What Do Tennis Players Drink During a Match? Hydration Guide
Tennis players drink water and electrolyte sports drinks at every changeover during a match, switching between plain water and a carbohydrate-electrolyte mix based on how much they sweat and how hot the court is. Light sweaters take in 4 to 8 ounces per changeover, heavy sweaters need 8 to 16 ounces, and matches over two hours call for 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate an hour. Professional players often carry a customized pink drink built around electrolytes, carbohydrates, and branch-chain amino acids rather than a bottle bought off a store shelf.
What Beverages Do Tennis Players Drink During a Match
Most players carry two or three bottles on court: one filled with plain water and the others mixed with electrolytes, carbohydrates, and sometimes vitamins. Water remains the base of any hydration plan because it sits easier on the stomach than any other drink, and coaches rarely recommend replacing it entirely. Alongside it, an electrolyte-carbohydrate sports drink with 6 to 8 percent carbohydrate content replaces the sodium, potassium, and fluid lost through sweat during long rallies.
Professional players lean on formulas built by sports nutritionists rather than a drink pulled straight from a grocery store shelf. Nutritionists design each mix around a player’s individual sweat rate and sodium loss, which is one reason no single commercial product covers every player.
Energy drinks such as Red Bull and Monster are generally avoided during matches, since their high caffeine content can work against hydration and raise the risk of cramping. Beyond electrolytes and carbohydrates, some formulas add a small amount of vitamins aimed at keeping mental focus sharp late in a match, since concentration tends to fade at roughly the same rate as the body’s fuel stores.
Keeping separate bottles makes the changeover routine simpler, and a Nalgene Sustain 32 oz bottle gives a player dedicated capacity for water or a mixed court drink. For the plain-water portion of that routine, Poland Spring Water provides a convenient bottle to keep alongside electrolyte fluid. When heat, heavy sweating, or a long match calls for carbohydrate and sodium replacement, Gatorade Thirst Quencher fits the article’s advice to include a carbohydrate-electrolyte drink rather than relying on water alone.
How Much Fluid Should Players Drink at Each Changeover
Players should drink 4 to 16 ounces at every changeover, with the exact amount set by sweat rate and court temperature rather than a single fixed number.
Hydration by Sweat Rate
Sweat rate is the starting point for any hydration plan, and it varies enough between players that fluid needs should be individualized. USTA puts typical fluid intake during play at approximately 32 to 60 ounces per hour.
| Sweat Rate | Amount per Changeover | Total per Hour |
|---|---|---|
| Light to medium | 4 to 8 ounces | 32 to 60 ounces |
| Heavy | 8 to 16 ounces | Individualized |
Hydration by Court Temperature
Court temperature changes the target even for the same player, since heat raises sweat loss. Below 27 degrees Celsius, or 80 degrees Fahrenheit, Precision Hydration recommends about 200 milliliters, or 7 ounces, every 15 minutes. Above that temperature, players with high sweat losses should aim for approximately 400 milliliters, or about 13 ounces, every changeover.
| Temperature | Recommended Fluid per Changeover |
|---|---|
| Mild, below 80 degrees Fahrenheit | About 200 milliliters, or 7 ounces, every 15 minutes |
| Above 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with high sweat loss | About 400 milliliters, or 13 ounces |
What Is in the Pink Drink Tennis Players Use
The pink drink seen on tour is a personalized powder mix of electrolytes, carbohydrates, and branch-chain amino acids, colored pink by natural fruit extracts or added B vitamins rather than any single official formula. Cytomax, Endurox R4, and Biosteel are the three brands most often named as the base for these mixes, and each is chosen and adjusted by a player’s nutrition team rather than poured straight from the container.
Sponsorship plays a role in which brand shows up on camera, since many touring players have endorsement deals tied to a specific hydration company. Gatorade, Powerade, Skratch Labs, Ghost Hydration, and NUUN Sport also appear regularly at lower levels of the sport, where players are less likely to have a custom formula built for them. Biosteel has grown in popularity partly because it is sugar-free, low-calorie, and fully vegan, which fits players who avoid added sugar during long matches.
Which Electrolytes Matter Most During a Match
Sodium matters most during a match because players lose it heavily through sweat and it helps the body hold on to whatever fluid is consumed. Three other electrolytes round out a complete sports drink formula.
- Sodium: the primary electrolyte lost in sweat; it helps the body retain the fluid a player drinks rather than passing it straight through.
- Potassium: manages the nerve signals that control movement and muscle function during long points.
- Magnesium: supports muscle relaxation and the energy production a player draws on late in a match.
- Calcium: included in well-designed formulas to replace minerals lost through perspiration over a long match.
No single electrolyte does the whole job on its own. Water, electrolytes, and carbohydrate energy each address a different physical need, which is why a combination drink outperforms plain water alone once a match runs long or the weather turns hot.
Why Water Alone Falls Short
Water alone cannot replace the sodium and other minerals a player sweats out over a long, hot match, which is why coaches pair it with an electrolyte drink rather than relying on it by itself.
Relying only on water during a three-set match in the heat can leave a player short on sodium even while the stomach feels full of fluid, a gap that plain water cannot close on its own. Alternating a bottle of water with a bottle of electrolyte and carbohydrate drink at successive changeovers covers both sides of the problem without overloading either one.
How Should Players Hydrate Before a Match
Players should preload with fluid well before the first serve rather than starting hydration once the match begins. A high-sodium electrolyte drink taken about 90 minutes before the match helps the body hold on to fluid through the early games.
| Timing | Amount | Beverage |
|---|---|---|
| Upon waking | 12 to 16 ounces | Water |
| 60 to 90 minutes before the match | 12 to 16 ounces | Water or a high-sodium electrolyte drink |
| 10 minutes before the match | 8 ounces | Water or sports drink |
How Do Players Fuel and Hydrate During Long Matches
Matches that run past two hours need carbohydrate fuel in addition to fluid, since the body’s glucose and glycogen stores start to run low once play stretches that far. Players should take in 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour once a match crosses that mark, either through a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink or through solid food such as a banana or an energy bar.
Which option works best comes down to personal preference and how hot or humid the court is, since solid food sits less comfortably in the stomach during a hard-fought third set.
Beyond commercial sports drinks, some players turn to lower-cost alternatives during practice or club-level matches. Electrolyte tablets dropped into a bottle of water offer nearly the same benefit as a premixed sports drink at a fraction of the cost. Kombucha appeals to some players for its natural carbonation and probiotics without the sugar load of a typical sports drink, and whole fruits or vegetables supply electrolytes without any mixing at all.
What Are the Rules for Drinking Water During a Match
Tennis rules allow players to keep water bottles courtside and to drink between points, but the hydration break cannot be used to slow the match down. A server has 20 seconds between points and must not use a drink to run past that limit. The receiver, in turn, has to follow the server’s reasonable pace rather than taking a long, separate break of their own.
These pace-of-play rules apply at every level the United States Tennis Association governs, from local club matches up through national competition, so a player who treats a changeover drink as an excuse to stall risks a time violation. Umpires generally give players some latitude for a genuine drink or towel-off, but repeated delays draw a warning.
How Should Players Rehydrate After a Match
After a match, players should drink about 1.5 times the fluid they lost during play to fully rehydrate, since sweat losses are rarely replaced one-for-one while the match is still going. An electrolyte-rich drink works better than plain water for this stage, because it replaces the sodium lost through hours of sweat and helps the body hold on to the fluid instead of flushing it out through urine.
A simple way to estimate fluid lost is to weigh in before and after a match, since each pound of weight lost during play is roughly 16 ounces of sweat. That number then sets the target for post-match rehydration over the following hour or two.
Worked Example: Hydration Plan for a Two-Hour Match in Heat
This example brings together guidance for a heavy-sweating player facing a two-hour match in temperatures above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
Carbohydrate needs follow a separate calculation. For matches exceeding two hours, guidance calls for 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour, delivered through a sports drink, gels, chews, or food such as bananas or sports bars.
- Before the match: 12 to 16 ounces of water on waking, another 12 to 16 ounces 60 to 90 minutes before the first serve, and 8 ounces of water or sports drink 10 minutes out.
- During the match: about 400 milliliters, or 13 ounces, of electrolyte fluid at each changeover for a player with high sweat losses in temperatures above 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Add carbohydrate from a sports drink, gels, chews, or food if the match exceeds two hours.
- After the match: an electrolyte-containing rehydration fluid totaling approximately 1.5 times the fluid lost, consumed largely to thirst while avoiding excessive forced drinking.
Match hydration should remain individualized because sweat rate, sodium loss, heat, humidity, and match duration all affect fluid needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Many Bottles Do Tennis Players Carry During a Match?
Most players bring at least two bottles onto the court, one with plain water and one with an electrolyte or carbohydrate mix. Some professionals carry a third bottle for a separate recovery drink they save for the end of the match. The exact split depends on the weather, the length of the match, and the player’s own sweat rate.
Why Do Tennis Players Avoid Energy Drinks Like Red Bull or Monster?
High-caffeine energy drinks can work against hydration and raise the risk of muscle cramps during a long match. Sports nutritionists generally steer players toward formulas built for endurance activity instead, which favor electrolytes and carbohydrates over a caffeine spike. A jittery caffeine crash mid-match is also a poor trade for a few minutes of extra energy.
Do Amateur Players Need the Same Hydration Plan as Professionals?
Amateur players benefit from the same basic framework, drinking at every changeover and matching fluid intake to sweat rate and temperature. A club player rarely has a nutritionist building a custom formula, so a standard commercial sports drink or an electrolyte tablet in water covers most needs. Weighing in before and after a few practice sessions is an easy way for any player to estimate their own sweat rate.
What Happens if a Player Does Not Drink Enough During a Match?
Even a small fluid deficit of 1 to 2 percent of body weight can measurably reduce athletic performance by affecting hormone regulation, metabolism, and circulation. Footwork slows, concentration drifts, and recovery between points gets harder as the deficit grows. Waiting until late in a match to catch up on fluid rarely reverses the drop in performance already underway.
Is It Fine to Wait Until Feeling Thirsty to Drink?
Thirst is a lagging signal, and the body may already be about 2 percent dehydrated by the time it shows up. Coaches generally advise drinking a little at every break rather than waiting for thirst to set the schedule. A player who sips consistently through a match avoids the performance dip that comes with catching up late.
Matching fluid and electrolyte intake to sweat rate, temperature, and match length beats any single fixed number of ounces, and the changeover is the moment to act on it rather than wait. A club player following the same basic framework as the pros, water plus an electrolyte-carbohydrate drink, taken often and in small amounts, covers nearly every match condition.
References
- Beat the Heat: Cooling and Hydration Tips for Tennis Players, United States Tennis Association
- Hydration and Fueling Recommendations for Tennis Players, Precision Hydration
- What Do Pro Tennis Players Drink During a Match? Why You Should Be Drinking it Too, My Tennis HQ
- Tennis Hydration, Tennis Alberta
- What Do Tennis Players Drink? (Before and During Matches), TennisPredict
- What Electrolytes Do Tennis Players Drink for Optimal Performance, Bubs Naturals
- Water Breaks Between Points, United States Tennis Association
- What Is the Pink Drink Tennis Players Drink?, My Tennis HQ
Sources read in September 2026.