Net and wall sports are types of sports in which a ball (or other object) is thrown into the opponent's court or against a wall. In addition, in these sports there is no contact with opponents.
The difference between net and wall sport is that:
- in net sports, the court is divided by a net and the ball or other object has to go over this net to reach the opponent's court
- in wall sports, the court has no net and the ball has to hit the wall and come back, making the so-called rebound
Examples of net sports: volleyball, beach volleyball, footvolley, shuttlecock, tennis, table tennis, paddle tennis, badminton, ringtennis.
Examples of wall sports: squash, Basque pelota, racquetball.
1. Volleyball
Volleyball, or volleyball, is a sport played between two teams with 6 players on each side. Each team tries to throw the ball over the net that divides the court. The objective is to make the ball touch the opposing team's ground to score points.
Volleyball games are played in 5 sets, with no set time. In each set, 25 points must be scored, but there must be a difference of 2 points with the team opponent, so if the set ties 24 x 24, the set continues until reaching the difference of 2 points (26 x 24, 27 x 25, etc.).
Volleyball was created in the United States in 1895 from the idea of creating a sport with little physical contact, to prevent practitioners from getting hurt. It has been an Olympic sport since 1964.
2. Shuttlecock
Shuttlecock is known by many people as a game played by indigenous peoples. The game officially became a sport in 1985.
The shuttlecock game is played between two teams with 1 or 2 players on each side. Similar to volleyball, players have to throw the shuttlecock, with their hands, over the net that divides the court and make it touch the floor of the opposing court.
Games are played in 3 sets of 25 points. The team that manages to score 25 points first, with a difference of 2 points from the opposing team, wins the set. The player who wins 2 sets wins the game.
3. Tennis
Tennis is a sport played between two athletes or two pairs. Each player tries to throw the ball, with a racket, over the net that divides the court. The objective is to make the ball touch the floor of the opposing court to score points.
To win a set, you need to win 6 games, but there needs to be a difference of 2 points with the team opponent, so if the set ties 5 x 5, the set continues until reaching the difference of 2 points (7 x 5, for example).
If the tennis game is tied, the match is defined with the tie-break and whoever gets 7 points wins, but it is necessary to reach the difference of 2 points against the opponent.
The sport, as we know it today, was invented by monks in France.
4. Table tennis
Table tennis is a sport played between two people or two pairs. Using rackets, players try to throw the ball over the net that divides the table. The object is to make the ball touch the opponent's side of the table to score points.
Table tennis games are played in sets where 11 points must be scored, but there must be a difference of 2 points with the opponent, so if the set ties 10 x 10, the set continues until reaching the difference of 2 points (12 x 10, 13 x 11, etc.)
For fun, table tennis is known as ping-pong, referring to the sound made by the ball on the racket.
The sport was created in England in the mid-nineteenth century and, at first, it was a different way of playing tennis in closed rooms, because of the rigorous English winter.
5. Beach volleyball
Beach volleyball is volleyball practiced on a court in the sand on the beach, divided by a net, and is disputed by two pairs. The objective is to try to throw the ball over the net and make it hit the floor of the opposing court to score points.
Each play begins with a serve for the opposing team, who can hit the ball up to three times before sending it across the court.
Beach volleyball games are played in sets, with no set time. The game ends when a pair wins 2 sets, in which 21 points must be scored, but there must be a difference of 2 points with the opponent, so if the set ties 20 x 20, the set continues until reaching the difference of 2 points (22 x 20, 23 x 21).
In the case of a 1 x 1 tie, the game is defined in the 3rd set, in which 15 points must be scored, but the winner must have a difference of at least 2 points.
Beach volleyball emerged as an adaptation of indoor volleyball in California, in the United States, around 1920.
6. padel
Padel is a sport similar to tennis, because the points are counted in the same way and the balls and rackets are similar. However, padel is less difficult than tennis and one of the reasons is that the padel court is 3 meters shorter than the tennis court.
The sport is played by two pairs on a court that measures 20 meters long by 10 meters wide and is surrounded on all sides by netting and glass.
Paddle games are played in games or sets. The game ends when a pair wins 2 sets, but there must be a difference of 2 points with the opponent.
In the case of a 1 x 1 tie, the game is defined in the 3rd set, in which the winner must have a difference of at least 2 points.
The sport was created in Mexico in 1969. Its inventor was Enrique Corcuera, who couldn't play tennis at home to have fun, because he didn't have enough space for it, so he invented padel.
7. Badminton
Badminton is a sport played with a shuttlecock, or shuttlecock, but with the aid of rackets. The game can be played between 2 players or between 2 pairs. The goal is to make the shuttlecock go over the net and touch the opponent's court to score points.
The badminton game is played in 3 games in total. Whoever wins 2 games first, wins the game. Each game has 21 points, but if there is a tie, the game continues until there is a difference of 2 points with the opposing team. If there is a tie at 29 points, whoever scores 30 points first wins.
The sport, as we know it today, was created in England around 1870.
8. Squash
Squash is a wall sport played with a racket and a ball and players must wear protective glasses. The game can be played between 2 players or between 2 pairs. The objective is to hit the ball on the front wall before it hits the ground more than once.
In the game of squash, players change sides with the opponent whenever they win a point. Disputes can be made in 3 or 5 sets, or games, with no set time.
The sport emerged in England in the early 19th century, probably in a prison, where prisoners used sticks and a ball and threw it against the wall to pass the time.
Read too:
- Volleyball
- Table tennis
- Beach volleyball
- Badminton
- Sport types: Invasion, Mark, Accuracy, Combat, Net and Wall
Net and wall sports: what they are and 8 examples.All Matter, [n.d.]. Available in: https://www.todamateria.com.br/esportes-de-rede-e-parede/. Access at:
See too
- Sport types: Invasion, Mark, Accuracy, Combat, Net and Wall
- Volleyball
- Invasion sports: what they are and 9 examples
- Technical-combinatory sports: what they are and 8 examples
- Combat sports: what they are and 10 examples
- Field and putter sports: what they are and 3 examples
- Precision sports: what they are, features and rules
- games and pranks
