Terms in tennis coaching and officiating players in tennis

1. TERMS USED IN
TENNIS

2. ACE- a served ball that is
not successfully returned
nor touched by the racket
of the Receiver

3. ADVANTAGE- also called
“AD”. The next point won
after deuce

4. 
ADVANTAGE SET- method
of scoring in a Set in which the first
player to win six games wins the
“Set”, provided there is a margin of
two games over the opponent(s). If
necessary the set shall continue
until this margin is achieved.

5. ALLEY- the area between
the singles sideline and
the doubles sideline.

6. BACKHAND- a stroke in
which the back of the
hand and elbow face the
opposite court.

7. BASELINE- are the lines at
the end of the court. On
doubles court these lines
are 36 ft. long.

8. CENTER MARK- divides
the baseline in half; 4
inches (10cm) in length
which shall be drawn inside
the court and parallel with
the singles sideline.

9. CENTER SERVICE LINE-
the line dividing the
service court into right
and left service court

10. CHAIR UMPIRE- the
person responsible for
announcement of scores
in progress and he is the
final authority on question
of facts.

11. CLAY COURT- type of
court where the chair
umpire is responsible for
ball mark inspection.

12. COURT- a rectangular
playing area of 78 ft.
(23.77m) long and 27 ft.
(8.23m) wide for Singles,
78 ft. Long and 36 ft. wide
for doubles.

13. DEUCE- the score called
when each player/team
has won three points.

14. DOUBLES- conduct of
tennis match with two
players at a side.

15. DOUBLES SIDELINE- two
lines that defines the
length of the court for
doubles.

16. FAULT- called for when a
ball is served improperly
because of foot fault or
that fails to land inside the
service court.

17. FOOTFAULT- called for
when the Server failed to
keep both feet behind the
baseline and between the
center mark and the
sideline during service.

18. FOREHAND- a stroke in
which the palm of the
forearm face the opposite
court

19. GAME- unit of scoring next
higher than “Point” scored
when one side has won at
least four points; margin
must be at least two points

20. HINDRANCE- refers to a
situation in which a player is
hindered from making a shot by
anything that is not within the
player’s control other than
permanent fixture or a
spectator’s outcry.

21. LET- called for when a
served ball has touched
the net, strap or band and
lands inside the proper
service court

22. LOVE- it means nothing
and equivalent to zero in
scoring

23. MATCH- can be played for
the best of three (3) sets
for women or best of five
(5) sets for men

24. NO-ADVANTAGE- a scoring
system in which when the
score reaches Deuce (40-
40), only one additional
point is played to determine
the winner of that game.

25. POINT- is the smallest unit
of scoring and the first
one is called “15”

26. POINT PENALTY SYSTEM- a
system of penalties designed to
deter unsportsmanlike behavior
during matches. The first offense
results for a warning , the second
offense results in loss of point in
progress and the third offense
results in Default.

27. Permanent fixtures-
includes the backstops and side
stops, the spectators, the stands
and seats for spectators, all
other fixtures around and above
the court, the Chair Umpire, Line
Umpire, Net Umpire, and Ball
Persons when in their
recognized positions.

28. PRO-SET- is a scoring
system consisting of one
set only. The most
common is one in which
the first player to eight (8)
games wins the match.

29. Question of facts-
questions involve whether a
ball touched a player, whether
a ball bounced twice, whether a
server’s foot touched the
baseline before the serve was
struck

30. Question of laws- questions
that involves the application of the rules
or regulations to facts that have already
been determined. Examples include
whether as an act was a hindrance,
whether a player should have been
assessed a code of violation for
misconduct and the procedure for
correcting errors in serving order,
serving and receiving positions and
ends

31. Rally- the successive
returns of the ball over the
net, ends when the player
fails to make a good
return

32. Referee- he is the final
authority on question of
laws of the game.

33. Safe signal- hand signal
where back of hands
together, visible to Chair
Umpire and is given every
time the ball is approximately
three (3) feet inside the line

34. Serve- service stroke in
which the ball is thrown
into the air and hit by the
Server before it touches
the ground

35. Service lines- two lines
that are 27 ft long and 21 ft
from the net (and 18 ft
from the baselines) that
runs from singles sidelines
to the other singles sideline

36. Set- unit of scoring next
higher than “Game”. It
usually ends when a player
wins six (6) games.
However, margin over
opponent must be at least
two (2) games

37. Singles- conduct of a
tennis match with one
player at a side

38. Singles sideline- two
(2) lines that defines the
width of the court for
singles

39. Single sticks- two (2)
posts used to support the
net when a combined
Doubles and Singles court
is used for Singles
matches

40. Standard game- method of
scoring in a Game in which scored
are as follows with the Server’s
score being called first: No Point-
”Love”, First point- “15”, Second
point- “30”, Third point- “40”, Fourth
point- “Game”. A player needs to
win two consecutive points
immediately after “Deuce” to win
the “Game”.

41. Strap- placed over the
net to make sure of the
correct height at the
center of the net

42. Tie-break game- method of
scoring in a Game in which the
first player to win seven (7)
points wins the “Game”, and
“Set”, provided there is a
margin of two points over the
opponent(s)

43. Tie-break set- method
of scoring in a Set in which the
first player/team to win six
games wins that “Set”, provided
there is a margin of two games
over the opponent(s). If the
score reaches six games all, a
Tie-break game shall be played

44. Unsighted- hand signal
where hands together in
front of the line umpire’s
face below his/her eyes.

45. Volley- a stroke in which
a player returns the ball
before it touches the
ground.