How to Start Playing Padel: A First-Session Plan

The simplest route into padel is to book a beginner lesson, social session or court for four people. Padel is predominantly a doubles game, and many venues rent rackets and balls, so check what is included before buying equipment (LTA).

If you already play tennis, that will help—but do not treat padel as tennis on a small court. Your first goal is not to hit winners. It is to serve legally, keep the ball in play and learn when to let it rebound from the glass.

What to book and bring

For a first visit, choose one of these in order of preference:

1. A beginner group lesson: best if nobody in your group knows the rules.
2. A beginner social session: useful for meeting players at a similar level.
3. A court for four: fine if one person can explain serving, scoring and wall rebounds.

Ask the venue whether it supplies rackets and balls. Wear sports clothing and court shoes with secure lateral support and adequate grip for the surface. Before entering the court, attach the racket’s safety cord to your wrist; the current International Padel Federation rules make its use obligatory (FIP rules).

A loan racket is enough for your first few sessions. If you later buy one, prioritize a manageable weight and a forgiving, control-oriented shape rather than the hardest-hitting model.

Learn these five rules before you play

You do not need the complete rulebook on day one. Start here:

• Serve after a bounce. Stand behind the service line, bounce the ball, strike it underarm below waist height and send it diagonally into the opposite service box. You get a second attempt after a first-service fault.
• Let the serve bounce. The returner cannot volley the serve.
• Allow only one floor bounce. Return the ball before it bounces twice on your side.
• Read floor before wall. Your shot must bounce in the opponents’ court before touching their glass or fence. On your side, you may return the ball after one floor bounce and a rebound from the glass or fence.
• Score like tennis. The usual sequence is 15, 30, 40 and game, although organized sessions can use alternative formats—confirm the format before starting.

The LTA’s beginner rules page gives the same core sequence and also explains an easy-to-miss exception: a serve that lands correctly and then hits the metal cage is a fault, while one that reaches the glass remains live (LTA Padel rules). For a fuller tennis comparison, read Padel Rules for Tennis Players.

Use this plan for your first hour

1. Warm up and find control — 10 minutes

Start close to the net and rally gently. Use a compact swing and aim through the middle rather than near a line. Move gradually toward the back of the court as control improves.

Checkpoint: can your group complete six controlled shots without anybody trying to finish the rally?

2. Practise serve and return — 10 minutes

Each player serves five balls from the right and five from the left. Aim well inside the diagonal service box. Returners should let the serve bounce and guide it cross-court or through the middle.

Do not chase speed. A legal serve that starts the point is more valuable now than a fast serve that produces repeated faults.

3. Add the back glass — 10 minutes

One player feeds a gentle, deep ball. The defender lets it bounce, waits for the rebound from the back glass and then guides it over the net. Prepare the racket early, move with small steps and leave space between your body and the glass.

The key permission is simple: after one floor bounce on your side, the ball may touch the glass and still be returned before bounce two (LTA Padel rules). Do not attempt difficult double-glass rebounds yet.

4. Rally as a pair — 10 minutes

Begin with both partners near the back, roughly level with each other. If you play a good lob that sends both opponents away from the net, move forward together. If the opponents push you back with a lob, retreat together.

Padel’s two basic team shapes are both players attacking near the net or both defending toward the back. Beginner guidance from LTA Padel also emphasizes short backswings, control over power and partners moving together (LTA Padel beginner tips). Use “mine,” “yours” and “leave” early; these partner communication calls remove uncertainty on middle balls.

5. Play short games — 20 minutes

Play points from a legal serve, but shorten the format: first pair to four points wins the game. Rotate partners if it is a social session. Between points, identify only one cause of the error—serve, spacing, shot choice or positioning—then play again.

A point pattern to copy

Use this sequence instead of searching for an immediate winner:

1. Serve safely through the middle of the box.
2. Move forward with your partner.
3. Volley into open space with a short swing.
4. If opponents take the net, play a high, deep lob.
5. Move forward only when the lob passes them; otherwise stay back and defend.

This teaches the central exchange in padel: teams use lobs to push net players back and create time to advance. LTA coaching guidance describes the lob as a way to move opponents away from the net and give your pair time to move forward (LTA Padel lob guide).

What tennis players should keep—and unlearn

Keep: split steps, early preparation, volley skills, tracking the score and recovering after a shot.

Unlearn: oversized backswings, trying to hit every ball hard, standing on the baseline by default and rushing to intercept every deep ball before it reaches the glass. In padel, a compact controlled shot often buys better court position, while the glass can give you more time.

After two or three social sessions, book a lesson if serves remain illegal, wall rebounds feel random or you and your partner keep separating. Those are specific problems a coach can observe and correct. Until then, judge progress by a practical measure: more legal starts, longer rallies and two partners moving as one unit.