Team Tennis Rules & Expectations

The rules for team-tennis matches follow the official rules of tennis, but with a few twists in format and scoring. The unique format is the creation of Billy Jean King and Larry King, starting in the early 1970s at the professional level. The atmosphere is different from major tennis tournaments where spectators are quiet and only applaud between points. In a team-tennis match, spectators and fans are encouraged to cheer and clap for their favorite team and the players are expected to play through the noise.

  1. Match Format

    • Team-tennis matches consist of five sets. There is one set each of men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles. The total of games won--not the individual sets won--at the end of the five sets determines the winner of the match. The home team has the choice of serving or receiving, or the choice of sides.

    Game Scoring

    • Four points are played (1,2,3,game). No-ad scoring is used, meaning that if the game score becomes tied at 3 (deuce), one more point is played to determine the winner of the game. The receiver has the choice of side. If this happens in the mixed doubles match, the server must serve to the same-gender player. Players change ends of the court after every four games. The first player or team to win six games wins the set. If the score becomes tied at five games each, a nine-point tiebreaker is played. One point is awarded for each game won. For example, if a team wins the first set with a score of 6-4 and loses the second set 2-6, they have a cumulative score of 8-10 for the two sets.

    Nine-Point Tiebreaker

    • To start the tiebreaker, the person whose turn it is to serve, serves the first two points, starting on the deuce side or right side, of the court. After two points, the serve goes to the other player or team for two points. Players or teams change ends after four points. The tiebreaker is won when one player or team has won five points. If the score has become tied at four points each, one more point is played. The receiving player or team has a choice of side. In mixed doubles, the serve must go to the same-gender player. The tiebreaker counts as one game in the overall match scoring.

    Let Serves

    • Unlike regular tennis, in team tennis if the ball hits the net or strap and does land within the boundaries of the service box, it is playable. If this happens during a doubles match, either receiving player can return the ball after it bounces.

    Substitutions

    • Substitution of players for any reason is allowed. The substitute must be a same-gender player. Once a player has been replaced by a substitute, she cannot return to play in that set. Substitution is used by coaches at strategic moments to give the team an edge or to avoid having to default in case of an injury.

    Coaches

    • Coaching is allowed in team tennis, provided it is not disruptive to match play. Coaches are non-participating players and are expected to know the World Team Tennis (WTT) rules, provide the team line-up, decide on the order of play, and act in a fair and professional manner at all times. A coach must have the player's health and safety in mind at all times. Player appeals are communicated through the coach to the umpire.