The serve is the most pressure-packed moment in a pickleball game. All eyes are on you, and you get to control the rally from the start. You want to hit an effective and legal serve in pickleball.
But what is a legal serve in pickleball?
Pickleball rules can often be confusing because they are unique from many other racket or paddle sports–like table tennis.
In a minute, we will get to how to hit a legal serve.
But first, let’s cover the basics of how to hit a serve in pickleball.
How To Serve In Pickleball
In concept, a pickleball serve is simple.
You hit the ball across the net into the opposite court.
But there are a variety of rules and techniques that can make your serve successful.
For now, we want to give you the basics.
- Set up at the baseline: You will hit your serve from the back portion of your court–-called the baseline or service line. Your feet must stay behind the baseline.
- Aim for a target: Choose a spot in the court where you want your serve to land on the other side of the net. Zero in on that location and try to hit the ball there.
- Swing the paddle smoothly: Your swing should be a fluid motion. As you make contact with the ball, your body and swing path should feel powerful but under control.
- Finish your swing: Don’t stop your swing right after ball contact. Finish your follow-through and then get back into hitting position for the return.
What Is A Legal Serve In Pickleball?
If you are a tennis player or a pickleball beginner, you are probably imagining stepping up to the baseline and hammering an overhand serve.
The plastic pickleball cracks under the pressure of your explosive power serve and lodges in your opponent’s paddle.
The crowd roars at your magnificent shot…
We hate to be a dream-killer. While you can hit rocket shots in tennis, it won’t happen in pickleball.
The USA pickleball rules are different from tennis rules.
Pickleball Serving Rules
There are 5 pickleball serving rules. And if you follow these, you will keep your serve legal.
What makes a legal serve in pickleball?
Both feet must remain behind the baseline.
You are allowed to step during your pickleball serve, but your feet should stay behind the baseline of the service court all the way through contact with the ball.
It can be easy to let your forward momentum drag you into the playing court on your serve.
Give yourself enough space between your body and the baseline to keep from stepping into the court on your serving swing.
If a player’s momentum cause them to step on the line, they will be called for a fault.
Your serve must be underhand.
Tennis players hit an overhand serve. But that is not the case in pickleball. Pickleball is not a power game–at least on a consistent basis.
Pickleball is a finesse game.
In a pickleball serve, you will take an underhand stroke.
The pickleball paddle should stay below waist level (or your belly button) and the swing path should travel in an upward arc, making contact with the ball while still below your waistline.
Your serve can be a forehand or backhand shot–they are both a great serve-–as long as your shot remains underhand.
The serve must travel cross-court.
Your serve must travel over the net to the opposite side of the court, and it must land cross-court in the correct service court.
In other words, the ball can’t land in the box directly across from your serving square.
If you are serving from the left side service area, your serve should travel diagonally over the net and land in the right-hand court area on the other side.
The pickleball cannot land in the non-volley zone.
The non-volley zone (also known as the NVZ or Kitchen) is off-limits for a served ball.
On short serves, you will want to hit it further than the NVZ.
When you serve, if the ball lands in the no-volley zone or on the non-volley zone line (non-volley line), it is a fault and you lose your serve.
The NVZ line is part of the non-volley zone.
The serve must stay in bounds.
This one is simple.
If your serve travels outside of the pickleball court area before bouncing in your opponent’s court, the ball is out of bounds, and it is a fault.
The serve can, however, land on the out of bounds lines. This is playable and live.
If you are the receiving team, and the serve hits an outer line (not the Kitchen line), you need to return the shot or else you will lose the point.
Pickleball Rules
The pickleball serving rules listed above just barely scratch the surface of the full pickleball rules. They are the basic rules.
If you want to read more about the rules of pickleball, check out our Printable Pickleball Rules. It’s perfect for new players and veteran ones, alike. You can even print them out and take a simplified version with you to the court.
What is a let serve?
A serve can hit the net and still be legal.
How?
Let’s imagine for a minute: you hit a rocket, underhand serve with amazing spin.
You keep it low so that it doesn’t fly out of the court, but there’s a problem: you kept it a little too low.
Your serve hits the top of the net and pops up into the air.
If it lands in the Kitchen or out of bounds, it will be a fault and you will lose your turn as the serving player.
The ball, instead, lands cross-court in the opponent’s serving court.
Is this an illegal or legal pickleball serve?
In this case, it is legal, but with a catch.
The serve is dead, but you don’t lose your turn (although you don’t get a point either).
It is called a let serve and you get a second chance to serve.
Pickleball Serving Rules Doubles
Many recreational games of pickleball are played as doubles.
In a doubles game, the serving rotation is unique.
AT THE START OF THE GAME
- The first player starts the game with a serve: If they win the point, they move to the other serving square on their side, and they get to serve again. If they lose the point, the serve rotates.
- The other team gets the serve next: Normally, the serve would rotate to the other partner on the first serving team. But after the first server of the game, the other team actually gets the serve.
- Both players get a chance to serve: Once the serve rotates to the other side, one player will serve until she loses a point. Then, her partner will get the next serve until she loses a point. Finally, the serve rotates back to the original serving team.
- The other partner gets to serve: On the original serving team, the partner who was skipped in the initial rotation gets their first serving opportunity.
AFTER THE FIRST SERVING ROTATION
Once you work through the start-of-game serving rotation, everything goes back to normal.
Both players on a team get a chance to serve before it rotates to the other side.
For example, let’s imagine your team has the serve.
You serve until you lose a point. Then, your partner takes the serve.
Once he loses a point, the other team gets to serve.
And it’s the same rotation.
An opposing player serves until they lose a point. Then, their partner (second server) serves until a rally is lost.
Pickleball Serving and Pickleball Scoring
In pickleball, you can only score points when you are the server.
When you serve, if you win the ensuing rally, you win the point. You continue to serve until you lose a rally.
If you are the receiving team and you win the rally, you don’t win a point, but you rotate the serve.
Most recreational games are played to 11 or 15.
Calling the Score
You must call out the score prior to serving.
And while this can get a little technical, it’s not too difficult once you get the hang of it.
Singles Scoring
In a singles game, you will announce your score and then your opponent’s score.
It’s that simple.
For example, if you are winning 5 points to 3 points, you would announce: “5 serving 3.”
Doubles Scoring
Calling out the score in a doubles game is a little more confusing.
In doubles, you should announce your score (serving team’s score), followed by the opposing teams’ score, and then your serving rotation number.
If you are newer to the game, you are wondering: what is my serving rotation number?
When you serve in a doubles match, you can continue to serve until you lose a point. If you are the first to serve in that rotation, you are considered the “1” server.
Before you serve, you should call the score and that number.
For example, if you have 8 points and the other team has scored 3 points, you would call 8-3-1.
Once you lose your serving rally, the serve would rotate to your partner, who is “2” in the serving rotation.
She would call 8-3-2 prior to hitting her serve.
What is the 10-second rule in pickleball?
After you call the score, you have 10 seconds to serve the pickleball.
If you don’t serve it in that time, you can be called for a rule violation, and you lose your serve.
Pickleball Rules and Double Bounce Rule
After your serve, the ball must bounce in the receiving team’s court before they can hit the ball.
They must let the ball bounce, and are not allowed to hit the ball out of the air.
Once the opposing team returns their shot off the bounce to your side, you also must let it bounce before you return it.
After those two bounces to start a rally, the ball can be hit out of the air.
This is called the Double Bounce Rule (or two-bounce rule).
The rules of pickleball can be confusing for the beginner.
You can read our Printable Pickleball Rules and even print a simplified version of them to take to the court.
Can you bounce the ball on a pickleball serve?
You are allowed to bounce the ball prior to hitting your serve in pickleball.
This type of serve is called a drop serve.
But there are a variety of rules that you should follow if you want to hit a legal drop serve.
Pickleball Drop Serve Rules
1. The server is permitted to drop the ball prior to serving.
Prior to hitting a serve, a player may want to drop the ball to the ground and then hit it off the bounce. This is a legal serve in pickleball.
2. The pickleball cannot be thrown up in the air or throw down toward the ground to create a higher bounce.
Some players may try to gain an advantage by getting a higher bounce before serving–either by tossing the ball up or throwing it with force toward the ground. This is an illegal serve. The pickleball can only be dropped to the ground.
3. The ball can be dropped to the ground from any height.
While a player cannot put force behind the ball as they drop it, they are permitted to drop it from the highest point that they can reach.
4. On a drop serve, the ball can bounce as many times before you hit it.
After dropping the ball for a serve, the server can allow the ball to bounce multiple times before hitting. There is no limit to the amount of times it can bounce.
Is the drop serve still legal in pickleball in 2022?
Yep, the drop serve is still a legal serve in pickleball.
You can use it in all recreational play, and it’s worth using. It’s a good serve.
The drop serve is an effective and controlled way to serve in pickleball.
Are spin serves allowed in pickleball? (New in 2023)
There are some rule changes for the new year.
Beginning in 2023, the spin serve will no longer be legal in pickleball. This is one of the new rules.
The server can only use one hand at release of the ball.
If he adds spin to the ball with the non-paddle hand as he serves, the serve will be deemed illegal.
But the server does not lose the serve.
They are asked, instead, to re-serve.
Is the chainsaw serve a legal serve in pickleball?
A chainsaw serve in pickleball is a type of serve that creates intense spin on the served ball.
In order to hit the chainsaw serve, the server spins the pickleball off the paddle face as he is tossing the ball for his serve, and then the server hits the spinning ball out of mid-air.
The added spin on the pickleball ball causes intense english when the ball lands in the opponent’s court and makes it very difficult for the receiving team to return the shot.
While this serve creates a distinct advantage for the server, the chainsaw serve is no longer a legal serve.
In 2022, the USA Pickleball official rulebook banned this technique as one of the illegal pickleball serves.
Are overhand serves legal in pickleball?
Overhand serves are not a legal serve in pickleball.
If a player swings overhand on a serve, they will be called for a fault.
Is the underarm serve legal?
Yes, all pickleball serves must be underhand.
The server must make contact with the ball below his waist, and the swing path must follow an upward motion.
Swinging sideways or overhand is not a legal serve.
Can your foot cross the line when you serve in pickleball?
Your feet must stay behind the serving line (or baseline) until after you serve.
If either of your feet go across the line or touch any part of the line before you make contact with the ball, you will be called for a foot fault.
How to serve legally in pickleball?
Once you are familiar with the pickleball rules, one of the best ways to hit a legal serve in pickleball is to practice.
The goal of the pickleball serve is to start play.
You don’t need to have a killer serve; you simply need to be consistent and hit the ball to different spots in order keep your opponent guessing.
For tips on how to improve your pickleball game, check out our post, How To Play Pickleball Better.
You’ll become a better player and win more matches.