Position, bounce, contact
Under FIP Rule 6, start with a foot behind the service line within the serving area. Do not touch the service line or imaginary central line with your feet. Bounce within the corresponding serving box; the ball must not cross the service line or imaginary line before contact. Strike at or below waist height with at least one foot on the ground.
Aim into the diagonal box
Start the game serving from the right and alternate after each point. The first bounce must land inside the diagonally opposite service box. A bounce on its line is in. If the first serve is a fault, take a second; two faults lose the point.
Glass and fence scenarios
Use the first bounce and next contact to distinguish the outcome.
- First bounce outside the receiving service box: fault.
- First bounce in the box, then receiving metal fence before the second bounce: fault.
- First bounce in the box, then glass: not a fault merely because of the glass.
- Receiver volleys the serve without a bounce: the receiving pair loses the point.
A net touch is not automatically a fault
FIP Rule 9 defines when a net service is repeated. If the serve touches the net and then lands in the correct service box without touching the metallic fence before the second bounce, it is a let. A first-service let repeats the first serve; a second-service let repeats the second.
The same server stays for the whole game
Start each service game from the right, then change service side after every completed point, regardless of which pair won it. The same player continues serving until the game finishes. The next game belongs to the opposing pair, following the set’s established order. If you call the score before setting up, it becomes easier for everyone to check both the service side and who should receive. Do not switch servers midway because one partner has a better serve.
Five serves, five different outcomes
A serve landing on the diagonal box line is in. A serve landing beyond the receiving service line is a fault even if it rebounds perfectly from the glass. A correctly bounced serve then hitting glass can remain playable. A correctly bounced serve then hitting the receiving metal fence before its second bounce is a fault. A net-touch serve landing in the correct box without that fence contact is repeated under the net-service rule. If it was a second serve, the repeat remains a second serve, not a fresh pair of attempts.
The receiver must have a chance to be ready
The server waits until the receiver is ready, while the receiver must adapt to a reasonable service rhythm. Attempting the return removes a later claim of not being ready. For a social game, make eye contact and call the score before bouncing the ball rather than trying to gain a cheap point during a conversation. If you are learning, first practise a controlled serve into the large legal target; power does not compensate for an illegal bounce or high contact.
Separate the serving action from the next rally shot
The service box restricts the serve’s first landing, not every later shot. After the receiver’s legal return, a volley or groundstroke may land anywhere in the opposing court. The return of serve still needs its first bounce, but subsequent rally balls may be volleyed. Practise that transition explicitly: serve, let the receiver return after the bounce, then continue a normal rally. It prevents the common first-game confusion that every shot must land diagonally inside a service box.