How Many Games Are Played In a Set of Tennis?
Keeping score in tennis might be more challenging than just about any other major sport out there. Not only is the terminology different, but just the counting system can be a bit confusing. Even something as simple as how many games are played in a set of tennis is not always straightforward for beginners.
How many games are played in a set of tennis? In a typical set of tennis, a set is played up to six games. The first player to reach six games wins the set, given that they win by two. In the vast majority of matches, if the set is tied 6-6, there is a tiebreaker played to seven points that will determine the winner. Tennis matches are almost always either best-of-three or best-of-five sets.
Breaking Down a Regular 6-Game Set of Tennis
This is the section for just about every tennis player out there. A set starts with one player serving, and the other receiving. The roles are switched after each game is completed. Once every odd-numbered game is completed, the two players switch sides so that there is no advantage in regards to the wind, sun placement, etc.
A set goes to six games, but a player must win by two in order to win the set. That means if the score reaches 5-5, a player has the opportunity to win 7-5. However, if both players win one game each and force the set to 6-6, a tiebreaker is needed.
The rare exceptions are the final sets at some pro tournaments, which will force players to play the set out until someone wins by two. The most famous example of this was at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships. The final set for John Isner and Nicolas Mahut ended 70-68 (longest match ever). Isner finally broke Mahut’s serve to set up the victory.
A tiebreaker goes to seven points, and once again, the winner must win by two. The format and way to keep score is a bit different in a tiebreaker. The first player starts by serving one point. From there, the players serve twice before switching roles. The two players switch sides every six points.
After the set is complete, the official way to list the set is to give the tiebreak winner a 7-6 win. For more detailed scoring, the set score will be listed, along with the tiebreaker score in parentheses (ex. 7-6 (7-4) could be the score). You can read more about how sets work in this post.
Alternatives: 8-Game & 10-Game Set of Tennis
There are some alternatives out there as far as sets are concerned. This is often done to speed up a match if there is a lot going on at once. They play the exact same way as a 6-game set of tennis, but the winner must reach either 8 or 10, respectively.
Since these sets of tennis are usually just one to determine a match winner, it is a faster way to play the game. That’s because for a player to win a best-of-three sets match in a traditional form, they would need to win 12 games total at least. This format is popular in one-day tournaments, or leagues with limited time.
Shorter Sets of Tennis
Another way to save time is to go with a shorter format, such as a 4-game set of tennis, or even going with Fast Four. Everything plays the same way as the standard set with a traditional four-game set, except they play to four.
In Fast Four, they eliminate deuces in the game. If a game reaches duece, a single point is played to determine the game’s winner. The receiver gets the opportunity to choose which side they get to serve from in this format.
Tennis seems to be messing around with the format of sets more and more to please the current trends. Tennis matches can indeed go pretty long, especially if they are best-of-five. While this might be enjoyable to watch at Grand Slam events, players who are only playing casually might want a shorter format.
Something to keep in mind with a shorter format is that it does even at the playing field a bit. One of the reasons why great players in tennis always seem to do the best at Grand Slams is because they have more opportunity for everything to level out as it should. In a short format, it just takes a couple of great shots to swing a match in the favor of the underdog.
This can make for some exciting tennis in some regards, but not everyone is crazy about having to possibly beyond upset alert because of the format. Traditional tennis players might see some of these shorter sets as a bit too gimmicky for their liking.
How Many Games Are Actually Played In a Set of Tennis?
With a traditional set being the first to six games wins, how many games does it actually take for someone to win that amount? It obviously depends on the competitiveness of the match, but it usually averages out to about nine or ten games per set.
The average set usually only comes down to a single break of serve, which means a victory of 6-4 or 6-3 in most cases.
Of course, the speed of these games can vary quite a bit depending on how competitive the games are. Ones that go to many deuces will take much longer than two players who are serving well and easily holding serve.
A Final Look at Games In a Set of Tennis
Most people need to learn one way of playing, as it’s the traditional scoring method used in just about every tennis match out there. However, some variations put a different wrinkle into the sport. If time is a bit more limited, there are ways to speed the game up by switching the number of games in a set.
If there is ever a doubt with tennis scoring, make sure to get everything cleared up before starting a new point. Getting the score wrong once is going to cause more and more confusion if not corrected.
