g/m2 sweatshirts are £60, like the Sunday Padel Club Sweatshirt, a Padelism original since 2025.
See you on court.
FAQ
Are padel rules the same as tennis rules? Partly. Scoring, two serves, letting the serve bounce and not touching the net all carry over. The serve and the walls are where they split: padel serves are underarm after a bounce, and a ball that bounces and then hits the glass is still in play.
Can you jump when you serve in padel? No. FIP Rule 6 says at least one foot must be on the ground when you hit the serve, with the ball at or below waist height. In tennis, the ITF allows both feet off the ground.
In padel, does a ball that bounces and then hits the back wall win the point? No. In tennis it would. In padel it stays in play and the other pair can return it before the second bounce. It only wins outright if it leaves the court and they can't reach it.
Which tennis habit is hardest to drop in padel? Letting the ball go past you. The LTA calls playing off the glass the biggest learning curve when taking up padel. Tennis teaches you to redirect a ball coming at you. Off the glass it's already heading back towards the net, so you wait for it in front of your leading foot and help it on its way. The back glass feed in habit 2 is the place to start.
