Tennis

Introduction
• tennis, original name lawn tennis, game in which two opposing
players (singles) or pairs of players (doubles) use tautly strung rackets
 to hit a ball of specified size, weight, and bounce over a net on a
rectangular court.

• Points are awarded to a player or team whenever the opponent fails to

correctly return the ball within the prescribed dimensions of the court.
Organized tennis is played according to rules sanctioned by the 
International Tennis Federation (ITF), the world governing body of the
sport.
• Tennis originally was known as lawn tennis, and formally still is in 
Britain, because it was played on grass courts by Victorian gentlemen
and ladies. It is now played on a variety of surfaces.
• The origins of the game can be traced to a 12th–13th-century French 
handball game called jeu de paume (“game of the palm”), from which
was derived a complex indoor racket-and-ball game: real tennis.
• This ancient game is still played to a limited degree and is usually
called real tennis in Britain, court tennis in the United States, and royal
tennis in Australia.
Who invented the game of tennis?

• The inventor of modern tennis has been disputed, but the

officially recognized centennial of the game in 1973
commemorated its introduction by Major Walter Clopton
Wingfield in 1873. He published the first book of rules that
year and took out a patent on his game in 1874.
History
• There has been much dispute over the invention of modern
tennis, but the officially recognized centennial of the game
in 1973 commemorated its introduction by Major Walter
Clopton Wingfield in 1873.
• He published the first book of rules that year and took out a
patent on his game in 1874, although historians have
concluded that similar games were played earlier and that
the first tennis club was established by the Englishman
Harry Gem and several associates in Leamington in 1872.
• Meanwhile, the game had spread to the United States in the 1870s. Mary
Outerbridge of New York has been credited with bringing a set of rackets
and balls to her brother, a director of the Staten Island Cricket and
Baseball Club. But research has shown that William Appleton of Nahant, 
Massachusetts, may have owned the first lawn tennis set and that his
friends James Dwight and Fred R. Sears popularized the game.

• Tennis in the 1880s was dominated by the remarkable twin brothers 

William and Ernest Renshaw. William won the Wimbledon singles
championship seven times, on three occasions defeating his brother in the
final. Ernest was victorious once, and in partnership they won the doubles
championship, first played at Oxford in 1879, seven times.
How is tennis played?

• Tennis is a game played with two opposing players

(singles) or pairs of players (doubles) using tautly
strung rackets to hit a ball of specified size, weight,
and bounce over a net on a rectangular court. Points
are awarded whenever the opponent fails to correctly
return the ball within the prescribed dimensions of
the court.
What are the dimensions of a tennis court?

• A tennis court length measures 78 by 27 feet for

singles and 78 by 36 feet for doubles. The net at the
center is 3 feet in height, supported at each side of
the court by posts 3.5 feet high placed 3 feet outside
the court.
What is the size of a standard tennis ball?

• According to the International Tennis

Federation, the tennis ball must be yellow or
white, between 2.5 and 2.8 inches in diameter
and between 1.975 and 2.095 ounces in weight.
Court and Equipment
• The dimensions of the tennis court are 78 by 27 feet (23.8 by 8.2
meters) for singles and 78 by 36 feet (23.8 by 11.0 meters) for doubles.
• The height of the net at the center is 3 feet (0.91 meters), and it is
supported at each side of the court by posts 3.5 feet (1.1 meters) high
placed 3 feet outside the court.
• Tennis was originally called lawn tennis, and grass courts are still in
use, but the most common court materials today are clay (called “hard
courts” in most places, although in the United States that term refers to
any hard surface), cement, and a number of cushioned asphalt
derivatives and synthetic surfaces. The latter may be hard surface or
artificial grass, materials that have become popular for indoor courts
along with the traditional wood.
• A tennis ball consists of a pressurized rubber core covered with high-quality
cloth, usually wool mixed with up to 35 percent nylon.
• Balls gradually go soft with use, and in tournament play they are changed at
regular intervals agreed upon by officials and depending upon such factors as
the court surface.
• Balls must have a uniform outer surface, and, if there are any seams, they
must be stitchless. The ITF specifies that the ball must be yellow or white,
between 2.5 and 2.8 inches (6.35 and 7.14 cm) in diameter, and between
1.975 and 2.095 ounces (56 and 59.4 grams) in weight. 
• The ball must have a bounce between 53 and 58 inches (135 and 147 cm)
when dropped 100 inches (254 cm) upon a concrete base.
• Nothing in the rules defined the racket until 1981. After an ITF
 committee had made studies of the so-called “double-strung,” or
“spaghetti,” racket, introduced in 1977, which had two layers of
strings that imparted topspin on the ball, it was banned by the
following rule:

• In 1979 the ITF limited racket length for professional play to 29 inches
(73.7 cm). This maximum was applied to nonprofessional play in
2000. The maximum racket width is 12.5 inches (31.75 cm).
Principles of play
• Opponents spin a racket or toss a coin to decide on side and service. The
winner may decide to serve or receive service first (in which case the
opponent chooses the side) or may decide on a choice of side (in which case
the opponent may choose to serve or receive service first). The players serve
alternate games and change sides after every odd number of games.

• Beginning each game from behind his or her right-hand court, the server has
both feet behind the baseline and strikes the ball diagonally across the net
 and into the opponent’s right-hand service court. Should the ball on service
strike the top of the net before falling in the correct service court, it is a “let”
and is replayed. The server is allowed one miss, or “fault,” either into the net
or outside the opponent’s service court. Failure to deliver a correct service on
two attempts constitutes loss of the point.
• To return service, the receiver strikes the ball back (before it hits the ground a
second time) over the net and within the boundaries of the opponent’s court. After
the service has been correctly returned, the players may volley the ball (i.e., hit it
before it bounces) or hit it after its first bounce, and the point continues until one
player fails to make a correct return. This may occur if a player fails to hit the ball
over the net, hits it outside the opponent’s boundaries, or fails to hit it before it
strikes the ground a second time on his or her side of the net.
• To win a game, a player must win four points and by a margin of two. The scoring
goes 15, 30, 40, game; this system, derived from real tennis, is medieval in origin.
It never has been satisfactorily explained why three points equal 40 rather than 45.
Zero is generally referred to as “love,” which is thought to be derived from l’oeuf,
the French word for “egg.” The server’s score is called first; thus, 30–15 means
that the server has two points to one, whereas 15–30 means that the receiver has
two points to one. If both players reach 40, the score is said to be “deuce,” and the
game continues until a player achieves first “advantage” and then the two-point
margin for “game.”
• There is no limit to the number of times a game can go to deuce before it is decided, but in
some competitions a so-called “no-ad” system is used, which means that no two-point
margin is required and the first player to win four points wins the game. As points make up
a game, games make up a set, and sets make up a match. The first player to win six games
traditionally wins the set, although a two-game margin is again required; thus, a set in
which each player has won five games cannot be won before 7–5.
• Since the early 1970s virtually all competitions have come to employ tiebreakers to
eliminate marathon sets. Usually played at six games all, the tiebreaker can consist of an
odd number of points with no two-point margin required (“sudden death”) or an even
number of points with a two-point margin required. For example, in a 12-point tiebreaker
the first player to reach 7 points with a margin of 2 wins the tiebreaker game and the set,
7–6. Virtually all tournaments now play tiebreakers at six games all. In major tournaments
and the Davis Cup, men generally play best-of-five-set matches and women best-of-three.
In most other tournaments, men now also play best-of-three sets; women occasionally play
best-of-five for finals. In Olympic competition, all matches are best-of-three sets, except
for the men’s finals, which are best-of-five.
Basic rules of table tennis as per the ITTF
THE TABLE
-The upper surface of the table, known as the playing surface, shall be rectangular,
2.74m long and 1.525m wide, and shall lie in a horizontal plane 76cm above the
floor. The playing surface shall not include the vertical sides of the tabletop. The
playing surface may be of any material and shall yield a uniform bounce of about
23cm when a standard ball is dropped on to it from a height of 30cm. The playing
surface shall be uniformly dark coloured and matte, but with a white side line, 2cm
wide, along each 2.74m edge and a white end line, 2cm wide, along each 1.525m
edge. The playing surface shall be divided into 2 equal courts by a vertical net
running parallel with the end lines, and shall be continuous over the whole area of
each court.  For doubles, each court shall be divided into 2 equal half-courts by a
white centre line, 3mm wide, running parallel with the side lines; the centre line
shall be regarded as part of each right half-court.
The Net Assembly
-The net assembly shall consist of the net, its suspension and the supporting posts, including the clamps
attaching them to the table. The net shall be suspended by a cord attached at each end to an upright post
15.25cm high, the outside limits of the post being 15.25cm outside the side line. The top of the net, along
its whole length, shall be 15.25cm above the playing surface.  The bottom of the net, along its whole
length, shall be as close as possible to the playing surface and the ends of the net shall be attached to the
supporting posts from top to bottom. 

The Ball
-The ball shall be spherical, with a diameter of 40mm. The ball shall weigh 2.7g. The ball shall be made of
celluloid or similar plastics material and shall be white or orange, and matt.

The Racket
• The racket can be any size, shape or weight but the blade shall be flat and rigid.    
• The surface covering material shall be matt and bright red on one side and black on the other.     
• At least 85% of the blade thickness shall be of natural wood.
Definitions
• A rally is the period which the ball is in play.             
• A let is a rally of which the result is not scored.     
• A point is a rally of which the result is scored.   
• The server is the player due to strike the ball first in the rally.
• The receiver is the player due to strike the ball second in a rally.
• The ball shall be regarded as passing over or around the net assembly if it passes anywhere
other then between the net and the net post or between the net and the playing surface. 
The Service

Service shall start with the ball resting freely on the open palm of the server's stationary free hand. The
server shall then project the ball near vertically upwards, without imparting spin, so that it rises at least
16cm after leaving the palm of the free hand and then falls without touching anything before being
struck. As the ball is falling the server shall strike it so that it touches first his or her court and then, after
passing over or around the net assembly, touches directly the receiver's court; in doubles, the ball shall
touch successively the right half court of server and receiver. From the start of service until it is struck,
the ball shall be above the level of the playing surface and behind the server's end line, and it shall not be
hidden from the receiver by the server or his or her doubles partner or by anything they wear or carry. As
soon as the ball has been projected, the server’s free arm and hand shall be removed from the space
between the ball and the net.
The space between the ball and the net is defined by the ball, the net and its indefinite upward
extension. It is the responsibility of the player to serve so that the umpire or the assistant umpire can be
satisfied that he or she complies with the requirements of the Laws, and either may decide that a service
is incorrect. If either the umpire or the assistant umpire is not sure about the legality of a service he or she
may, on the first occasion in a match, interrupt play and warn the server; but any subsequent service by
that player or his or her doubles partner which is not clearly legal shall be considered
incorrect. Exceptionally, the umpire may relax the requirements for a correct service where he or she is
satisfied that compliance is prevented by physical disability.
• The Return
The ball, having been served or returned shall be struck so that it passes over
or around the net assembly and touches the opponents court, either directly
or after touching the net assembly.
•
The Order of Play
In singles the server shall make a first service and the receiver shall make a
return and thereafter alternately shall each make a return.
• In doubles, the server shall first make a service, the receiver shall then make
a return, the partner of the server shall then make a return, the partner of the
receiver shall then make a return and thereafter each player in turn in that
sequence shall make a return.
• A Point
Unless the rally is a let, a player shall score a point:
• If an opponent fails to make a correct service; 
• If an opponent fails to make a correct return; 
• If, after he or she has made a service or a return, the ball touches anything other than the net assembly before being
struck by an opponent; 
• If the ball passes over his or her court or beyond his or her end line without touching his or her court, after being
struck by an opponent; 
• If an opponent obstructs the ball; 
• If an opponent deliberately strikes the ball twice in succession; 
• If an opponent strikes the ball with a side of the racket blade whose surface does not comply with the requirements
of 2.4.3, 2.4.4 and 2.4.5; 
• If an opponent, or anything an opponent wears or carries, moves the playing surface; 
• If an opponent, or anything an opponent wears or carries, touches the net assembly; 
• If an opponent's free hand touches the playing surface; 
• If a doubles opponent strikes the ball out of the sequence established by the first server
and first receiver;  
• As provided under the expedite system (2.15.4). 
• If both players or pairs are in a wheelchair due to a physical disability and 
• His or her opponent does not maintain a minimum contact with the seat or cushion(s),
with the back of the thigh, when the ball is struck; 
• His or her opponent touches the table with either hand before striking the ball; 
• His or her opponent's footrest or foot touches the floor during play. 
• As provided under the order of play (2.8.3). 
• A Game
A game shall be won by a player or pair first scoring 11 points unless both
players or pairs score 10 points when the game shall be won by the first
player or pair subsequently gaining a lead of 2 points.
•
A Match
A match shall consist of the best of any odd number of games.