Tennis Considered One of the Most Popular

Tennis

Considered one of the most popular racquet and ball games in the world, the game of tennis has become one of the more iconic and physically challenging sports in today's society. It is played both competitively and informally by more than 20 million Americans and perhaps twice that many people worldwide (Flink, 1999). It has become a major part of physical education programs at schools and universities and is notably one of the only sports played year round, around the world through organized individual, doubles and team competitions.

The word tennis is derived from the Old French name for the game, tenetz (Flink) and in the late-13th Century a game similar to tennis was played in Paris amongst the social elite and upper classes. The French version of the game has been compared to an Italian version that was also played around that time, even though the French game was referred to as 'jeu de paume' or 'game of the palm' because it involved players using their hands to strike the ball. It was only approximately 100 years later that racquets would be introduced into the game, giving players greater reach, and less bruised hands.

The British started playing an indoor version of the game around this time which was similar to badminton, and in 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield adapted the game into what we know as lawn tennis today. In December of that year, Wingfield announced a new set of rules for his new racquet game: it was to be played outdoors on grass, on an hourglass-shaped court with a high net (Flink). He later patented the sport in 1874 just as it was growing in popularity throughout Great Britain.

When Mary Ewing Outerbridge was vacationing in Bermuda she learned of the game of tennis and upon her return to Staten Island in 1874, she brought with her tennis equipment and soon the game had gained a foothold in popular pastimes in the United States as well. This led to the first U.S. tennis championship that was held in 1881 in Newport, Rhode Island, which eventually moved to Forest Hill, NY where it was held from 1915-1920. The championship saw itself yo-yoing back and forth between Germantown Cricket Club in Philadelphia and Forest Hill, where it returned in 1924 until 1977. In 1978 the game moved to Flushing Meadow, NY where it has stayed ever since.

Wimbledon, the British equivalent was first played in 1877, while the French championship was first played in 1891 and the Australian championship in 1905 (Flink). These tournaments have continued the tennis tradition and represent the Grand Slam of tennis hosting championships in Men and Women's singles and doubles. On an international team level, the Davis Cup -started in 1900- has tennis players competing not for an individual title but an international title.

Tennis has created some of the most well-known names in sports, and many players have helped the shape the sport into what it is today. Some players are known for breaking the barriers that divided male and female players, such as the case with Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova, but there are other players who helped mold the game dynamics into the methodology that compromises any tennis player's game.

Take for example Rod Laver. At 17 years of age he won the U.S. Junior Championship. He could hit every type of shot from every part of the court, setting a model for contemporary complete players like Sampras and Martina Hingis (Cooper, 2003). Perhaps his greatest contribution to tennis was 'topspin', being one of the first players to utilize the dynamic consistently in his game. Laver won 20 major titles, and was ranked number one in the world in 1961, 1962, 1968, and 1969. He won two Grand Slams, in 1962 and 1969 (Cooper).

In women's tennis there has been a 'glass net' of sorts that has involved lower purses for women titles than men's and has lead to some of women's tennis most famous players outraged at the huge differences in prize money between the two tours. Of these players, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert have been the most vocal as well as being considered two of the most influential players that have developed the game of tennis.

Navratilova has won 167 singles titles and 162 doubles titles, both more than any other player, male or female since entering the circuit in 1973 (Cooper) and while she occasionally enters double-tournaments, her legacy has been unmatched. Martina owns 56 major titles, 18 of them in singles, including a record nine Wimbledon singles titles and multiple wins at each of the other three Grand Slams (Cooper). Both Navratilova and Evert are responsible for creating styles of play and strategy, as well as introducing endurance and fitness into women's tennis that has created such players as the Williams sisters, Martina Hingis, Lindsey Davenport and Monica Seles.

While the players are largely responsible for developing and giving us today's game of tennis, much of the growth in interest in tennis has been led by schools and university programs. The College Tennis Foundation was established to administer tennis programs and now serves over "1500 collegiate tennis programs (and more than 15,000 student-athletes) in all three NCAA Divisions, as well as the NAIA and Junior College" (ITA, 2003).