Table tennis games are played to 11 points, with a two point lead required if the score reaches 10 all. Service normally changes every two points, then every point at 10 all. A match consists of the best of an odd number of games. These are the international laws reproduced in Table Tennis England's July 2026 rules document, which separates its own national byelaws from the ITTF provisions.
| Question | International law |
|---|---|
| Winning a game | 11 points, or a two point lead after 10 all |
| Service changes | Every two points, then every point at 10 all |
| Service toss | Near vertically, at least 16 cm |
| Deciding game | Change ends when a player or pair first reaches five |
How does table tennis scoring work?
Law 2.11 says the first player or pair to reach 11 wins unless both reach 10. At 10 all, the game continues until one side leads by two points. A score of 11-10 does not finish it; 12-10 does. If the score becomes 12-12, play continues on the same principle. The law does not introduce a deciding single point at that stage.
Games and matches are different units. Under Law 2.12, a match is the best of an odd number of games. A best of five match is won by the first side to take three games, while a best of seven requires four. Those examples follow the general rule; the competition's format determines how many games the particular match can contain.
Service normally changes after every two points scored, irrespective of who wins those points. At 10 all, players serve one point each in turn. The sequence continues until the game ends. The laws also provide a separate one point service sequence when the expedite system is operating, so the two point pattern is not universal in every circumstance.
What makes a legal table tennis serve?
Under Law 2.6, the ball starts resting freely on the open palm of the server's stationary free hand. It must be projected near vertically upward without imparting spin and rise at least 16 cm after leaving the hand. The server strikes it as it falls. A serve dropped straight from the fingers does not satisfy that toss requirement.
From the start of service until the strike, the ball must remain above the playing surface and behind the server's end line. It must not be hidden from the receiver by the server, a doubles partner or anything they wear or carry. After the toss, the free arm and hand must be removed from the space between the ball and the net.
The served ball first touches the server's court and then the receiver's court. In doubles it must touch the right half court on each side in succession. That diagonal requirement belongs to doubles service. It should not be imposed as a general restriction on every shot in a doubles rally or on singles serves.
When is a serve a let rather than a lost point?
If an otherwise correct serve touches the net assembly, the rally is a let under Law 2.9. A let is not scored, so that service is replayed. The condition that the serve is otherwise correct matters: hitting the net does not rescue a serve that then fails to land where the service law requires.
A serve can also be a let when the receiving player or pair is not ready, provided neither tries to strike the ball. Players should distinguish this rule from losing an ordinary rally through an unsuccessful return. The laws define a point as a rally whose result is scored and a let as one whose result is not scored.
How does doubles service order work?
At each doubles service change, the previous receiver becomes the server, and the previous server's partner becomes the receiver. During the rally, the partners must make their returns in the prescribed alternating order. One partner cannot take two consecutive team shots simply because that player is closer to the ball.
In the last possible game of a doubles match, the pair due to receive next changes its receiving order when a pair first reaches five points. Players also change ends when a player or pair first reaches five in the deciding game. Between ordinary games, the sides change ends and the player or pair that served first receives first in the next game.
When service order or ends are discovered to be wrong, the umpire interrupts play and corrects the arrangement for the score already reached. The points scored before discovery remain counted. Restarting the entire game because someone served from the wrong sequence would therefore misapply Law 2.14.
The source is the official federation copy of the 2026 ITTF laws, linked from its rules page. This guide uses the international provisions, not the separately boxed English national byelaws. For comparisons with other racket sports, see our guides to badminton service, tennis serves and tennis tie breaks.
