A break point in tennis is a point that lets the receiver win the server's game. In matches we recorded from January to October 2026, ATP receivers converted 38.6% of break points. That figure comes from final statistics held by Live Tennis API, with coverage limits explained below.
The receiver has a chance to break serve. The server is trying to save that chance and stay in the game. You can recognize the situation from the point score, provided you know who's serving.
What scores count as a break point?
In a standard advantage game, the receiver has break point when winning the next point would end the game. Read the server's score first in the table below.
| Score before the point | What the receiver needs | What a server win does |
|---|---|---|
| Love-forty | Win the next point to break | Moves the score to fifteen-forty |
| Fifteen-forty | Win the next point to break | Moves the score to thirty-forty |
| Thirty-forty | Win the next point to break | Returns the game to deuce |
| Advantage receiver | Win the next point to break | Returns the game to deuce |
At advantage server, the server has game point. At advantage receiver, the receiver has break point. The player holding the advantage changes what the next point means.
A scoreboard doesn't always put the server on the same side. Check the serve indicator before reading a break-point situation. Our guide to how tennis scores work explains how point scores fit inside games and sets.
What happens when a break point is saved?
The server saves a break point by winning it. That keeps the game alive, but it doesn't necessarily end the receiver's chance to break.
At love-forty, a server who wins the next point still faces break point at fifteen-forty. At thirty-forty, a successful save takes the game back to deuce. The receiver must then win a point to earn another break-point chance.
A game can return to deuce repeatedly.
Each return to advantage receiver creates another break point. A server can save several chances and still lose the game on a later opportunity.
This explains why a match's break-point count can be much larger than its number of breaks. Saved chances add to the count without adding a game to the receiver's score. For the sequence after a save, see our explanation of scoring after deuce.
How often are break points converted?
In our January to October 2026 final-statistics sample, WTA receivers converted 45.5% of break points. The ATP figure was 38.6%. The table shows the available tour samples and the average chances faced per match, with both players combined.
| Tour | Matches with final statistics | Break points per match | Converted | Hold rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATP | 3,250 | 12.1 | 38.6% | 79.4% |
| WTA | 2,962 | 16.5 | 45.5% | 65.3% |
| Challenger men | 8,587 | 12.6 | 39.9% | 74.1% |
| Challenger women | 1,709 | 17.5 | 46.8% | 61.3% |
The WTA sample had more break-point chances per match than the ATP sample, and receivers converted a larger share. The same ordering appears between the women's and men's Challenger samples.
These are observed rates across the matches with statistics.
They aren't forecasts for the next break point you watch. A tour average doesn't describe the current matchup or the server's performance that day.
We haven't listed an ITF conversion rate here because the available final-statistics sample doesn't support a useful comparison. We cover ATP and WTA as well as Challenger and ITF. Final statistics aren't available for every recorded match.
How is break-point conversion different from hold rate?
Break-point conversion measures the share of break-point chances won by receivers. Hold rate measures the share of service games won by servers. They count different things. A service game can end without the receiver ever reaching break point. That game still contributes to hold rate. It contributes no chance to the break-point conversion calculation.
And a game with repeated saves contributes several break-point chances while producing a single game result. You therefore can't read a conversion percentage as the share of service games lost.
The table illustrates this distinction. ATP receivers converted 38.6% of their chances, while servers held 79.4% of service games in this sample. Those figures describe different stages of the contest. The receiver has to reach break point before having a chance to convert it.
Our hold-rate analysis by court surface examines service games in a separate sample. Check its measurement window before comparing it with these tour figures.
Using these numbers
If you're building a match display, label a break point as an opportunity until its outcome is known. A saved chance and a converted chance need different descriptions. Calling every break-point alert a break would report games the receiver hasn't won.
Show chances faced beside conversion rate in your statistics panel. Keep the tour and sample window visible when quoting this page.
Add converted and saved chances across the matches you include. Divide converted chances by their combined total to get the conversion rate. Averaging match percentages gives equal weight to matches with very different opportunity counts.
Our tennis statistics API guide explains the statistics available for match analysis. Use the API reference for response fields when connecting those figures to your application.
If you work from point-by-point tape, check its declared coverage for each match. Missing points cannot be treated as saved break points.
These published rates use final statistics, so a partial tape isn't an equivalent denominator.
How this was measured
These figures come from matches the API recorded, scheduled from January to October 2026. The window ends before October 30, 2026. We measured the results as of October 31, 2026, using scheduled times in Israel local time.
The match counts are n = 3,250 for ATP and n = 2,962 for WTA. Challenger men has n = 8,587, and Challenger women has n = 1,709. The measurement caveat is: from the per-match final statistics we hold (not every match has them). Break points faced = converted + saved, both players summed. These final statistics come mostly from ATP and WTA matches, plus Challenger.
Frequently asked questions
Is deuce a break point?
Deuce itself isn't a break point in standard advantage scoring. The receiver must win the next point to reach advantage receiver. Winning the following point then breaks serve. If the server wins at advantage receiver, the break point is saved and the score returns to deuce.
Does saving a break point mean the server holds?
Saving a break point keeps the server in the game. A hold happens when the server wins the game. After a save, the receiver can still have another immediate chance or earn a fresh chance later. Count the hold only when the service game has ended. A server can save a break point and lose the game later. The saved chance stays in their statistics even though they were broken.
Is a break point the same as a match point?
A break point gives the receiver a chance to win the service game. A match point gives a player a chance to win the match. They overlap when a receiver can finish the match by breaking serve. A server can also have match point while serving.
Does a high conversion rate prove someone is the better returner?
Conversion rate describes how often a receiver finished the break-point chances they had. It doesn't show how often they created those chances. Read it alongside the opportunity count and the opponents faced. Our tour figures describe recorded samples, so they don't establish a ranking of individual returners. A receiver who rarely reaches break point can still convert a high share. That percentage leaves their other return games out of the calculation.