Playing and Equipment

The court is marked with white lines to indicate its dimensions and service areas. The court is 78 ft (23.8 m) long, divided into two equal sides by a net standing 3 ft (0.9 m) high at the center of the court. For singles the court is 27 ft (8.2 m) wide. For doubles the addition of alleys 4.5 ft (1.4 m) wide along the two longer sides increases the width to 36 ft (11 m). (For more detail, see accompanying diagram.) Courts may be of grass, clay, asphalt, concrete, wood, artificial grass, or other synthetic materials.
	The court is marked with white lines to indicate its dimensions and service areas. The court is 78 ft (23.8 m) long, divided into two equal sides by a net standing 3 ft (0.9 m) high at the center of the court. For singles the court is 27 ft (8.2 m) wide. For doubles the addition of alleys 4.5 ft (1.4 m) wide along the two longer sides increases the width to 36 ft (11 m). (For more detail, see accompanying diagram.) Courts may be of grass, clay, asphalt, concrete, wood, artificial grass, or other synthetic materials. A tennis ball is hollow and composed of inflated rubber covered with a fabric made of wool and artificial fibers. It is between 2 1/2 and 2 5/8 in (6.35 and 6.67 cm) in diameter and weighs between 2 and 2 1/16 oz (57.7 and 58.5 g). Yellow and white balls are used in tournament competition and are the most common colors, although balls of other colors are manufactured.
There is no uniform design of tennis rackets, and their sizes and shapes vary. The general classifications, determined by the size of the racket head, are standard, midsize, oversize, and super oversize. In tournament play, the maximum length of a racket is 32 in (81.3 cm). The maximum width is 12.5 in (31.8 cm). The head of the racket may not exceed a length of 15.5 in (39.4 cm) and a width of 11.5 in (29.2 cm), and it is usually strung with resilient gut or nylon or other synthetic materials. There are no restrictions on weight. Rackets were originally made of wood, but now virtually all rackets are made of such materials as aluminum or graphite, which are stronger and lighter than wood. The racket handle is generally covered with a rubber or leather grip. Players usually wear lightweight clothing, traditionally white, and shoes with nonskid rubber soles.