Pickleball rules, in plain words

• The court is 20 feet wide and 44 feet long (6.10 by 13.41 m), for singles and doubles.
• The net is 36 inches high at the sidelines and 34 inches in the middle.
• The kitchen (the non-volley zone) is the 7-foot area on each side of the net. Its lines are part of it.
• The paddle's length and width together can't be more than 24 inches, with no limit on thickness or weight. The ball is plastic with holes; indoor balls usually have bigger ones.

• Serve diagonally, into the service court opposite you, and clear the kitchen. A serve that clips the net and lands in the right court is good.
• Stand behind the baseline, between the centreline and the sideline, with neither foot on the court.
• Volley serve: an upward swing, contact below the waist, paddle head below the wrist. Or a drop serve: drop the ball and hit it after it bounces.
• You get one try. A serve that lands in the kitchen or on its line is out.
• Serve from the right when your score is even and from the left when it's odd. Serve within 10 seconds of the score being called.

The serve must bounce before it's returned, and the return must bounce before the serving side hits it. After those two bounces, either side can volley or play off the bounce.

• You can't volley (hit the ball before it bounces) while touching the kitchen or its line.
• If your momentum carries you into the kitchen after a volley, it's a fault, even after the ball is dead.
• You can stand in the kitchen any time, and step in to play a ball that has bounced. Before your next volley, both feet must be back outside.

• Only the serving side scores a point. Games are usually to 11, win by 2; tournaments also play to 15 or 21.
• In doubles, call three numbers: your score, their score, then server 1 or 2. Each game starts at 0-0-2, because only one player on the first serving team serves.
• When both partners have lost their serve, it's a side out, and the serve goes to the other team.
• Rally scoring, where every rally scores a point, is a provisional option this year.

• The serve or return isn't allowed to bounce.
• The ball lands out, goes into the net, or bounces twice.
• A volley from the kitchen.
• Touching the net while the ball is in play, or hitting the ball before it crosses the net.
• The ball hits you or your partner.

• A ball on a line is in, except a serve on the kitchen line, which is out.
• You call the lines on your side, and only call a ball out if you clearly see space between it and the line. If in doubt, it's in.
• If you and your partner disagree, the ball is in. Spectators are never asked.

• In rally scoring, the receiving team can now win the game point.
• Spin on the serve must come from the paddle, never the hand, and the volley-serve rules now say "clearly" below the waist and wrist.
• If you don't return a ball, your out call must be prompt.
• A double hit is fine if it's one continuous stroke in one direction.

Volta will have six dedicated indoor pickleball courts with fixed nets and lines, pick-up games grouped by level, leagues and beginner clinics. New to it? Read how to play pickleball.