Between padel points, use the short pause to confirm the score, check who serves or receives next, agree one useful cue with your partner and get ready. The FIP Rules of Padel, reviewed for application from 1 January 2026, allow a maximum of 20 seconds from the end of one point until the next serve begins. The checklist below is a practical routine, not a prescribed rule or a mental-performance method.
The Score–Roles–Cue–Ready routine
| Step | What to do | Keep it brief |
|---|---|---|
| Score | Confirm the point result and current score. | Say the score clearly so both partners start from the same point. |
| Roles | Check whose serve or return it is and where each partner needs to be. | Use the service and receiving order already agreed for the set. |
| Cue | Share one practical intention for the next point. | “I’ll cover the middle” or “let’s recover together” is enough. |
| Ready | Move into position and prepare to play. | The server waits until the receiver is ready; play must stay within the time limit. |
You do not need to fill all 20 seconds after every rally. Use only the time you need to agree the next action, then get set.
Score: clear up the point before discussing it
First establish whether the point ended and what the score is. If there was a close call, settle it briefly according to the competition’s rules or ask the umpire if one is present. Do not replay the whole rally while the next server waits.
For a longer look at patterns across a match, save them for later. Our guide to what to track after every padel match shows how to turn repeated problems into one training focus.
Roles: know who serves or receives next
Check whose service game it is and which partner is due to receive. Under the FIP rules, the pair’s service order and receiving order are set for the set; the receiving partners alternate who takes each serve within the game. If you are unsure, pause long enough to check before the next point rather than swapping positions by guesswork.
Cue: choose one action, not a full review
Use a cue your partner can act on. For example, if both of you were pulled wide on the previous rally, agree to recover together after the return. If the opponents keep taking the net, agree who will cover the middle when you play a lob. Avoid turning the pause into a list of everything either player did wrong.
LTA Padel’s beginner match-tactics guide recommends clear “mine” and “yours” calls during rallies and useful information for a partner. Its interview with British No. 1 Christian Medina Murphy also describes using more of the between-point pause to slow the tempo when a match is going badly. In a match played under FIP rules, use the available pause without exceeding the 20-second limit.
If middle balls are a recurring source of hesitation, agree your default outside the point and use the middle-ball decision guide to plan who calls and who covers.
Ready: let the next point begin cleanly
Move to your place, look up and be ready for the serve or return. FIP’s service rule says the server does not serve until the receiver is ready; it also expects the receiver to adapt to the server’s rhythm. The receiver gets set, the server checks, and the next point starts.
A worked example after a messy rally
You and your partner both moved towards the middle, neither called early, and the opponents won the point. In the next pause:
- Confirm the score and who serves next.
- Check the agreed receiving positions; do not change the set order.
- Give one cue: “You call first on the next middle ball; I’ll cover behind.”
- Take position and start the next point when both sides are ready.
The decision rule for who takes the ball still depends on the play in front of you; see who takes the middle ball in padel for a fuller route-and-cover framework.
What if you need more time to talk?
Use a changeover or the time after the match for a longer discussion. Under the FIP rules, the break for changing ends is separate from the 20-second between-point limit: up to 90 seconds are allowed for most changes of ends, and up to 120 seconds at the end of a set. Players change ends without a rest after the first game of each set and during a tie-break. Check your event’s regulations if it uses a specific competition format.
Before a match, agree a simple starting cue during your warm-up, as explained in our 12-minute padel warm-up routine. After the match, Padel Coach App can help you review a recorded clip and choose one focus for the next session; start from the match video review guide or download the app.
Sources and scope
- FIP Rules of Padel, review applicable from 1 January 2026, Rule 2 (time limits) and Rules 6–8 (serve and receiving order).
- LTA Padel: Padel match tactics for beginners.
- LTA Padel: advice from British No. 1 Christian Medina Murphy.
The reset sequence is an editorial suggestion based on those sources. It does not guarantee better results, replace event regulations or make the four steps official FIP procedure.
Learn how our guides are researched, prepared and checked in our editorial policy.