Declaration Statement

| O.B.J.E.C.T.I.V.E |

The site has been made to fulfill the requirement of E-Learning subject 

(ITE 3543) in Mara Professional College Indera Mahkota.  

The main objective of this blog is to:

• To expose the public about the overall information of tennis
• Inform some basic tennis skills
• To share the current news about tennis

Find the latest news about tennis on this site

Tennis Accessories

| TENNIS BALL |

A tennis ball can be yellow, green or white in color and the colors will be approved by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and has fixed standards for size, weight and deformation.  These balls are made of pressurized rubber covered with high quality cloth, which is gain made of wool and nylon.  These balls are kept under pressure of two atmospheres before initial use.

| TENNIS BALL MACHINE |

This is like practice equipment, which is used by the players to train themselves.  It helps the players to practice the footwork and handle all kinds of shots that the opponent might use.  Tennis Ball machines come in different models and are quite a help.

|TENNIS RACKETS|

To play tennis the first things that are elementary are the racket and the ball. The size of a modern tennis racket for an adult would be 27" to 27.5". Tennis is a power game and requires a lot of stamina and strength for only to hold the racket since handling such a heavy device become s quite a challenge. When choosing a tennis racket the following things have to be kept in mind like the Grip size, the head size, length, flex, string patterns, weight and balance.

| TENNIS APPAREL |

Tennis apparel has gone through a metamorphosis as has done the perception of the game, wherein the former definitely contributes to the latter.  Initially men played the game in long trousers and women wore long dresses and stockings whereas now tennis players are style icons and the apparels are designed by brands that have made it quite fashionable.  Any fashion brand would have a different section for tennis apparel, one only has to go and choose the apparel one is comfortable in.

| TENNIS SHOES |

Tennis shoes should be court specific since the shoe conformity and compatibility differs from one pair to the other.  Shoes like apparels should also be comfortable and should ensure that the feet are protected.  The toe area should have better protection than the other parts of the foot as a tennis player uses his toes for foreground grand strokes.  Since the game requires a lot of sudden movements, the shoe should support the feet and protect it to an extent.

| TENNIS BAG |

This is one of the most neglected but important accessories related to the game. Whenever a bag is brought, the space that is needed, the feature that would suit the best and the style that is required should all be kept in mind.

Types of Shots

To play tennis competitively there are certain tennis shots that the tennis player must learn.  Each of these shots have variations that may play into a players strengths or style of play.  Shots that are important include the forehand, backhand, serve, volley, lob and drop shot.  Each shot has a certain time in a point where it is best played. Professional tennis players practice hours upon hours to perfect these shots and turn them into winners. Some shots like the overhead smash are primarily attack shots or offensive shots, other shots like the lob are primarily used for defense.

All of these tennis shots can be further enhanced and the ball controlled to the players advantage by putting spin on the ball while making the shot. Topspin will usually cause the ball to bounce high and maintain speed after it hits the ground. Backspin will cause the ball to bounce low and take speed off the ball on the bounce.

Practice session 08-08-2011

| Forehand Shot |

The forehand is often the easiest and the first stroke or shot that the tennis player learns. The forehand is made by swinging the tennis racquet across the body on the same side of the body as the main hand in which the racquet is held. Most tennis players use a single hand to grip the racquet for the forehand, but some players use a two handed grip. Different players like to use different styles of grips when executing the forehand.  Some popular forehand grips include the Western, the Eastern, and the Continental.  The forehand can be a devastating and powerful attack shot. It is often the most potent of a players weapons from the beginners level to the professional.

| Backhand Shot |

The backhand is sort of the opposite of the forehand. The backhand shot is made by swinging the racquet away from the tennis player's body or on the opposite side of the body from the hand (or strong hand) that is controlling the swing. Many players use a single hand to execute the backhand, but there are also many players that use a two-handed backhand.

| The Tennis Serve |

The serve is the shot that starts the point in tennis. The serve is hit from behind the baseline and on one side of the court into the service box diagonally from the server. The tennis player usually tosses the ball in the air and hits the ball at it's peak height in order to get the best angle possible. Many professional players can hit serves well over 100mph that are nearly impossible to return. When a serve is hit that the opposing player cannot hit, this is called an ace.

| The Volley |

A volley shot is where the tennis player strikes the ball before it bounces. The idea is to return the ball quickly before the opponent can adjust. Often players will charge to the net and then volley the ball quickly back at the opponent for a winner. Another type of volley is the half-volley where the ball is hit on the rise right after the bounce. A charging player may have to half-volley a shot that is too low to volley. 

| The Lob |

The lob is a very high shot. It is usually hit for one of two reasons 1) to hit the tennis ball just out of reach of an opponent that is at the net 2) as a defensive measure to gain time to get back into position on the tennis court. 

| Drop Shot |

The drop shot is almost a trick shot. It is used when the opposing tennis player is far back in the court. The tennis ball is hit softly and just over the net to try and get it to bounce twice before the opponent can reach the ball.

Tennis Rules

The rules of tennis are quite simple.  

The game itself is complex.

RULE 1 # Opponents stand on opposite sides of the court. The player who delivers the ball to start the point is called the server. The player who stands opposite and cross-court from the server is the receiver.

RULE 2 # The right to serve, receive, choose your side, or give the opponent these choices is decided by a toss of a coin or racquet. If the choice of service or receiver is chosen, the opponent chooses which side to start.

RULE 3 # The server shall stand behind the baseline on the deuce court within the boundaries of the singles court when playing singles and within the doubles sideline when playing doubles. See court dimensions. All even points are played from the deuce court and odd number points played from the advantage court. The server shall not serve until the receiver is ready. Serves are made from the deuce court to the opponent’s service box on the deuce court. Advantage court to advantage box. If the server misses his target twice, he loses the point. If the ball hits the net and goes in the correct service box, another serve is granted. If the server steps on the baseline before contact is made, the serve is deemed a fault.

RULE 4 # The receiver is deemed ready if an attempt is made to return the server's ball. The receiver can stand where he likes but must let the ball bounce in the service box. If the ball does not land in the service box, it is deemed a fault and a second serve is given. If the ball is hit by either opponent before the ball bounces, the server wins the point.

RULE 5 # The server always calls his score first. If the server wins the first point, he gets a score of 15. Scoring is done like a clock. See example below. Love means zero in tennis. The second point is called 30. The third point is called 45 (now-a-days known as 40) and game is won when the score goes back to love. If the score is 40-40, also known as deuce, one side must win by two points. Advantage-In means if the server wins the next point, he wins the game. Advantage-Out means the receiver has a chance to win the game on the next point. LOVE 15-30-40.

RULE 6 # After the game, the opponents serve. Games equal 1. The first to win 6 games, by two, wins the set. The first to win 2 sets wins the match. If the score is 6-6, a tie-breaker is played. This is scored by one's. The first team to score 7 points winning by two wins the set. The tiebreaker continues until one side wins by two. Hence, Game-Set-Match.

RULE 7 # If the ball goes into the net, or outside the boundaries of the court, the player who hit that ball loses the point. If the ball hits the net during the point and goes into the opponents court, the ball is in play. A player loses the point if he touches the net, drops his racquet while hitting the ball, bounces the ball over the net, hits a part of the surroundings such as the roof, or a tree, the ball touches him or his partner, he deliberately tries to distract the opponent.

RULE 8 # A let is called during the point if a ball rolls on the court or there is a distraction from someone besides the players on the court.

RULE 9 # A ball that lands on the line is good.

RULE 10 # If players serve out of turn or serve to the wrong person or court, the point or game will stand and order will be resumed following the point or game.

Tennis Strategy

| The First Tennis Strategy | 

Player needs is one that emphasizes the players strengths. These strategies usually fall into three groups called volleyers and baseliners. We'll go over each of these strategies in more detail below. 

| The Second Tennis Strategy |

This strategy is to analyze one's opponent and to exploit their weaknesses. An example of this may be an opponent that is tall and slow, but can hit the ball very hard. Instead of trying to out hit this player, a good strategy may be to hit the ball away from the player and make them run. They will get tired and eventually not be able to run as fast to get to your shots. You may also try to hit a lot of hard shots directly at their feet making them bend and not be able to extend their arms to make that hard shot.

| The Serve and Volley Tennis Player |

Tennis players tend to have a great serve and good play at the net, or volleying. They utilize a tennis strategy that emphasizes these strengths. When they get a good serve in, they charge the net and try to get a quick winner off of the service return.

| The Baseliner Tennis Player |

Baseline tennis players tend to play on the strength of speed and accuracy. They try to wear down their opponents. Baseliners themselves may employ different strategies that go from purely defensive play to aggressive play. The defensive player will just try to run down every shot and get it back. They seldom try to hit winners and hope to win the point when their opponent makes a mistake. The aggressive player will try to hit winners from the baseline attacking with a strong ground stroke like a powerful forehand.

In professional tennis the surface of the tennis court can have a lot to do with the strategy employed by the player. Defensive baseliners tend to do well on slower surfaces like clay, while aggressive baseliners do well on hard court and grass. Serve and volley tennis players do well on the fast surfaces as well, especially grass courts.

Types of Tennis Court

| TENNIS COURT |

The basic area where tennis is played is call the court. This is a rectangular flat surface of varying types including concrete, grass, and clay. The standard tennis court is 78 feet long and 27 feet wide for singles matches.  For doubles matches the width of the court is increased to 36 feet. A 3 feet 6 inch high net is stretched across the court, dividing the court in half.  There are three main types of tennis court surfaces.  Each surface allows for a different style of play to excel as the bounce and speed of the ball can vary dramatically. 

| HARDCOURT |

This term includes many different surfaces including concrete, asphalt, wood, and Astroturf, just to name a few.  Hardcourts are generally fast courts that have a good consistent bounce of the ball.  Hardcourts are the most popular type of courts and most likely the court most amateur tennis players use. The quantity of sand added to the paint can greatly affect the rate at which the ball slows down and determines the speed which means more sand means less speed and larger sand particles will slow the speed of play. It has been considered as the most equal for all playing styles. 


The US Open is played on an acrylic hard court, while the Australian Open is played on a synthetic hard court. The main difference between a synthetic hard court and a true hard court surface is the level of hardness.  The amount of sand used in the top paint and the size of the sand also determines the speed. More sand means less speed and larger sand particles will slow the speed of play. The amount of friction can also be altered and more friction will produce a clay court effect, where topspin is magnified. The extra grip and friction will resist the sliding effect of the ball and the resistance will force the ball to change its rotation.

Caption:  Andre Agassi serving 

to Pete Sampras at the Australian Open

| CLAY |

The clay surface is usually considered a slow surface because tennis balls lose speed when they hit the court.  This surface also causes the ball to bounce higher than on other surfaces.  This can make for long tennis rallies.  Because of this high bounce, players that use a LOT of topspin, like Nadal and Federer are at an advantage, since they force players to constantly hit tiring shoulder-level shots.   Most courts are made from brick because literal clay courts, like those of the olden days take too long to dry out. Usually clay courts are red and they are slower than the clay courts in America which is green in color. 

Caption:  Guillermo Coria and Carlos Moya on 

the signature red Clay Courts of the French Open

| GRASS |

Grass courts are the most traditional form of court as today's tennis was originally played on grass. Grass is considered fast like the hard courts, but the grass can be uneven and cause the ball to bounce funny making it difficult to return hard shots. The courts used to give the advantage to serve and volley-ers who would come in on every single point. This has recently given way to baseline grass court play, which makes for a more well rounded and interesting match. However, the maintenance costs of grass courts are higher than those of hard courts and clay courts. Grass courts need to be reseeded every year, and (in the absence of suitable covers) must be left for the day if rain appears, as the grass becomes very slippery when wet.

Caption:  Federer getting ready 

to serve at Wimbledon.