Portal:Tennis

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Panoramic view of Stadium Court in Tennis Center at Crandon Park, Key Biscayne, Florida, United States. Taken during the 2009 Sony Ericsson Open.

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 strung with a cord to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent's court. The object is to manoeuvre the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. If a player is unable to return the ball successfully, the opponent scores a point.

Tennis can be played by anyone who can hold a racket, including wheelchair users, and is played by people at every level of society and across all ages. 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 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. The two exceptions being the server needing to have one foot on the ground at all times prior to 1961, 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...)

More about Tennis history, glossary, equipment, courts, scores, types of matches, officials, shots, tournaments, and statistics

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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 tennis tournament 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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Owen Davidson is the most recent player to complete the Grand Slam.

This is a list of Mixed Doubles Grand Slam tennis tournament champions.

Although several players have won at least one title in each of the four majors to achieve the Career Grand Slam, only three players have won the Grand Slam, all four titles in a single calendar year. This includes one team, Margaret Court and Ken Fletcher in 1963, as well as Court and Owen Davidson separately with different partners. Billie Jean King completed the "non-calendar year Grand Slam" by winning all four majors in a row in a period spanning two calendar years. (Full article...)
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World TeamTennis (WTT) was a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973.

The league's season normally took place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA would often take a break from their tour schedules to partake in World TeamTennis. (Full article...)
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John McEnroe (7 Major singles titles, world No.1 for 170 weeks; pictured in 2012)

The Borg–McEnroe rivalry was a tennis rivalry between Björn Borg and John McEnroe, who met 14 times on the regular tour and 22 times in total between November 1978 and September 1981. Their head-to-head was even at 7–7. Their on-court rivalry was highlighted by their contrasting temperaments and playing styles: the Swede Borg was known for his cool and emotionless demeanor on court, while the American McEnroe was famed for his court-side tantrums. As a result, their rivalry was described as "Fire and Ice". They were tied in their five-set matches at 1–1.

In 1980, McEnroe reached the singles final at Wimbledon for the first time, where he faced Borg, who was aiming for an Open Era record fifth consecutive Wimbledon title. At the start of the final McEnroe was booed by the crowd as he entered Centre Court following his heated exchanges with officials during his semi-final clash with Jimmy Connors. In a fourth set tie-breaker that lasted 20 minutes, McEnroe saved five match points (seven altogether in that set) and eventually won 18–16. However, he was unable to break Borg's serve in the fifth set and Borg went on to win 8–6. This match is widely considered one of the best tennis matches ever played. McEnroe then defeated Borg at the US Open final the same year in five sets, which is also considered one of the best matches ever. (Full article...)
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The Russian Tennis Federation (Russian: Федерация тенниса России, romanized: Federatsiia tennisa Rossii) is the national governing body for tennis in Russia. It was founded in 1989 as the All-Russia Tennis Association and reorganized under its current name in 2002. The federation serves as the successor to the Tennis Federation of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) (1959-1989) and the Tennis Federation of the Soviet Union (1959-93), which was previously known as the All-Union Tennis Section (1929-1959). (Full article...)
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"Tennis the Menace" is the twelfth episode of the twelfth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 11, 2001. In the episode, the Simpsons build a tennis court in their backyard and are ridiculed by the entire town because of Homer's inferior tennis ability. Homer therefore tries to please Marge by entering the two into a tournament, but they quickly turn into rivals when Marge replaces Homer with Bart as her partner.

The episode features guest appearances from tennis professionals Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, and the Williams sisters as themselves. "Tennis the Menace" was directed by Jen Kamerman and written by Ian Maxtone-Graham, who also directed the Williams sisters' performance. The episodes title is a parody of Dennis the Menace. The animators of The Simpsons experimented with digital ink and paint on "Tennis the Menace", making it the first episode of the series to be animated using the process since season 7's "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular." (Full article...)
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The Grand Slam in tennis is the achievement of winning all four major championships in one discipline in a calendar year. In doubles, a Grand Slam may be achieved as a team or as an individual with different partners. Winning all four major championships consecutively but not within the same calendar year is referred to as a "non-calendar-year Grand Slam", while winning the four majors at any point during the course of a career is known as a "Career Grand Slam".

The term Grand Slam is also attributed to the Grand Slam tournaments, referred to as Grand Slams or Majors, and they are the world's four most important annual professional tennis tournaments. They offer the most ranking points, prize money, public and media attention, the greatest strength and size of the field and, in recent years, the longest matches for men (best of five sets, best of three for the women). The tournaments are overseen by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), rather than the separate men's and women's tour organizing bodies, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Women's Tennis Association (WTA), but both the ATP and WTA award ranking points based on players' performances in them. (Full article...)
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The 2010 men's singles runner-up, Radek Štěpánek, won the first edition of the event held in Brisbane
The Brisbane International established in 2009 is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts in Brisbane, Queensland in Australia. It is a WTA 500 tournament and an ATP 250 tournament.

The tournament is held annually in January at the Queensland Tennis Centre just before the first Grand Slam tournament of the season, the Australian Open (part of the Australian Open Series). It is owned by Tennis Australia. (Full article...)
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Left elbow-joint. (Lateral epicondyle visible at center.)

Tennis elbow, also known as lateral epicondylitis, is an enthesopathy (attachment point disease) of the origin of the extensor carpi radialis brevis on the lateral epicondyle. It causes pain and tenderness over the bony part of the lateral epicondyle. Symptoms range from mild tenderness to severe, persistent pain. The pain may also extend into the back of the forearm. It usually has a gradual onset, but it can seem sudden and be misinterpreted as an injury.

Tennis elbow is often idiopathic. Its cause and pathogenesis are unknown. It likely involves tendinosis, a degeneration of the local tendon. (Full article...)
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The Williams sisters rivalry was a tennis rivalry between sisters Venus Williams (born June 17, 1980) and Serena Williams (born September 26, 1981). They were coached by their father, Richard Williams, whose tennis knowledge came from reading books and watching professional tennis matches. Venus and Serena are regarded as two of the world's best tennis players for over two decades. They met 31 times in professional tournaments between 1998 and 2020, with Serena leading their overall head-to-head 19–12, as well as 9-3 in finals, 11-5 at the majors, and 7-2 in major finals.

Both sisters have been ranked world No. 1 in singles: Venus for a total of 11 weeks, between 25 February 2002 and 7 July 2002. The next day, 8 July 2002, Serena would replace her big sister at №1 and remain there for 57 consecutive weeks, until 10 August 2003. Serena wouldn't hold the №1-ranking for another 5 years, regaining it on 8 September 2008. Over the next 2 years Serena would spend 66 weeks at the apex of the WTA Tour, with her fifth stint ending on 10/10/10 (10 October 2010). Her sixth stint wouldn't be until 2013, but beginning on 18 September 2013, Serena would occupy the penthouse of the WTA Tour's singles rankings for 186-consecutive weeks (tying Steffi Graf's record), ending on 11 September 2016. In all, Serena held the №1-ranking for a total of 319 weeks, joining Graf (377) and Martina Navratilova (332) as the only women over 300 weeks. Venus has won 49 singles titles from 83 finals, and Serena won 73 titles from 98 finals, throughout their respective careers which spanned three decades. (Full article...)
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The tennis rivalry between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal is considered one of the greatest in the history of the sport. Federer and Nadal played each other 40 times, with Nadal leading 24–16 overall, including 14–10 in finals.

Of their 40 matches, 20 were on hardcourts, 16 on clay, and 4 on grass. Nadal leads on clay (14–2), while Federer leads on grass (3–1) and hard court (11–9). A total of 14 matches were at the majors, with Nadal leading 10–4. Nadal leads 6–0 at the French Open and 3–1 at the Australian Open, while Federer leads 3–1 at Wimbledon. On several occasions, they were a match away from meeting at the US Open, but were denied each time. They are tied in five-set encounters at 3–3. (Full article...)
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World number 1 ranked male tennis players is a year-by-year listing of the male tennis players who were ranked as world No. 1 by various contemporary and modern sources. The annual source rankings from which the No. 1 players are drawn are cited for each player's name, with a summary of the most important tennis events of each year also included. If world rankings are not available, recent rankings by tennis writers for historical years are accessed, with the dates of the recent rankings identified. In the period 1948–1953, when contemporary professional world rankings were not created, the U.S. professional rankings are cited. (Full article...)
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The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, 13 grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility with three courts, three outdoor hard courts, one green clay court, a court tennis facility, and a theatre. The International Tennis Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization with the goal of preserving, celebrating, and inspiring the sport of tennis around the world.

The location was the original home of the U.S. National Championships (now called the US Open), established in 1881. Since 1976, the complex has hosted the Hall of Fame Open, a combined men's and women's event, each year in July. (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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The Open Era is the current era of professional tennis. It began in 1968 when the Grand Slam tournaments allowed professional players to compete with amateurs, ending the division that had persisted since the dawn of the sport in the 19th century. The first open tournament was the 1968 British Hard Court Championships held in April, followed by the inaugural open Grand Slam tournament, the 1968 French Open, a month later. Unless otherwise sourced, all records are based on data from the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and the official websites of the four Grand Slam tournaments. All rankings-related records are based on ATP rankings, which began in 1973. The names of active players appear in boldface. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various tennis-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1New Show Court Arena that opened in 2022 (from Australian Open)
Image 2Andrea Vavassori was part of the winning mixed doubles team in 2025. (from French Open)
Image 3Court Philippe Chatrier during the 2013 French Open (from French Open)
Image 4Spencer Gore, the winner of the inaugural Wimbledon Championship (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 5A 2015 Wimbledon Championships tennis ball manufactured by Slazenger (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 6Umpires Magdi Somat and Carlos Bernardes between Wimbledon matches in 2013 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 7Veronika Kudermetova was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 8Strawberries and cream at Wimbledon (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 9Molla Mallory, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Image 10Chris Evert, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from French Open)
Image 11Sem Verbeek was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 12A Royal Marines Commando as a services steward in 2005 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 13Olivia Gadecki was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 14Arthur Ashe Stadium with the roof closed in 2018. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 15Jannik Sinner, 2025 men's singles champion. (from Australian Open)
Image 16Henry Patten was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 17Richard Sears, a joint all-time record-holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Image 18The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment precinct on the banks of the Yarra River in 2010. (from Australian Open)
Image 19Erin Routliffe was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 20New Rod Laver Arena entrance added in 2018 as part of the Melbourne Park redevelopment. (from Australian Open)
Image 21Lloyd Glasspool was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 22Taylor Townsend was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 23Jannik Sinner, the 2025 gentlemen's singles champion. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 24Iga Świątek, the 2025 ladies' singles champion. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 25Madison Keys, 2025 women's singles champion. (from Australian Open)
Image 26Martina Navratilova, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 27Kateřina Siniaková was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 28Sébastien Grosjean takes a shot on Court 18 during the 2004 Championships. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 29View from seats of Wimbledon Court No. 1 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 30Aryna Sabalenka, 2025 women's singles champion. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 31Sara Errani was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 32Coco Gauff, the 2025 women's singles champion (from French Open)
Image 33Aerial view of the grounds (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 34The order of play for all courts is displayed on boards around the grounds. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 35Andrea Vavassori was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 36People watching the Championships' broadcast in Canary Wharf (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 37Rod Laver Arena, the main court of the Australian Open, in 2023 (from Australian Open)
Image 38Harri Heliövaara was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 39Composition of the courts (from French Open)
Image 40Arthur Ashe stadium in 2010, before the retractable roof was added. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 41Margaret Court, the all-time record holder in women's singles. (from Australian Open)
Image 42Horacio Zeballos was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 43Todd Woodbridge holding the Gentlemen's doubles silver challenge cup in 2004 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 44Court 10. On the outside courts there is no reserved seating. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 45John Peers was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 46Margaret Court Arena at the Australian Open in 2005 prior to its redevelopment. Rod Laver Arena is in the background. (from Australian Open)
Image 47Marcel Granollers was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2025. (from French Open)
Image 48Julian Cash was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team with. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 49The Royal Gallery at Centre Court, Wimbledon (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 50Carlos Alcaraz, 2025 men's singles champion. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 51Jasmine Paolini was part of the winning women's doubles team in 2025. (from French Open)
Image 52Kateřina Siniaková was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Image 53Commemorative plaque at Court 18 marking the longest tennis match in history (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 54Rafael Nadal, the all-time record holder in men's singles (from French Open)
Image 55Gabriela Dabrowski was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 56Wimbledon operates a ticket resale system where returned Show Court tickets can be purchased. All proceeds go to charity. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 57Marcel Granollers was part of the 2025 winning men's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Image 58The Ladies' (top) and Gentlemen's singles trophies (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 59Horacio Zeballos was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2025. (from French Open)
Image 60Current Men’s singles trophy (from US Open (tennis))
Image 61Sara Errani was part of the winning women's and mixed doubles team in 2025. (from French Open)
Image 62Wimbledon ball girl at the net, in the 2007 edition (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 63Carlos Alcaraz, the 2025 men's singles champion (from French Open)
Image 64Rafael Nadal holding the Coupe des Mousquetaires in 2006 (from French Open)
Image 65Novak Djokovic, the all-time record holder in men's singles. (from Australian Open)
Image 66Bill Larned, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Image 67Rod Laver Arena night session in 2007, the last year the tournament used the Rebound Ace surface. (from Australian Open)
Image 68Bill Tilden, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Image 69Debenture of the All England Lawn Tennis Ground Ltd., issued 20th August 1930 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 70Elise Mertens was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 71Roger Federer, the all-time record holder in men's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 72The various trophies contested at the Wimbledon championships being displayed at the All England Club museum (from Wimbledon Championships)
Image 73Centre Court at Wimbledon in May 2019 (from Wimbledon Championships)

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WikiProject Sports • WikiProject Olympics

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Gibson in 1956

Althea Neale Gibson (August 25, 1927 – September 28, 2003) was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first Black player to win a Grand Slam event (the French Open). The following year she won both Wimbledon and the US Nationals (precursor of the US Open), then won both again in 1958 and was voted Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press in both years. In all, she won 11 Grand Slam titles: five singles titles, five doubles titles, and one mixed doubles title. "She is one of the greatest players who ever lived," said Bob Ryland, a tennis contemporary and former coach of Venus and Serena Williams. "Martina [Navratilova] couldn't touch her. I think she'd beat the Williams sisters." Gibson was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971 and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame in 1980. In the early 1960s, she also became the first Black player to compete in the Ladies Professional Golf Association.

At a time when racism and prejudice were widespread in sports and in society, Gibson was often compared to Jackie Robinson. "Her road to success was a challenging one," said Billie Jean King "but I never saw her back down." "To anyone, she was an inspiration, because of what she was able to do at a time when it was enormously difficult to play tennis at all if you were Black." said former New York City Mayor David Dinkins. "I am honored to have followed in such great footsteps," wrote Venus Williams. "Her accomplishments set the stage for my success, and through players like myself and Serena and many others to come, her legacy will live on." (Full article...)

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... that in high school, tennis player Sara Daavettila went an entire season without losing a game?
... that American Colossus is a biography of a man who was "the most famous sportsman in the world" and "the most forgotten great athlete in American history"?

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“

The comparing and rating of athletes who were not contemporaries and did not encounter one another on important occasions is a trap in which no tennis reporter of experience should be caught.

”

— Al Laney, in his book 'Covering the Court – A Fifty-Year Love affair with the Game of Tennis'.

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