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FifthSet

GlossaryScoring

Break point

A point the returner can win to take the game from the server, at 30-40, 15-40, 0-40 or advantage to the receiver.

Alsobreakpoint, break points, break of serve, service break

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In depthHow tennis scoring works: points, games, sets and tiebreaks

A break point is any point the returner can win to take the game off the server. It arises at 30-40, at 15-40 (two break points), at 0-40 (three) and whenever the receiver holds the advantage after deuce. Winning the game from any of those scores is a break of serve, or simply a break. Because the server is expected to win service games, one break is often enough to decide a set: a player who breaks once and then holds serve throughout wins it 6-4 or 7-5.

When you see it

Scoreboards and broadcast graphics flag break points and count how many each player has converted, because that ratio tells the story of a tight match. "Saved" break points, where the server fights back to deuce or wins the game, are the moments a crowd rises for. In a tiebreak the term is not used: the serve changes hands every two points, so there are no service games to break, and people talk about mini-breaks instead.

Rule basis

The scoring sequence that produces these situations, love, 15, 30, 40, deuce and advantage, is Rule 5 of the ITF Rules of Tennis. "Break point" itself is not a rulebook term.

Related terms

  • Deuce · The score at 40-40, when both players have won three points in a game; from there a player needs two points in a row to win the game.
  • Ace · A serve that lands in the service box and is not touched by the receiver, winning the point outright.
  • Love · Tennis's word for zero; a score of love means no points in the game, and a love set is one won 6-0.
  • Tiebreak · The game played at 6-6 in a set to decide it; the first player to seven points with a two-point margin wins the set 7-6.

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Sources

Material claims in this article are supported by the following sources.

  1. 01Wikipedia · Glossary of tennis terms (break, break point, hold, let)retrieved
  2. 02International Tennis Federation · ITF Rules of Tennis 2026 (Rules 5-7 scoring, 10 change of ends, 16-24 service and loss of point, Appendix VI alternative scoring methods)retrieved