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 objective 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 those who are blind or with low vision, 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 are 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. In 2006, professional tennis adopted electronic review technology coupled with a point-challenge system known as Hawk-Eye, which has increasingly been succeeded by fully automated Electronic Line Calling (ELC Live) systems. (Full article...)
John McEnroe (7 Major singles titles, world No.1 for 170 weeks; pictured in 2012)
Björn Borg and John McEnroe had a tennis rivalry. They 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 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 tennistournament 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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Players on Wimbledon's Centre Court in 2008, a year before the installation of a retractable roof The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis was invented in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, and is now commonly known simply as tennis. It is the direct descendant of what is now known as real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sport with more complex rules.
Most rules of (lawn) tennis derive from this precursor and it is reasonable to see both sports as variations of the same game. Most historians believe that tennis originated in northern France in the 12th century, but the ball was then struck with the palm of the hand, hence the name jeu de paume (lit.'game of the palm'). It was not until the 16th century that rackets came into use and the game began to be called 'tennis'. It was popular in the Kingdom of France as well as in England, where Henry VIII of England was a notable enthusiast of the game now referred to as real tennis. (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...)
The Becker–Edberg rivalry was a tennis rivalry between Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg, who met 35 times between 1984 and 1996. Although Becker led their overall head-to-head 25–10 and won all three of their Davis Cup matches, Edberg won three of their four meetings in Grand Slams. Edberg and Becker also reached the championship match of the 1989 World Tour Finals, which Edberg won in four sets. Edberg led their five-set matches at 2–1.
The most defining aspect of their rivalry was the three successive Wimbledon finals that they played. In the 1988 meeting, Becker was the huge favorite, and stormed to the first set 6–4. The second set was to be the most memorable, when in a fit of courage and tennis acumen Edberg won a tight set in a tiebreaker 7–2. Edberg went on to win the next two sets 6–4, 6–2 to win his first Wimbledon title and deny Becker a third title in four years. In the 1989 meeting, Becker, having lost to Edberg a month earlier in the French Open semifinals, raced to win the first set 6–0. The second set was closer, but won in a tiebreak by Becker 7–1 after saving 3 set points (Edberg led 6-5 40-0 and service). Becker went on to win the third set 6–4. This was Becker's third Wimbledon title, which would be his last Wimbledon crown. In the 1990 meeting, Edberg won the first two sets 6–2, 6–2. However, Becker rallied to win the next two sets 6–3, 6–3. Becker broke Edberg early in the fifth set, setting up the possibility of being the first Wimbledon champion since Henri Cochet in 1927 to win the final after losing the first two sets. Yet, this was not to be as Edberg regained the break and then broke Becker in the ninth game of the set with a topspin lob winner, eventually serving it out for a second Wimbledon championship. (Full article...)
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The Agassi–Sampras rivalry was a tennis rivalry between Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras, who were both ranked world No. 1 during the 1990s. Sampras held the world's top ranking for (a then-record) 286 weeks while Agassi held it for 101 weeks. With contrasting styles and temperaments, they played each other 34 times from 1989 through 2002, with Sampras leading the head-to-head 20–14 and leading 9–7 in finals. They are tied in their five-set matches at 1–1. It has been named as one of the greatest tennis rivalries of all time.
In Grand Slam tournaments, they played in five finals, with Sampras winning four. They met for the first time in a Grand Slam final at the 1990 US Open, with Agassi the favorite because of his superior ranking even though Sampras had defeated former world No. 1 players Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe en route to the final. Sampras defeated Agassi in straight sets. (Full article...)
World Tennis governance responsibilities include maintaining and enforcing the rules of tennis, regulating international team competitions, promoting the game, and preserving the sport's integrity via anti-doping and anti-corruption programs. World Tennis partners with the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) to govern professional tennis. (Full article...)
Wimbledon has been held since 1877 and is played on outdoor grass courts; it is the only tennis major still played on grass, the traditional surface. It is also the only major that retains a night-time curfew for logistical reasons, with matches continuing until 23:00 BST under floodlighting since 2009. (Full article...)
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The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is organised by World Tennis and contested annually between teams from over 150 competing countries, making it the world's largest annual team sporting competition. It is described by the organisers as the "World Cup of Tennis" and the winners are referred to as the world champions. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Great Britain and the United States. Initially titled the International Lawn Tennis Challenge, it soon became known metonymically after the trophy donated by Dwight F. Davis; the name was officially changed after Davis' death in 1945. By 2023, 155 nations entered teams into the competition.
The most successful country over the history of the competition is the United States (winning 32 titles and finishing as runners-up 29 times). The most recent champions are Italy, who beat Spain to win their fourth title (and third consecutive one) in 2025. (Full article...)
Held during the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament saw changes in format and personnel compared to previous editions. As a result, withdrawals and opt-outs became a theme of the competition. Defending men's singles champion and world No. 2 Rafael Nadal and No. 9 Gaël Monfils withdrew due to COVID-19 safety concerns, while No. 4 Roger Federer, No. 12 Fabio Fognini, and No. 15 Stan Wawrinka opted out for other reasons. On the women's side, defending singles champion and world No. 6 Bianca Andreescu did not return due to safety concerns, nor did No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, No. 2 Simona Halep, or No. 5 Elina Svitolina, among others. Further, the qualifying rounds of the tournament, in addition to the mixed doubles and juniors draws, were not held due to the pandemic. (Full article...)
Andy Murray won a record five singles titles between 2009 and 2016, and a record six championships in total (including one doubles title in 2019). (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. Nadal outplayed Federer for most of their rivalry, winning 23 of their first 33 matches from 2004–2014. However, Federer outplayed Nadal during the final stretch from 2015–2019, winning 6 of their last 7 matches. (Full article...)
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The 1973 American Tennis Champions Billie Jean King & Bobby Riggs 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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Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena tennis court The Shanghai Masters (Chinese:上海大师赛), known as the Rolex Shanghai Masters for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Shanghai, China in the month of October. It is played on outdoor hard courts at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena in the Minhang District. The tournament is part of the nine ATP 1000 events on the ATP Tour, and is the only one not played in Europe or North America. The tournament was not held from 2020 to 2022 due to Chinese travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Full article...)
Image 12Wimbledon operates a ticket resale system where returned Show Court tickets can be purchased. All proceeds go to charity. (from Wimbledon Championships)
... 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"?
The metaphysical explanation is that Roger Federer is one of those rare, preternatural athletes who appear to be exempt, at least in part, from certain physical laws.
Sara Errani was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Olivia Gadecki was part of the 2026 winning mixed doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Andrea Vavassori was part of the 2025 winning mixed doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Henry Patten was part of the 2026 winning men's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Current Men's singles trophy (from US Open (tennis))
Roger Federer, the all-time record holder in men's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
The Ladies' (top) and Gentlemen's singles trophies (from Wimbledon Championships)
Horacio Zeballos was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2026. (from French Open)
Gabriela Dabrowski was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Margaret Court Arena at the Australian Open in 2005 prior to its redevelopment. Rod Laver Arena is in the background. (from Australian Open)
Wimbledon operates a ticket resale system where returned Show Court tickets can be purchased. All proceeds go to charity. (from Wimbledon Championships)
The Royal Gallery at Centre Court, Wimbledon (from Wimbledon Championships)
Alexander Zverev, the 2026 men's singles champion (from French Open)
Centre Court at Wimbledon in May 2019 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Bill Tilden, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
Guo Hanyu was part of the 2026 winning women's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Marcel Granollers was part of the winning men's doubles team in 2026. (from French Open)
Martina Navratilova, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from Wimbledon Championships)
People watching the Championships' broadcast in Canary Wharf (from Wimbledon Championships)
Taylor Townsend was part of the winning women's doubles team in 2026. (from French Open)
Zhang Shuai was part of the 2026 winning women's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Aerial view of the grounds (from Wimbledon Championships)
New Rod Laver Arena entrance added in 2018 as part of the Melbourne Park redevelopment. (from Australian Open)
Molla Mallory, the all-time record holder in women's singles (from US Open (tennis))
The five different layers composing the clay courts (from French Open)
Elena Rybakina, 2026 women's singles champion. (from Australian Open)
Margaret Court, the all-time record holder in women's singles. (from Australian Open)
Commemorative plaque at Court 18 marking the longest tennis match in history (from Wimbledon Championships)
Bill Larned, a joint all-time record holder in men's singles (from US Open (tennis))
A 2015 Wimbledon Championships tennis ball manufactured by Slazenger (from Wimbledon Championships)
Kateřina Siniaková was part of the winning women's doubles team in 2026. (from French Open)
Neal Skupski was part of the 2026 winning men's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment precinct on the banks of the Yarra River in 2010. (from Australian Open)
Kristina Mladenovic was part of the 2026 winning women's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
The various trophies contested at the Wimbledon championships being displayed at the All England Club museum (from Wimbledon Championships)
Christian Harrison was part of the 2026 winning men's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Aryna Sabalenka, 2025 women's singles champion. (from US Open (tennis))
Strawberries and cream at Wimbledon (from Wimbledon Championships)
Todd Woodbridge holding the Gentlemen's doubles silver challenge cup in 2004 (from Wimbledon Championships)
Carlos Alcaraz, 2026 men's singles champion. (from Australian Open)
Rod Laver Arena, the main court of the Australian Open, in 2023 (from Australian Open)
Rafael Nadal, the all-time record holder in men's singles (from French Open)
New Show Court Arena that opened in 2022 (from Australian Open)
Jannik Sinner, the 2026 gentlemen's singles champion. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Elise Mertens was part of the 2026 winning women's doubles team. (from Australian Open)
Marcelo Arévalo was part of the 2026 winning mixed doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Erin Routliffe was part of the 2025 winning women's doubles team. (from US Open (tennis))
Harri Heliövaara was part of the 2026 winning men's doubles team. (from Wimbledon Championships)
Australian tennis player Lew Hoad in London in 1953
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