Can a Pickleball Serve Hit the Net? Yes, and There Is No Replay

What happens when the serve clips the net

The serve touches the net and then...	Result
Lands in the diagonal service court, past the kitchen line	In play
Lands on the service court's baseline, sideline or center line	In play (lines other than the kitchen line are in)
Lands in the kitchen or on the kitchen line	Fault (short serve)
Lands outside the service court	Fault
Does not go over	Fault (ball hit into the net on the serve)

The line rulings come from USA Pickleball's rules summary: a ball touching any line is in, except the non-volley zone line on a serve, and a ball hit into the net on the serve is a fault.

Why USA Pickleball removed the let

The 2021 Change Document, USA Pickleball's official explanation of that year's rule changes, states that the service let rules were removed and that there are no longer any rules governing service lets. It gave three reasons, in the committee's order of priority:

1. Integrity of the game. A receiver who misses a return could shout "Let!" and force a replay, and under the old rule the call could not be appealed. The committee called this a loophole for inaccurate calls, intentional or not.
2. Players. Removing the let removes arguments over whether a serve touched the net. The document says this "completely eliminates" that conflict.
3. Officiating. Some referees touched the net during serves to feel for lets, which was inconsistent and distracting.

"Let!" is now a fault if you stop play

Habits die hard. The change document says that if any player stops play because a service let was called, that player or team commits a fault. Its examples:

• The receiver yells "Let" and catches the ball: fault on the receiver.
• A referee yells "Let" by mistake: the referee calls a replay for referee error and reminds players that service lets do not exist.

So if a serve dribbles over the net, keep playing.

How this differs from tennis

Tennis players carry the let habit with them. In tennis, a serve that touches the net and then lands in the correct service box is a let and is replayed, under the ITF Rules of Tennis; the USTA's serving guide explains the same rule for U.S. players. A let does not cancel an earlier fault: if it happens on a second serve, the server gets that second serve again. The ITF also lists an optional "No-Let" alternative, used by some events at the sanctioning body's discretion, where a net-cord serve stays in play as it does in pickleball.

	Pickleball (USA Pickleball)	Tennis (ITF)
Serve touches net, lands in	Play on	Let, serve again
Serve touches net, lands out	Fault	Fault
Number of serve attempts	One per server	Two

USA Pickleball gives each server only one serve attempt, per its rules summary, which is another reason a net-cord serve stays live.

These rulings follow USA Pickleball, which sets the rules for sanctioned play in the U.S. Check the rules for any league or event that uses a different rulebook.