| Tennis, game played with
a racket and a ball by two (as in singles) or four (as in doubles)
competitors, on a rectangular court with a net strung between the
midpoints of the longer sides of the court. Tennis may be played indoors
or outdoors. The game ranks as one of the most popular spectator and
participation sports in the world, with fans and competitors in more than
100 countries. Originally called lawn tennis to distinguish it from the
sport of court tennis, from which it was derived, the game is now commonly
known as tennis. |
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To win the grand slam—that is,
all four major tournaments in one calendar year—is considered the
greatest achievement in tennis. The first player to win the grand slam was
American Don Budge in 1938. The only other players to win the grand slam
are American Maureen Connolly in 1953, Australian Rod Laver in 1962 and
1969, Australian Margaret Smith Court in 1970, and German Steffi Graf in
1988. Although the origins of tennis are not clear, many experts believe
tennis, then called lawn tennis, was invented in 1873 by Major Walter
Clopton Wingfield, a British army officer. Although Wingfield claimed that
he modeled the game, which he called Sphairistiké (Greek for
"playing at bafall") ter an ancient Greek game, many
authorities believe that he adapted the principles of the popular
English games of court tennis, squash racquets, and badminton for outdoor
play. Early players preferred to call Wingfield's game tennis-on-the-lawn,
or lawn tennis. The game was introduced to Bermuda in 1873, and from
Bermuda was brought to the United States by Mary Ewing Outerbridge of
Staten Island, New York. The first game of lawn tennis in the United
States was probably played in 1874 on the grounds of the Staten Island
Cricket and Baseball Club. |
| The first world amateur
championships were held at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club
in Wimbledon, England (men, 1877; women, 1884). By the end of the 19th
century, lawn tennis had been introduced into British colonies and other
nations throughout the world. In the United States, local rules and
standards for the game varied widely until 1881, when the United States
Lawn Tennis Association (now the USTA) was organized to standardize rules
and equipment. Under its auspices, play for the annual U.S. singles
championships for men began in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1881. The
national men's singles championships continued to take place annually in
Newport until 1915, when they moved to the West Side Tennis Club in Forest
Hills, New York. The national women's singles matches began in 1887, at
the Philadelphia Cricket Club, and continued there until 1921, when they
were also brought to Forest Hills. In 1978 the U.S. championships, which
had been renamed the U.S. Open in 1968, moved to the National Tennis
Center in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in New York City. |
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