With an estimated 1 billion fans worldwide, tennis, once known as lawn tennis, is one of the most well-liked sports. In Europe, North America, and Australia, it has a sizable fan base. Asia is also quickly catching on to tennis. The governing body is the International Tennis Federation (ITF). This comprehensive beginner's tennis book will be very helpful to new players in learning everything there is to know about the game. It can also be used by those who are familiar with the sport to enhance their knowledge.
Evolution and background
The sport known as "jeu de palme" originated in France in the 12th century. Tennis is the name given to this activity subsequently. In order to distinguish itself from the present type of tennis that is very popular, which probably originated in the 19th century, it ultimately changed names to authentic tennis balls in UK.
The rules, gear, and playing styles of lawn tennis have changed over time to become what they are now.
Play fields
Lawn tennis got its start on grass courts, therefore the name. Surfaces made of clay, synthetic materials, and carpet later appeared. At the international level, carpet is no longer ever used as a playing surface. Let's examine each surface's properties one at a time.
Compared to clay and artificial (hard) courts, grass courts are currently uncommon. The only Grand Slam competition still held on grass is Wimbledon.
There are more tournaments outside of Wimbledon at the ATP Tour, ATP Challenger, ITF Futures, and WTA Tour levels, but at all levels of the sport, clay and synthetic court tournaments outweigh grass court tournaments.
Until 1987, the Australian Open and US Open were both staged on grass. Because grass is frequently slick, the ball tends to skid slightly after bouncing. Players must act swiftly and bend to hit shots since the ball keeps moving quickly and at a low angle. Even players who are not accustomed to grass can trip and fall.
Grass
Due to the dearth of current tournaments held on grass, this is commonplace even among professionals. Compared to other surfaces, grass courts are more expensive and require more maintenance. To keep the grass from being too large or too little, they must be regularly trimmed. Among the present-day players, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic have excelled on this court.
Clay
Clay courts are constructed from crushed stone, brick, or shale. These playing surfaces have the slowest speeds. In general, clay is regarded as a great playing surface for novices. This is due to:
The surface is gentle on the legs and results in less damage. As it is tough to strike winners on this surface even for professionals, the speed teaches competitors the importance of patience and properly building up the rally to win the point.
Due to the surface's slowness, you can react in time to block an opponent's shot. Before finally improving movement speed and stamina to get to the ball faster, this helps a rookie player get used to court movement.
The only Grand Slam competition held on clay is the French Open. On the other hand, this surface is used for numerous additional competitions at the ATP Tour, WTA Tour, ATP Challenger, and ITF Futures levels.
In regions of Europe and South America, clay courts are very common. Rafael Nadal is the undisputed master of clay among active players, far ahead of his rivals.
Hard
The underlying material for the hard courts—concrete or asphalt—is covered with an acrylic surface layer before being assembled. The nature of the court differs depending on the many other materials utilised in production.
Some courts move almost as quickly as grass courts, while others move more quickly than clay courts. Hard courts are widely acknowledged to have a pace that falls between clay and grass, nevertheless.
Hard courts are used for the Grand Slam competitions of the US Open and Australian Open. The US Open courts, however, are quicker than those at the Australian Open because of the various materials utilised for the court surface. Decoturf is a covering that covers the US Open courts. Rebound Ace was the surface used for the Australian Open up until 2008; Plexicushion up until 2019; and Greenset starting in 2020.
There are numerous other competitions on the ATP Tour, WTA Tour, ATP Challenger, and ITF Futures levels that are contested on hard courts in addition to these two. These courts require the least amount of upkeep.