Ace

In very basic terms, an ace is when a player serves the ball into the correct area of the opponent’s court (service area) and their opponent is unable to touch the ball.

It is the quickest way to score points in tennis and is a very important part of the game of tennis. Many pros spend a huge proportion of their training time dedicated to perfecting their serve in order to achieve high numbers of aces, knowing that it is the best way to pick up points.

For many, a powerful, fast serve is the secret to scoring high numbers of aces but in some cases, being able to serve to a player’s weaker side can also help to score aces. The surface of a court can also increase the likelihood of serving aces, with faster surfaces allowing for more of them due to the faster pace of the ball.

In tennis, there are two service areas on each side of the court. When a player is serving they must stand behind the service line and hit the ball diagonally into the opponent’s service box.

So if the player is starting on the right, they will be serving to the left-sided service area on the other side of the court (their opponent’s right side).

The ball must be played within the box, so not going into the doubles sideline or the back area of the court. If the ball lands on the line then it is counted as being in.

In professional games you have a lot of players questioning the umpire whether a ball is in or out because the serve can be so fast, so technology in the form of Hawkeye has been introduced for major tournaments to make crucial decisions.

If the ball hits the net on the serve and bounces over the net into the service area then this is called a let. The player is then allowed to have another try, so if it is their first serve, they have a let and are allowed to serve again before they move onto the second serve.