Soft tennis rules
Court and net, ball and racket, scoring, serve, rally and doubles under the rules of the International Soft Tennis Federation (ISTF). This is how PSTA events are played. A comparison with tennis at the end.
Court and net
Soft tennis is played on an ordinary tennis court. The doubles court is 23.77 × 10.97 m, the singles court 23.77 × 8.23 m, and the service lines are 12.80 m apart. A ball that touches the line is good.
The net is black, 1.07 m high (the rules allow 1.06 m) and hangs level along its whole length between posts 12.80 m apart. On a tennis court the net is usually strapped down to the court at the centre. For soft tennis you unhook the strap or prop the net up in the middle so that it is level all the way across.
Specification
- Court (doubles): 23.77 × 10.97 m
- Court (singles): 23.77 × 8.23 m
- Service lines: 12.80 m apart
- Centre mark: 0.15 m at the middle of the baseline
- Net: 1.07 m along its whole length, 12.65 m long, mesh up to 3.5 cm, black
- Post spacing: 12.80 m
- Ball: 30–31 g, 66 ± 1 mm across, bounce 70–80 cm when dropped from 150 cm
Ball and racket
The ball is rubber, hollow and inflated. It weighs 30–31 g, measures 66 mm across with a 1 mm tolerance, and bounces to 70–80 cm when dropped from 150 cm. It holds pressure for a few weeks, then you top it up with the Kenko pump, which has a needle like a volleyball pump. The rules speak of a white ball. PSTA and ISTF events are played with the white Kenko TSOW-V; the yellow ball has the same approval, coloured balls are for practice.
The racket must have both string faces the same and the strings must cross. Material, weight and frame size are free. Soft tennis rackets weigh 210–275 g; a strung tennis racket usually weighs over 300 g.
Scoring
Points are counted 1, 2, 3, 4. The side that first reaches 4 points wins the game. At 3:3 it is deuce and play continues until one side leads by two points.
A match is played to 7 or 9 games, so the side that first takes 4 games out of 7, or 5 out of 9, wins.
At 3:3 in a 7-game match or 4:4 in a 9-game match a final game is played. The side that first reaches 7 points wins it; at 6:6 it is deuce and play continues to a two-point lead. In the final game the serve changes every two points, and sides change after the first two points and then every four.
The rules also allow short matches, to 15 points or to 3 or 5 games, and long matches of 3 or 5 sets. Competitions are played as doubles, singles, mixed doubles and team events.
Serve
The serve is delivered from behind the baseline, between the extension of the centre mark and the sideline, diagonally into the opponent's service court. The first point of a game is served from the right side, the next from the left, and so on alternately.
There are two serves. A missed first serve costs nothing; a double fault is a lost point. If the ball touches the net and still lands in the proper service court, the serve is replayed (let).
The rules do not prescribe a technique. The ball is tossed by hand and struck before it lands, overhand as in tennis or underhand.
Stepping on the baseline, the sideline or the centre mark, or stepping into the court before striking the ball, is a foot fault and the serve is a fault.
Order of serve: in doubles each player of the pair serves two consecutive points, alternating, and this order does not change until the end of the game. After each game the serve passes to the other side. In the final game the serve changes every two points.
The rally and how a point is lost
The ball is returned after one bounce or in the air. A point is lost when:
- the ball fails to cross the net or lands outside the court,
- the ball bounces twice on the player's side,
- the ball hits the player's body or clothing (body touch),
- the player, their racket or clothing touches the net or a post (net touch),
- the player swings the racket over the net without hitting the ball (over net),
- the player hits the ball twice or carries it on the strings (dribble, carry).
A ball on the line is good. So is a ball that passes outside the post and lands in the opponent's court, and a ball that touches the net and goes over.
Doubles and singles
The ISTF rules are written for doubles. Within a pair the serve alternates every two points, and the receiving sides, right and left, are set at the start of a game and kept until its end. The serve passes to the other pair after each game, and sides of the court change after odd games. One player of the pair usually plays at the net, the other on the baseline.
Singles is played on the narrower court. The rest of the rules are the same.
Match flow and breaks
Play is continuous. After a point or a game the players must be ready for the next one within a minute.
In case of injury a medical break of up to 5 minutes is allowed, at most twice for one player in a match.
For breaches of conduct the umpire issues a warning, a yellow card. A third yellow card for the same player in a match is a red card and disqualification.
Soft tennis vs tennis, the main differences
| Feature | Soft tennis | Tennis |
|---|---|---|
| Ball | rubber, 30–31 g, 66 mm | felt, about 57 g, about 67 mm |
| Racket | 210–275 g | usually over 300 g strung |
| Net | 1.07 m, level along its whole length | strapped down, 91.4 cm at the centre |
| Scoring | 1, 2, 3, 4 | 15, 30, 40 |
| Match | to 7 or 9 games, final game to 7 points | sets to 6 games, tie-break |
| Format | mostly doubles | mostly singles |
To play you need a racket, balls and a pump.
See starter setsBased on the Rules of Soft Tennis of the International Soft Tennis Federation (ISTF). This is a guide for players, not a translation of the rules. In disputed cases the original on the federation's website prevails.