How Padel Works: Court Positions and Beginner Basics

Padel combines tennis-style scoring with an enclosed court, underarm serves and doubles play; your side of the court shapes how you defend and attack.

SportsOctober 8, 20263 min readHow Sureno writes this

The short version

Padel is generally played in doubles on a smaller enclosed court, with tennis-style scoring and walls that can return the ball into play. ²⁴
Players use solid rackets rather than strung ones, and serves are underarm. ²
Right- and left-side positions affect how a player defends, attacks and helps build a point. ¹
The sources do not provide a full rulebook or enough detail to prescribe one ideal side for every beginner. ¹²

How does padel work?

Padel is a racket sport played on a smaller enclosed court. It is usually played by two teams of two. The court’s glass and mesh walls are part of the game, so a ball can rebound from a wall and still be played. That mix of tennis-like play and wall rebounds is one reason padel can feel different from ordinary tennis. ²⁴

Players use solid rackets rather than strung tennis-style rackets. The serve is underarm, and the scoring system is the same as tennis, according to the supplied sources. The sources do not set out every rule for serving, wall rebounds or the court boundaries, so this is an introduction rather than a complete rulebook. ²⁴

What do the right and left positions mean?

In doubles, each player takes one side of the pair’s half of the court: right or left. These positions matter because each side shapes how a player defends, attacks and helps build points. The position is not just a place to stand; it affects how a pair covers the court together. ¹

The available position source focuses on the roles of the two sides but does not give a detailed list of each player’s shots, movement patterns or preferred tactics. Beginners should therefore treat right and left as a shared positioning decision, rather than assume that one side has a single fixed job. ¹

How should beginners think about choosing a side?

Start by agreeing with your partner which side each of you will cover. Then pay attention to how well you can defend and attack from that position, and whether the pair can cover the court as a team. The available source confirms that side affects those parts of play, but does not offer a universal rule for choosing who plays right or left. ¹

You do not need to master advanced tactics before trying padel. The basic picture is doubles on an enclosed court, with an underarm serve, tennis-style scoring and walls that remain in play. Learning how your side affects your partnership can come with practice. ¹²

How is padel different from tennis?

The sources identify several practical differences: padel is played on a smaller enclosed court, uses solid rather than strung rackets, and has underarm serves. Its walls are involved in play, while its scoring system is the same as tennis. ²⁴

Those features give beginners a straightforward way to understand the game: expect tennis-like scoring, but learn to account for the walls and coordinate with a partner. The sources do not provide enough detail to compare every rule or describe how rallies typically develop in all situations.

What should a beginner learn first?

Get comfortable with the basic setup: two players on each team, an enclosed court, solid rackets and an underarm serve. Learn how a wall rebound can keep a ball in play, and agree with your partner how you will cover the right and left sides. ²⁴

For precise rules and coaching on court movement, use a current rulebook or ask a qualified padel coach. The supplied sources explain the broad format and the importance of positions, but do not provide a complete beginner’s training guide. ¹²

What we don't know yet

The sources do not provide a complete, official set of rules for serving, wall rebounds, faults or court boundaries.
They do not establish a universal method for deciding which player should take the right or left side.
They do not explain how specific skills or playing styles should affect a beginner’s choice of side.

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Questions people ask

Is padel played in singles or doubles?

The supplied description of the game says padel is played exclusively in doubles. That means each side has two players. ²

Can you use the walls in padel?

Yes. Padel is played on an enclosed court, and the surrounding walls can be part of the game. Balls can be played after rebounding from a wall. ²⁴

How do you serve in padel?

Padel uses an underarm serve. The supplied sources do not give a complete explanation of the serving rules, so check a current rulebook or ask a qualified coach for details. ²⁴

Is padel scoring the same as tennis?

Yes. The supplied sources say padel uses the same scoring system as tennis. They do not set out the score sequence in detail. ²⁴

Does it matter whether you play right or left?

Yes. Your side of the court affects how you defend, attack and build points. The available source does not give a single best-side rule for every player or pair. ¹

Sources

Padel positions explained: who plays right, who plays left and why — Red Bull
COMING SOON: National lifestyle club Tribe bringing padel, cold plunge and sports bar to Adelaide — Glam Adelaide, 2026-10-07
Padel — Wikipedia

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