New Year, New Rules: 2025 Pickleball Rule Book Released

As the sport continues to grow and evolve, updates to the rules are made each year to enhance gameplay and ensure fairness across all levels of competition.

We encourage all members of Pickleball Australia to take the time to review the new rulebook and familiarise themselves with any changes that may impact your game, coaching, or officiating. Staying informed helps ensure consistency and smooth play during both casual and competitive matches.

Key Highlights

This year’s updates whilst mostly editorial, cosmetic or grammatical in nature do include adjustments to:

• Penalties received at the end of a match (EG,a Technical Foul) can carry over to the next match and affect the starting score.
• The act of volleying is defined to now START from the strike of the ball, not the prior swing as it did in 2024.
• Option for Rally Scoring is included as a provisional rule for 2025
• Clarification of the NVZ extension in Skinny (Mini) Singles
• Inclusion of an Event category of “Open Gender”

You can access the full 2025 Pickleball Rulebook by visiting the Global Pickleball Federation website or via our Pickleball Australia website Rules page.

Why It’s Important

Understanding the latest rules is crucial for:

• Players: To avoid penalties and disputes during matches.
• Coaches: To ensure you're providing accurate guidance.
• Referees: To make confident, rule-based decisions on the court.

If you have any questions or need clarification on the updates, feel free to contact us at info@pickleballaus.org