Tennis Terms

Pete Sampras

"Pistol Pete" burst onto the scene in 1990, when he became the youngest man ever to win the U.S. Open.

Chris Evert

(1954-present). Queen of the Clay Courts, she won the French Open a record seven times and rolled off a 125-match win streak on the surface. As a 15-year old, Evert upset Margaret Court, who had just won the Grand Slam. 1974 was the first of a record 13 straight years in which she won a major—several of them hard fought against her rival, Martina Navratilova. In all, Evert took 18 Grand Slam singles titles, and was the first female player to win $1 million in her career.

Doubles + Mixed Doubles

A match between teams of two players. In doubles tennis, the tram lines come in to play. (Some people say Canadian doubles is when there are 2 players against 1.)

Overhead

A shot hit when an opposing player lobs the ball high and you're near the net.

Drop shot

A softly hit ball that barely travels over the net.

Types of Stroke

A stroke is the way you swing a tennis racquet to hit the ball (e.g., topspin, slice, etc.).

Volley

A stroke where a player hits the ball back over the net (using a forehand or backhand) before the ball bounces on their side of the court. It's a shot hit when a player is at net.

Singles

A tennis game played by two opponents.

Hooking

Another word for cheating. If a player called a ball out that was in, then you might say, "They hooked me."

Double Bagel

Beating someone in 2 sets and your opponent didn't win a game.

Net

Divides the court in two. The aim of the game is to hit the ball over the net and into your opponent's side of the court.

Serena Williams

Female tennis champion who holds the record for career prize money ($81 million) and Major victories (23)

Jimmy Connors

First great American champion of the "Open Era." He won eight grand slam events in the 1970s and 80s and played competitive tennis well into his forties becoming somewhat of an elder-statesman in the game in the 1990s.

Ace

First serve in which you win the point and your opponent didn't touch.the ball.

Lob

Hitting the ball high and deep into the opponent's court.

"No one is going to wake up in China tomorrow morning and read about your score in the newspaper."

Inspirational message that a Windridge Camp counselor said to Mr. Pep before a big match to help the team keep the competition in perspective, not get too nervous about it, and have fun in the tournament.

Tennis Hall of Fame

Located in Newport, Rhode Island

Let

Most commonly called when a player's serve hits the net but lands in the correct service box. A let can also be called if a point is interrupted by an outside interference. In the event of a let a point is replayed.

Maria Sharapova

Russian tennis star who tested positive for the banned substance Meldonium. Nike, Tag Heuer, and Porsche distanced themselves.

Naomi Osaka

She is ranked No. 1 in the world and is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. She is Japanese-Haitian, a four-time Grand Slam singles champion, and is the reigning champion at the US Open and the Australian Open

Roger Federer

Tennis champion from Switzerland. His rivals include Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Tennis scoring system for points

The aim of each game is to be the first player to score four points. Tennis points are numbered as follows: Love - meaning zero 15 - when a player wins the first point of a game. If the opponent wins the next point we say 15-all 30 - when a player wins two points in a game 40 - when a player wins three points in a game Deuce - when the score is 40-40 it is called Deuce. A player must win two consecutive points from deuce to win a game Advantage - the point played after deuce. If the player with the advantage wins the point the game is over. Remember: in tennis, the server's score is always called first. If they win the first point of the game we say 15-love. If they lose it we say love-15. Men's pro tournaments at Majors involve best of 5 sets. Women's pro tournaments at Majors involve best of 3 sets.

Racket

The basic tool of the game. While the original racquets were made from wood, these days the rackets are more likely to be made from graphite and the strings from plastic.

Tram lines

The external court lines that run parallel to the singles lines. These lines are considered 'out' in singles, but 'in' when playing doubles.

Baseline

The line at the back of the court that runs parallel to the net.

Serve

The serve (or service) starts the point. Players will usually hit an over-arm stroke (although they can hit underarm) from behind the baseline into the service box diagonally opposite them. A player has two serves per point, called a first and a second serve.

Backhand

The shot played when the back of the dominant hand is facing forward. For instance, if you are right handed a backhand is a shot you play on the left side of the body.

Forehand

The shot played when the palm of the dominant hand is facing forward. For instance, if you are right handed, the forehand will be played on the right hand side of the body.

Cyclops

The technology that identifies if a ball is hit in or out. It's often used for instant replay when players challenge umpires calls. If they get the challenge right, then they win the point. If they get it wrong, they lose the point and only have a few challenges.

Service box

The two boxes on either side of the net. A server must serve from one side of the court into the service box diagonally opposite them.

The Court

They can be made out of a variety of materials, although they are commonly known as hard, clay or grass courts. The exact size of the court is determined by the International Tennis Federation.

Andre Agassi

This athlete's father boxed for Iran in the 1948 and 1952 Olympics. His own Olympic exploits included the 1996 tennis gold. Born in Las Vegas, he reached the world's #3 ranking at age 18 but was better known for his image than for his play. Perhaps the greatest returner and baseline player ever, he won his first major on Wimbledon grass in 1992. He is married to women's tennis great Steffi Graf.

John McEnroe

Though perhaps best known for his fiery temper and abuse of referees (with taunts like "You can't be serious!"), this tennis player was the dominant player of the early 1980s. As a 17-year old amateur qualifier, he made the semifinals of Wimbledon, and in 1979 he won the first of three straight U.S. Opens. He almost ended Borg's run of Wimbledons in a five-set thriller in 1980, but succeeded the following year. In 1984, this tennis player compiled an 82-3 record, winning Wimbledon and his fourth U.S. Open, for a total of seven majors. An outstanding doubles player as well, he won 77 titles, many with partner Peter Fleming. He also played in the Davis Cup 12 times, captaining the U.S. team in 2000.

"I convinced myself that I didn't care if I won."

U.S. tennis star Jim Courier's explanation for how he was able to stay calm, relaxed, and perform his best despite the immense pressure he faced playing for the title at the French Open. He won in 1991 and '92.

The 4 Major tennis tournaments for pro tennis

Wimbledon in England (grass courts) U.S. Open in New York (hard courts) French Open (clay courts) Australian Open (hard courts)

Fault

When the ball does not land in the opponents court. A fault can be called if a serve, forehand, backhand or volley lands outside the playing area.