The following

outline Outline or outlining may refer to: * Outline (list), a document summary, in hierarchical list format * Code folding, a method of hiding or collapsing code or text to see content in outline form * Outline drawing, a sketch depicting the outer edge ...

is provided as an overview of and topical guide to tennis.

Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

is a sport usually played between two players (

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a specialized

racquet A racket, or racquet, is a sports implement used for striking a ball or shuttlecock in games such as squash, tennis, racquetball, badminton and padel. In the strictest sense a racket consists of a handled frame with an open hoop across which a ...

that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

Definition of tennis

* Exercise – bodily activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health or wellness. **

Aerobic exercise Aerobic exercise (also known as endurance activities, cardio or cardio-respiratory exercise) is physical exercise of low to high intensity that depends primarily on the aerobic energy-generating process. "Aerobic" is defined as "relating to, inv ...

– physical exercise that intends to improve the oxygen system. Aerobic means "with oxygen", and refers to the use of oxygen in the body's energy-generating process (the citric acid cycle). * Game – structured activity, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more concerned with the expression of ideas. However, the distinction is not clear-cut, and many games are also considered to be work (such as professional sports). **

Ball game This is a list of ball games and ball sports that include a ball as a key element in the activity, usually for scoring points. Ball games Ball sports fall within many sport categories, some sports within multiple categories, including: *Bat-and- ...

– a game played with a ball. There are many kinds of ball games, racquet-and-ball games being just one category of them. *

Sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

– form of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. **

Racquet sport Racket sports are games in which players use a racket or paddle to hit a ball or other object. Rackets consist of a handled frame with an open hoop that supports a network of tightly stretched strings. Paddles have a solid face rather than a ne ...

– a sport in which players use racquets (or rackets) to hit a ball or other object. ** One-on-one sport – **

Competitive sport Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...

– sport in which one or more participants or teams compete against one another. The one that is the most successful in achieving the objective of the game or sport event is the winner. **

Team sport A team sport includes any sport where individuals are organized into opposing teams which compete to win or cooperate to entertain their audience. Team members act together towards a shared objective. This can be done in a number of ways s ...

– sport that involves players working together towards a shared objective. ** Recreational sport – sport engaged in as a leisure time activity. **

Spectator sport A spectator sport is a sport that is characterized by the presence of spectators, or watchers, at its competitions. Spectator sports may be professional sports or amateur sports. They often are distinguished from participant sports, which are ...

– sport that is characterized by the presence of spectators, or watchers, at its matches. Spectator sports are a form of entertainment. **

Professional sport In professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, participants receive payment for their performance. Professionalism in sport has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought larg ...

– sport in which the athletes receive payment for their performance.

Types of tennis

Types of tennis matches

Types of tennis match Traditionally, tennis is played between two people in a singles match, or two pairs in a doubles match. Tennis can also be played on different courts, including grass courts, clay courts, hard courts, and artificial grass courts. Standard types o ...

* Standard matches – are played in official tournaments and during casual play. ** Singles – two players compete, usually two men or two women, although games between a man and a woman may be played on an informal basis. Singles matches do not include the part of the tennis court called the ''alley''. ** Doubles – two teams of two players each, most often all-male or all-female. The two players on the receiving side change positions after each point played: one at the net and the other near the baseline preparing to return serve. The full court is used in doubles matches, that is, the area in the ''alley'' is included. ** Mixed doubles – same as ''doubles'', but with one man and one woman on each team. * Other informal matches **

Canadian doubles Canadian doubles, similar to cutthroat tennis, is a method of playing tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player us ...

– two players play against one player, where the duo can only hit the ball within the single player's singles lines. Often used for training, or when the single player is much better than the other two. *

Tennis games {{Unreferenced, date=July 2022 Tennis games are often used to help players of all abilities to practice the different strokes involved in tennis. The number of participants needed varies from as few as two players to as many players as can fit on a ...

Equipment used in the game

Tennis technology *

Tennis ball A tennis ball is a ball designed for the sport of tennis. Tennis balls are fluorescent yellow in organised competitions, but in recreational play can be virtually any color. Tennis balls are covered in a fibrous felt which modifies their aerodyna ...

– hollow rubber ball approximately 6.7 cm (2.7 in.) in diameter, covered in bright green-yellow fibrous fluffy felt. For recreational play tennis balls can be any color. *

Tennis racquet A racket, or racquet, is a sports implement used for striking a ball or shuttlecock in games such as squash, tennis, racquetball, badminton and padel. In the strictest sense a racket consists of a handled frame with an open hoop across which a ...

– *

Tennis court A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both Types of tennis match, doubles and singles matches. A variet ...

– ** There are four types of

tennis court A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both Types of tennis match, doubles and singles matches. A variet ...

: **# Clay court – **#

Grass court A grass court is one of the four different types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Grass courts are made of grasses in different compositions depending on the tournament. Although grass c ...

– **#

Hard court A hardcourt (or hard court) is a surface or floor on which a sport is played, most usually in reference to tennis courts. It is typically made of rigid materials such as asphalt or concrete, and covered with acrylic resins to seal the surface an ...

– **#

Carpet court A carpet court is a type of tennis court. The International Tennis Federation describes the surface as a "textile or polymeric material supplied in rolls or sheets of finished product." It is one of the fastest court types, second only to grass co ...

– ** The parts of a tennis court include: *** Ad court – short for "advantage court", it is the left side of the receiving team, or the right side of the opponent's court as viewed from the server's side, significant as the receiving side for an ''ad point''. *** Alley (Tramlines) – zone between the singles court and the doubles court. There are two alleys, one on the Ad side and one on the Deuce side. These are only used when playing doubles. *** Back court – area between the baseline and the service line, also called ''no man's land''. It is not recommended to stand in this area because this is where balls usually bounce. *** Baseline – line marking the end of the court, at the back of the back court and the alleys. *** Center line – line dividing the two ''service boxes'' in the center of the court. *** Center mark – 12-inch mark at the halfway point of the baseline used to distinguish the right and left halves of a tennis court. *** Deuce court – right side of the receiving team, the left side of the opponent's court as viewed from the server's side, significant as the receiving side for a deuce point. *** Middle T – See ''T''. *** Net – *** Service box – area bordered by the net, the singles sideline, the service line, and the center line. There are a left and a right service box on each side of the court, separated by the center line. *** Service line – line located between the net and the baseline, parallel to the net, marking the end of the service boxes. *** Side T – T-shape formed by the ''service line'' and the ''sideline''. There are two such side Ts. *** T'' or ''Middle T – T-shape formed by the ''service line'' and the ''center line''. * Accessories often used in tennis: **

Athletic shoe Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used f ...

– **

Wristband Wristbands are encircling strips worn on the wrist or lower forearm. The term can be used to refer to a bracelet-like band, similar to that of a wristwatch, to the cuff or other part of a sleeve that covers the wrist, or decorative or function ...

–

Rules of tennis

Match A match is a tool for starting a fire. Typically, matches are made of small wooden sticks or stiff paper. One end is coated with a material that can be ignited by friction generated by striking the match against a suitable surface. Wooden matc ...

– To win a match in tennis, a player or a doubles team must win the majority of prescribed sets. A match consists of the best of three sets or, only on the men's side, the best of five in grand slams and Davis Cup play. Doubles matches are usually the best of three sets, with the third set being played in a matching tie break form. ** Sets – a maximum of 12 games, unless a player or team reaches 6 or 7 games and are clear by two. If the set gets to 6-all then a tie-breaker is played *** Games – which are the first to four points and clear by two, and a maximum of 12 games make up a set. **** Tie break – In regular play, if the scores reach 6 all then a tie break is played. It is played to the first to seven points (10 in final set) and must be won by at least two points. If not then play continues until one player is two points ahead. ****
double tennis rules
– Double rule in tennis played when you and your game mate play a tennis game with another team of two players and use the complete court in between the baseline and double sidelines. ****** Points – Points are passages of play in which players win points to make a game. The scoring is based on a clock face. The scoring is fifteen, thirty, forty-five (although this was shortened to forty to make it easier for the umpire) and game. However, if the players are tied at 40-all, otherwise known as the deuce, then a player must win two points consecutively from deuce to win the game.

Game play

Tennis moves

Tennis shots

Tennis shots In tennis, there are a variety of types of shots (ways of hitting the ball) which can be categorized in various ways. The grip you place on will help you have different types of shots, the lower your grip means that the ball is most likely going to ...

There are eight basic shots in the game of tennis: # Serve – a shot to start a point. A player begins a serve by tossing the ball into the air and hitting it (usually near the highest point of the toss) into the diagonally opposite service box without being stopped by the net. #*

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...

– a legal serve that is not touched by the receiver. Aces are usually powerful and generally land on or near one of the corners at the back of the service box. # Forehand – shot made by swinging the racquet across one's body in the direction of where the player wants to place the shot. It is considered the easiest shot to master, perhaps because it is the most natural stroke. #

Backhand The backhand is a shot used in most racket sports, such as tennis and pickleball, where the back of the hand precedes the palm when swinging the racket. Except in the phrase ''backhand volley'', the term refers to a groundstroke (where th ...

– shot in which one swings the racquet around one's body in the direction where one wants the ball to go, usually performed from the baseline or as an approach shot. The backhand can be a one-handed or two-handed stroke. # Volley – #

Half volley A half volley in tennis is a shot that is hit immediately after the ball bounces but before it reaches the apex of its bounce. It is sometimes called an "on the rise shot", or "short hop". Technique The player who is hitting the half volley shoul ...

– (pick-up ball) # Overhead smash – #

Drop shot A drop shot is a shot in some racket sports in which the ball (or birdie) is hit relatively softly, sometimes with topspin or backspin, so that it lands just over and close to the net. A well-placed and well-timed drop shot will make it difficu ...

– #

Lob Lob may refer to: Sports * Lob (pickleball) * Lob (tennis) * Lob (association football), a lofted pass or shot in association football * Lob bowling, an archaic bowling style in cricket People * Lob Brown, American college football player * L ...

–

Strategy and styles of play

Tennis strategy Players use different strategies while playing tennis to enhance their own strengths and exploit their opponent's weaknesses in order to gain the advantage and win more points. Players typically specialize or naturally play in a certain way, base ...

Players are often described by their style of play: * Offensive baseliner – * Defensive baseliner – *

Serve-and-volley Serve-and-volley is a style of play in tennis where the player serving moves quickly towards the net after hitting a serve, to attempt to hit a volley afterwards. In the serve-and-volley playstyle, the server attempts to hit a volley (a shot whe ...

er – *

All-court player Players use different strategies while playing tennis to enhance their own strengths and exploit their opponent's weaknesses in order to gain the advantage and win more points. Players typically specialize or naturally play in a certain way, base ...

– Doubles strategies include: * Both-up strategy – * Up-and-back strategy – * Both-back strategy –

History of tennis

History of tennis The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sp ...

Governing bodies

International

Association of Tennis Professionals The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits – the ATP Tour, the ATP Challenger Tour and the ATP Champions Tour. It was formed in September 1972 by Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, a ...

(ATP) – principal organizing body to protect men's professional tennis. *

Women's Tennis Association The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) is the principal organizing body of women's professional tennis. It governs the WTA Tour which is the worldwide professional tennis tour for women and was founded to create a better future for women's tenn ...

(WTA) – principal organizing body to protect women's professional tennis. *

International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there ...

(ITF) – principal organizing body to protect professional tennis.

National

Tennis Australia Tennis Australia Limited is the governing body for Tennis in Australia. It is owned by Australian states and territories. The association organises national and international Tennis tournaments including the Australian Open, the Australian Open S ...

– principal organizing body to protect Australian tennis. *

Confederação Brasileira de Tênis The Brazilian Tennis Confederation ( pt, Confederação Brasileira de Tênis or CBT) is the governing body of tennis in Brazil. CBT is responsible for the organization of events such as the Brasil Open and for representing tennis players in Brazil ...

(CBT) – *

Tennis Canada Tennis Canada is the national governing body of tennis within Canada. It works together with the provincial associations to organize tournaments and rules. They also oversee the Canada Davis Cup team and the Canada Fed Cup team. Tennis Canada ...

– *

Chinese Tennis Association The Chinese Tennis Association (CTA) (Chinese: 中国网球协会) is the national governing body of tennis in China. It is a cooperative member of the All-China Sports Federation. The CTA is an independent legal person and it is recognized by C ...

(CTA) – *

Croatian Tennis Association The Croatian Tennis Association ( hr, Hrvatski teniski savez) is the governing body of tennis in Croatia. It organizes Croatia's teams in the Davis Cup and the Fed Cup. It also organizes and helps coordinate local tournaments and produces a nationa ...

, (CTA) – * Cyprus Tennis Federation – *

Fédération Française de Tennis The French Tennis Federation (french: Fédération française de tennis, FFT) is the governing body for tennis in France. It was founded in 1920, and is tasked with the organisation, co-ordination and promotion of the sport. It is recognised by the ...

(FFT) – principal organizing body to protect French tennis. *

Deutscher Tennis Bund The German Tennis Federation (German: Deutscher Tennis Bund, short form: DTB) is the governing body of tennis federations and clubs in Germany. It is the largest tennis federation in the world with more than 1,800,000 members. Founded on 19 May ...

(DTB) – *

All India Tennis Association The All India Tennis Association (AITA) ( hi, अखिल भारतीय टेनिस संघ), is the governing body of tennis in India. It was established in 1920 and affiliated by International Tennis Federation and Asian Tennis Fed ...

(AITA) – * Tennis Ireland – principal organizing body to protect Ireland tennis. * Israel Tennis Association (ITA) – * Lithuanian Tennis Association (LTS) – *

Luxembourg Tennis Federation The Luxembourg Tennis Federation (french: Fédération Luxembourgeoise de Tennis) is the tennis governing body in Luxembourg and responsible for the development of the game in the country. Tennis in Luxembourg Tennis is a popular sport, as it is ...

(FLT) – * Tennis Federation of Montenegro (TSCG) – *

Lawn Tennis Association The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) is the national governing body of tennis in Great Britain, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Founded in 1888, the LTA promotes all levels of lawn tennis. It believes that tennis can provide "physica ...

(LTA) – principal organizing body to protect British tennis. *

United States Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...

(USTA) – principal organizing body to protect American tennis.

Regional

Tennis Europe Tennis Europe (formerly known as the European Tennis Association) was formed in Rome, Italy on 31 May 1975 by a group of 17 European national tennis federations as a regional governing body for the sport of tennis and under the auspices of the Int ...

– organizing body to protect European professional tennis.

Tournaments

Grand Slam

The Grand Slams, the four major tournaments in tennis, are the most important

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

events of the year in terms of world ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, and public attention. They are: # Australian Open – founded 1905 # French Open – founded 1891, open to all amateurs internationally in 1925 #

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...

– the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, held at the

All England Club The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, also known as the All England Club, based at Church Road, Wimbledon, London, England, is a private members' club. It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon Championships, the only Grand Slam ...

since 1877. # US Open – founded 1881

Professional tennis

ATP World Tour The ATP Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for men organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals. The second-tier tour is the ATP Challenger Tour and the third-tier is the ITF Men's World Tennis Tour. The equivalent women's organi ...

** ATP Finals **

ATP World Tour Masters 1000 The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (previously known as ATP Masters Series) is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour. The series' events have been held in Europe and North America since the ...

ATP World Tour 500 series The ATP 500 tournaments (previously known as the ''ATP World Tour 500'' tournaments, '' ATP International Series Gold'', and ''ATP Championship Series'') are the fourth highest tier of annual men's tennis tournament after the four Grand Slam tou ...

ATP World Tour 250 series The ATP 250 tournaments (previously known as the ''ATP World Tour 250'' tournaments, ''ATP International Series'', and ''ATP World Series'') are the lowest tier of annual men's tennis tournaments on the main ATP Tour, after the four Grand Slam to ...

ATP Challenger Tour The ATP Challenger Tour, known until the end of 2008 as the ATP Challenger Series, is a series of international men's professional tennis tournaments. The Challenger Tour events are the second-highest tier of tennis competition, behind the ATP T ...

WTA Tour The WTA Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for women organized by the Women's Tennis Association. The second-tier tour is the WTA 125K series, and third-tier is the ITF Women's Circuit. The men's equivalent is the ATP Tour. WTA Tour tou ...

WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...

WTA Premier tournaments WTA Premier Tournaments was a category of tennis tournaments in the Women's Tennis Association tour, implemented from the reorganization of the schedule in 2009 until 2020. In 2020, Premier events included: * Four "Premier Mandatory" events in In ...

WTA International tournaments The WTA International Tournaments was a category for professional tennis tournaments of the Women's Tennis Association from the 2009 WTA Tour until 2020, which replaced the previous Tier III and Tier IV categories. The winner of a WTA Internati ...

Team tennis

* Davis Cup *

Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...

Hopman Cup The Hopman Cup is an international eight-team indoor hardcourt tennis tournament that played mixed-gender teams on a country-by-country basis.It was held in Perth, Western Australia each year from 1989 to 2019, before being replaced on the calen ...

Laver Cup The Laver Cup is an international indoor hard court men's team tennis tournament between Team Europe and Team World, the latter of which is composed of players from all other continents except Europe. Usually held annually since 2017, the tournam ...

World TeamTennis World TeamTennis (WTT) is a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973. The league's season normally takes place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA take a ...

Multi-sport games

Tennis at the Summer Olympics Tennis was part of the Summer Olympic Games program from the inaugural 1896 Summer Olympics, but was dropped after the 1924 Summer Olympics due to disputes between the International Lawn Tennis Federation and the International Olympic Committee ...

Wheelchair tennis at the Summer Paralympics Wheelchair tennis was first contested at the Summer Paralympics as a demonstration sport in 1988, with two events being held (men's and women's singles). It became an official medal-awarding sport in 1992 and has been competed at every Summer P ...

* Tennis at the Commonwealth Games * Tennis at the African Games * Tennis at the Asian Games *

Tennis at the Pan American Games Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ...

* Tennis at the Pacific Games * Tennis at the Southeast Asian Games * Tennis at the Summer Universiade * Tennis at the Youth Olympic Games

Persons influential in the sport

Famous tennis players

List of male tennis players There are several lists of tennis players: ;Men: * List of male singles tennis players * List of male doubles tennis players * Rankings ** List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players ** List of ATP number 1 ranked doubles tennis players * ...

List of female tennis players This is a list of female tennis players who meet one or more of the following criteria: * Singles: **Officially ranked among the top 25 by the Women's Tennis Association (since 1975) **Ranked among the top 10 by an expert (e.g. A. Wallis Myers) ...

By championship *

List of Australian Open champions The following is a list of Australian Open champions in tennis: Champions Senior Wheelchair Junior ‡ = a player who won both the junior and senior title. † = a player who won the junior title and reached the senior final. See also ...

List of French Open champions The following is a list of French Open champions in tennis: Champions † Not considered to be a Grand Slam event. A French club members only tournament. †† Disputed champions: Not considered to be a Grand Slam event. Not sanctioned or recog ...

List of Wimbledon champions The following is a list of Wimbledon champions in tennis: Champions Senior Wheelchair Junior ‡ = a player who won both the junior and senior title.† = a player who won the junior title and reached the senior final. See also ;Lists ...

List of US Open champions The following is a list of US Open champions in tennis: Champions Senior Wheelchair Junior ‡ = a player who won both the junior and senior title. † = a player who won the junior title and reached the senior final. See also ;Lists o ...

References

External links

International Tennis Federation site

Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP): Men's Professional Tennis

WTA Tour: Women's Professional Tennis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tennis Outlines of sports Wikipedia outlines *