When is it legal to hit over the net?

Net rules – Padel

The rules around the net can be seen as difficult. When are you allowed to reach over the net? When can’t you reach over? Are you allowed to touch the net and when it is acceptable to do so? In this article we will go through these points and explain when you can or can’t do these things.

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Reach over net

You are allowed to reach over the net as long as you don’t touch the net and the ball has already bounced on your side of the court. So this is when your opponent plays a dropshot with a lot of spin and the ball bounces back to their side of the court or when your opponent plays a powersmash and it comes back to their side of the court.

You aren’t allowed to reach over the net if the ball comes straight from your opponent and the ball hasn’t bounced on your side of the court. You are allowed to do this if the swing path goes over the net, but the contact point has to be on your side.

Touching the net

As soon as you touch any part of the net, you lose the point. If you touch it with your racket after you’ve hit a smash or touch it with your feet, the point will immediately go to your opponent. Touching the net post is also not allowed.

Touching the fence

If the ball goes out of the court and you’re trying to reach the ball, you are allowed to touch the fence on your side of the court. If you touch the fence of your opponent, you lose the point. However, you are allowed to walk outside the court and play the ball into the net of your opponent as long as you don’t touch any part of the court.

Extra rule

A rule most of the players aren’t aware of is that if you’ve hit a smash near the net and the ball comes back to your side, you are allowed to touch the net as soon as the ball crosses the line from your opponent’s side to your side. This rule applies if your opponent couldn’t make it to touch the ball.

Sometimes it is difficult to see if somebody touches the net. In the World Padel Tour there are referees and video replays but in most of the games there aren’t any. So it comes to sportsmanship in these games. Be fair and tell your opponents if you touched the net. If both teams can’t agree, you should play a let.

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