
In tennis, what is the "service box"?
Answer: The rectangular area on the opponent's side of the net where a legally served ball must land.
Explanation:
The service box is one of the most important areas on a tennis court, especially when it comes to understanding the serving rules. When you're playing tennis, every point begins with a serve, and this serve must land within specific boundaries to be considered legal and in play.
A tennis court is divided into several sections by painted lines. The service boxes are two rectangular areas on each side of the court, separated by the center service line. These boxes are located between the net and the service line, which runs parallel to the baseline. Each service box measures approximately 21 feet long and 13.5 feet wide, creating a target area that requires both power and precision from the server.
Here's how the service box works in practice: when you serve from the right side of your baseline, you must aim for the service box on your opponent's left side (which appears on your right when looking across the net). Similarly, when serving from the left side of your baseline, the ball must land in your opponent's right service box. This alternating pattern continues throughout each game.
If your serve lands outside the designated service box, it's called a "fault." You get two chances to serve successfully on each point - if both serves are faults, it results in a "double fault," and your opponent automatically wins that point. However, if the ball lands anywhere on the lines that border the service box, it's considered "in" and counts as a good serve.
The service box rule applies only to serves, not to regular shots during a rally. Once the ball is successfully served and returned, players can hit the ball anywhere within the entire court boundaries. This makes serving both a strategic opportunity and a technical challenge, as players must balance accuracy with power to start each point effectively.
Understanding the service box is essential for anyone learning tennis, as it directly affects how you position yourself when serving and receiving. Many beginners focus too much on power and forget about accuracy, leading to frequent service faults. Professional players, on the other hand, use the service box strategically - they might aim for specific corners or areas within the box to put their opponents in difficult positions right from the start of each point.












