The complete
rules are
extensive. But simply, play proceeds as follows: a player on one of the teams
begins a 'rally' by serving the ball (tossing or releasing it and then hitting
it with a hand or arm), from behind the back boundary line of the court, over
the net, and into the receiving team's court. The receiving team must not let
the ball be grounded within their court. The team may touch the ball up to 3
times but individual players may not touch the ball twice consecutively.
Typically, the first two touches are used to set up for an attack, an attempt to
direct the ball back over the net in such a way that the serving team is unable
to prevent it from being grounded in their court.
IU HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL TEAM PRACTISING 2
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The rally continues, with each team allowed as many as three consecutive
touches, until either (1): a team makes a
kill, grounding the ball on the
opponent's court and winning the rally; or (2): a team commits a
fault
and loses the rally. The team that wins the rally is awarded a point, and serves
the ball to start the next rally. A few of the most common faults include:
- causing the ball to touch the ground outside the opponents' court or without
first passing over the net;
- catching and throwing the ball;
- double hit: two consecutive contacts with the ball made by the same
player;
- four consecutive contacts with the ball made by the same team.
- net foul: touching the net during play.
- foot fault: the foot crosses over the boundary line when serving
The ball is usually played with the hands or arms, but players can legally
strike or push (short contact) the ball with any part of the body.
A number of consistent
techniques have evolved
in volleyball, including
spiking and
blocking (because these plays
are made above the top of the net, the
vertical jump is an athletic skill emphasized in
the sport) as well as
passing,
setting, and specialized player
positions and offensive and defensive structures.