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 covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent's court. The object of the game is to manoeuvre the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. The player who is unable to return the ball validly will not gain a point, while the opposite player will.
Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society and at all ages. The sport can be played by anyone who can hold a racket, including wheelchair users. The original forms of tennis developed in France during the late Middle Ages. The modern form of tennis originated in Birmingham, England, in the late 19th century as lawn tennis. It had close connections both to various field (lawn) games such as croquet and bowls as well as to the older racket sport today called real tennis.
The rules of modern tennis have changed little since the 1890s. Two exceptions are that until 1961 the server had to keep one foot on the ground at all times, and the adoption of the tiebreak in the 1970s. A recent addition to professional tennis has been the adoption of electronic review technology coupled with a point-challenge system, which allows a player to contest the line call of a point, a system known as Hawk-Eye. (Full article...)
The French Open (French: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (French:[ʁɔlɑ̃ɡaʁos]), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros. The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface. It is chronologically the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, occurring after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the clay surface characteristics (slower pace, higher bounce), and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the French Open is widely regarded as the toughest and most physically demanding tournament in tennis. (Full article...)
The Estates-General had been called to address the country's fiscal and agricultural crisis, but they had become bogged down in issues of representation immediately after convening in May 1789, particularly whether they would vote by order or by head (which would increase the power of the Third Estate, as it outnumbered the other two estates by a large margin). On 17 June, the Third Estate began to call itself the National Assembly, led by Jean Sylvain Bailly. Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, Comte de Mirabeau, took a prominent role. (Full article...)
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The Sydney International (formerly known as the Championship of New South Wales and New South Wales Open, with various title sponsors), formerly sponsored as the Apia International Sydney from 2012 to 2017, was a professional tennistournament in Sydney, Australia. The tournament was played annually at the Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre in Sydney Olympic Park. It is one of the oldest tennis tournaments in the world, dating to 1885. In 2020 and 2021, the tournament was briefly replaced by the ATP Cup, before briefly returning in 2022 and has since been replaced in both men's and women's calendars by the United Cup.
The Sydney International was most recently held in 2022 as an ATP 250 event on the men's tour and a WTA 500 event on the women's tour. The tournament is held annually in January immediately prior to the Australian Open as a lead up tournament as part of the Australian Open Series. (Full article...)
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In tennis, "Battle of the Sexes" describes various exhibition matches played between a man and a woman, or a doubles match between two men and two women in one case. The term is most famously used for an internationally televised match in 1973 held at the Houston Astrodome between 55-year-old Bobby Riggs and 29-year-old Billie Jean King, which King won in three sets. The match was viewed by an estimated fifty million people in the United States and ninety million worldwide. King's win is considered a milestone in public acceptance of women's tennis.
Two other matches commonly referred to as a "battle of the sexes" include one held four months earlier in 1973 between Riggs and Margaret Court over the best of three sets, and one in 1992 between Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova over the best of three sets, with hybrid rules favoring the female player dubbed "The Battle of Champions". These matches were won by Riggs and Connors, respectively. (Full article...)
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Players on Wimbledon's Centre Court in 2008, a year before the installation of a retractable roof The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Edgbaston, 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 sport with more complex rules. The first Lawn Tennis Club and tournament was held in Royal Leamington Spa on 1 August 1882.
Most rules of (lawn) tennis derive from this precursor and it is reasonable to see both sports as variations of the same game. Most historians believe that tennis originated in the monastic cloisters in northern France in the 12th century, but the ball was then struck with the palm of the hand, hence the name jeu de paume ("game of the palm"). It was not until the 16th century that rackets came into use and the game began to be called 'tennis'. It was popular in England and France, and Henry VIII of England was an enthusiast of the game, now referred to as real tennis. (Full article...)
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The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slamtennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. The Australian Open starts in the middle of January and continues for two weeks coinciding with the Australia Day holiday. It features men's and women's singles; men's, women's and mixed doubles; junior's championships; and wheelchair, legends and exhibition events. Until 1987, it was played on grass courts, but since then three types of hardcourt surfaces have been used: green-coloured Rebound Ace up to 2007 and blue Plexicushion from 2008 to 2019. Since 2020, it has been played on blue GreenSet.
First held in 1905 as the Australasian championships, the Australian Open has grown to become one of the biggest sporting events in the Southern Hemisphere. Nicknamed "the happy slam", the Australian Open is the highest attended Grand Slam event, with more than 1,100,000 people attending the 2024 tournament, including qualifying. It was also the first Grand Slam tournament to feature indoor play during wet weather or extreme heat with its three primary courts, Rod Laver Arena, John Cain Arena and the refurbished Margaret Court Arena equipped with retractable roofs. (Full article...)
The Graf–Sabatini rivalry was a tennis rivalry between Steffi Graf and Gabriela Sabatini, who played each other on 40 occasions between 1985 and 1995. Graf was the world No. 1, and Sabatini reached a career high of No. 3. Both are Major champions, Graf winning 22 titles, and Sabatini won her only major title at the 1990 US Open over Graf. They also teamed in doubles, reaching three French Open finals and winning the 1988 Wimbledon crown.
In Grand Slams, they met 12 times, three of them in finals. Graf leads 11–1. In 1988, Graf beat Sabatini in the semifinals of the French Open, the US Open final, and the Olympic final to complete the calendar-year Golden Slam. In the 1991 Wimbledon final. Sabatini was two points away from capturing the singles title, but Graf took the match 8–6 in the deciding set. (Full article...)
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The New York Sportimes were a professional tennis team competing in World TeamTennis (WTT). The team was originally based in eastern Long Island from 2000 to 2002, before moving to Westchester County, New York in 2003, and then to New York City in 2009. The team was founded as the New York Hamptons in 2000, before changing its name to the New York Sportimes in 2003. In 2005, the team made its first playoff appearance and went on to defeat the Newport Beach Breakers in the WTT Final to win its first King Trophy.
On February 14, 2011, WTT announced that the New York Sportimes and New York Buzz had merged and would play the 2011 season as the New York Sportimes. In the three seasons following the merger, the Sportimes played 12 home matches in New York City and nine in the Capital District. On January 16, 2014, Claude Okin, CEO of the New York Sportimes announced that the franchise had been sold to businessman Russell Geyser, and the team would be relocated to San Diego, California and renamed the San Diego Aviators. (Full article...)
Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of tennis (also called "lawn tennis") is derived. It is also known as court tennis in the United States, royal tennis in England and Australia, and courte-paume in France (to distinguish it from longue-paume, and in reference to the older, racquetless game of jeu de paume, the ancestor of modern handball and racquet games). Many French real tennis courts are at jeu de paume clubs.
The term real was first used by journalists in the early 20th century as a retronym to distinguish the ancient game from modern lawn tennis (even though, at present, the latter sport is seldom contested on lawns outside the few social-club-managed estates such as Wimbledon). (Full article...)
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The Williams sisters rivalry was a tennis rivalry between sisters Venus Williams and Serena Williams (born June 17, 1980, and September 26, 1981, respectively), regarded as two of the best woman tennis players for over two decades. They met 31 times in professional tournaments between 1998 and 2020, with Serena leading their head-to-head 19–12.
Both sisters have been ranked world No. 1 in singles: Venus for a total of 11 weeks, beginning in February 2002; Serena for a total of 316 weeks, beginning in July 2002. Venus has won 49 singles titles over the course of her career, and Serena won 73. (Full article...)
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Novak Djokovic
The tennis rivalry between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal is the most prolific in men's tennis in the Open Era. It is widely considered by players, coaches, and pundits as one of the greatest rivalries in the history of tennis. The pair have contested at least one professional match every year from 2006 to 2022, and the ATP Tour listed the rivalry as the third-greatest of the 2000s decade, despite only starting in 2006. Statistically, Nadal and Djokovic are two of the most successful male players in the history of the sport.
The two have faced each other 59 times, including in all four major finals, with Djokovic leading 30–29 overall. Djokovic leads 15–13 in finals of all levels, while Nadal leads 11–7 at the majors, including 5–4 in major finals. Nadal leads 8–2 at the French Open and 2–1 at the US Open, while Djokovic leads 2–0 at the Australian Open and 2–1 at Wimbledon. To date, Djokovic is the only player to have beaten Nadal in all four majors. (Full article...)
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The Hungarian Tennis Championships (in Hungarian:Nemzeti Teniszbajnokság, Magyar Országos Teniszbajnokság or abbreviated to tenisz ob) also known as the Hungarian National Championships or the Hungarian Closed Championships is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It is currently part of the official Tennis Calendar of Hungary of the Hungarian Tennis Association and is a gentlemen's and ladies' event. (Full article...)
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Tennis string in closeup view
In tennis, the strings are the part of a tennis racquet which make contact with the ball. The strings form a woven network inside the head (or "hoop") of the racquet. Strings have been made with a variety of materials and possess varying properties that have been measured, such as dynamic stiffness, tension retention, thickness (gauge), string texture (shape of the string), and rebound efficiency. (Full article...)
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The practice of doping in tennis involves the use of prohibited, performance-enhancing substances listed by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The practice is considered unsportsmanlike and unethical, with punishments for such offences ranging from official warnings to career bans, depending on the severity of the offence.
Widespread illegal substance abuse in tennis developed during the 1980s and 1990s as performance-enhancing substances became increasingly available in professional sport. The detection and punishment for the use of drugs in this period was aided by the takeover of policing drug cheating by the International Tennis Federation in 1993. (Full article...)
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Australian chair umpire Scott Ray positions himself prior to a match at Wimbledon In tennis, an official is a person who ensures that a match or tournament is conducted according to the International Tennis Federation Rules of Tennis and other competition regulations.
At the highest levels of the sport, a team of up to eleven officials may be on court at any given time. These officials are broken up into categories based on their responsibility during the match. Contrastingly, many tennis matches are conducted with no officials present directly on court. (Full article...)
Image 3Wimbledon operates a ticket resale system where returned Show Court tickets can be purchased. All proceeds go to charity. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 5Novak Djokovic, the 2023 men's singles champion. It was his record-breaking twenty-third major title and his third at the French Open. (from French Open)
Image 20Su-Wei Hsieh was part of the 2023 winning women's doubles title. It was her sixth major title and her fourth Wimbledon title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 21Iga Świątek, the 2023 women's singles champion. It was her fourth major title and her third at the French Open. (from French Open)
Image 27Jan Zieliński was part of the 2024 winning mixed doubles team. It was his first major title. (from Australian Open)
Image 28Debenture of the All England Lawn Tennis Ground Ltd., issued 20th August 1930 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 29New Rod Laver Arena entrance added in 2018 as part of the Melbourne Park redevelopment. (from Australian Open)
Image 30Hsieh Su-wei was part of the 2024 winning women's doubles and mixed doubles team. It was her seventh major title in women's doubles and first major title in mixed doubles. (from Australian Open)
Image 38Commemorative plaque at Court 18 marking the longest tennis match in history (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 39Matthew Ebden was part of the 2024 winning men's doubles team. It was his second major title and first at the Australian Open. (from Australian Open)
Image 48Elise Mertens was part of the 2024 winning women's doubles team. It was her fourth major title and second at the Australian Open. (from Australian Open)
Image 49Arthur Ashe Stadium with the roof closed in 2018. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 51Barbora Strýcová was part of the 2023 winning women's doubles title. It was her second major title and her second Wimbledon title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 52Arthur Ashe stadium in 2010, before the retractable roof was added. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 61Mate Pavić was part of the 2023 winning mixed doubles team. It was his first mixed doubles title at Wimbledon, third mixed doubles major title, and sixth overall major title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Maria Esther Andion Bueno (11 October 1939 – 8 June 2018) was a Brazilian professional tennis player. During her 11-year career in the 1950s and 1960s, she won 19 major titles (seven in women's singles, 11 in women's doubles, and one in mixed doubles), making her the most successful South American tennis player in history, and the only one to ever win Wimbledon. Bueno was the year-end No. 1 female player in 1959 and 1960 and was known for her graceful style of play.
![Image 1 The French Open (French: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (French: [ʁɔlɑ̃ ɡaʁos]), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros. The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface. It is chronologically the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, occurring after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the clay surface characteristics (slower pace, higher bounce), and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the French Open is widely regarded as the toughest and most physically demanding tournament in tennis. (Full article...)](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d2/Blank.png)
The French Open (French: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (French: [ʁɔlɑ̃ ɡaʁos]), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros. The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface. It is chronologically the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, occurring after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the clay surface characteristics (slower pace, higher bounce), and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the French Open is widely regarded as the toughest and most physically demanding tournament in tennis. (Full article...)
![Image 1 The French Open (French: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (French: [ʁɔlɑ̃ ɡaʁos]), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros. The French Open is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface. It is chronologically the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, occurring after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the clay surface characteristics (slower pace, higher bounce), and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the French Open is widely regarded as the toughest and most physically demanding tournament in tennis. (Full article...)](/wiki/File:Blank.png)
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Rod Laver Arena, the main court of the Australian Open, in 2023. (from Australian Open)
Aerial view of the grounds (from Wimbledon Championships)
Wimbledon operates a ticket resale system where returned Show Court tickets can be purchased. All proceeds go to charity. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Centre Court at Wimbledon in May 2019 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Novak Djokovic, the 2023 men's singles champion. It was his record-breaking twenty-third major title and his third at the French Open. (from French Open)
View from seats of Wimbledon Court No. 1 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Ivan Dodig was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2023. It was his third major title and second at the French Open. (from French Open)
Austin Krajicek was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2023. It was his first major title. (from French Open)
The Royal Gallery at Centre Court, Wimbledon (from Wimbledon Championships)
Aryna Sabalenka, 2024 women's singles champion. It was her second major title and her second at the Australian Open. (from Australian Open)
Hsieh Su-wei was part of the winning women's doubles team in 2023. (from French Open)
Wimbledon ball girl at the net, 2007 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Rohan Bopanna was part of the 2024 winning men's doubles team. It was his first major title. (from Australian Open)
The order of play for all courts is displayed on boards around the grounds. (from Wimbledon Championships)
A Royal Marines Commando as a services steward in 2005 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Édouard Roger-Vasselin was part of the winning mixed doubles team in 2024. It was his first major title. (from French Open)
Composition of the courts. (from French Open)
The Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup (from Australian Open)
Bill Larned, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Su-Wei Hsieh was part of the 2023 winning women's doubles title. It was her sixth major title and her fourth Wimbledon title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Iga Świątek, the 2023 women's singles champion. It was her fourth major title and her third at the French Open. (from French Open)
Margaret Court Arena at the Australian Open in 2005 prior to its redevelopment. Rod Laver Arena is in the background. (from Australian Open)
Bill Tilden, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Jannik Sinner, 2024 men's singles champion. It was his first major title. (from Australian Open)
Court 10. On the outside courts there is no reserved seating. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Rafael Nadal holding the Coupe des Mousquetaires in 2006. (from French Open)
Jan Zieliński was part of the 2024 winning mixed doubles team. It was his first major title. (from Australian Open)
Debenture of the All England Lawn Tennis Ground Ltd., issued 20th August 1930 (from Wimbledon Championships)
New Rod Laver Arena entrance added in 2018 as part of the Melbourne Park redevelopment. (from Australian Open)
Todd Woodbridge holding the Gentlemen's doubles silver challenge cup in 2004 (from Wimbledon Championships)
The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment precinct on the banks of the Yarra River in 2010. (from Australian Open)
Rod Laver Arena night session in 2007, the last year the tournament used the Rebound Ace surface. (from Australian Open)
Neal Skupski was part of the 2023 winning men's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Markéta Vondroušová, the 2023 ladies' singles champion. It was her first major title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Martina Navratilova, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
Molla Mallory, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Commemorative plaque at Court 18 marking the longest tennis match in history (from Wimbledon Championships)
Matthew Ebden was part of the 2024 winning men's doubles team. It was his second major title and first at the Australian Open. (from Australian Open)
Margaret Court, the all-time record holder in women's singles. (from Australian Open)
Wang Xinyu was part of the winning women's doubles team in 2023. (from French Open)
Roger Federer, the all-time record holder in men's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
Sébastien Grosjean takes a shot on Court 18 during the 2004 Championships. (from Wimbledon Championships)
New Show Court Arena that opened in 2022. (from Australian Open)
Court Philippe Chatrier during the 2013 French Open. (from French Open)
Rafael Nadal, the all-time record holder in men's singles. (from French Open)
Chris Evert, the all-time record holder in women's singles. (from French Open)
Elise Mertens was part of the 2024 winning women's doubles team. It was her fourth major title and second at the Australian Open. (from Australian Open)
Arthur Ashe Stadium with the roof closed in 2018. (from US Open (tennis))
Carlos Alcaraz, the 2023 gentlemen's singles champion (from Wimbledon Championships)
Barbora Strýcová was part of the 2023 winning women's doubles title. It was her second major title and her second Wimbledon title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Arthur Ashe stadium in 2010, before the retractable roof was added. (from US Open (tennis))
Wesley Koolhof was part of the 2023 winning men's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Lyudmyla Kichenok was part of the 2023 winning mixed doubles title. It was her first major title overall. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Laura Siegemund was part of the winning mixed doubles team in 2024. It was her second major title. (from French Open)
The Ladies' (top) and Gentlemen's singles trophies (from Wimbledon Championships)
People watching the Championships' broadcast in Canary Wharf (from Wimbledon Championships)
Richard Sears, a joint all-time record-holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Novak Djokovic, the all-time record holder in men's singles. (from Australian Open)
Mate Pavić was part of the 2023 winning mixed doubles team. It was his first mixed doubles title at Wimbledon, third mixed doubles major title, and sixth overall major title. (from Wimbledon Championships)
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Lottie Dod, won Wimbledon five times and is the youngest ever ladies' singles champion.
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