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A tennis court is the venue where the sport of
tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles matches. A variety of surfaces can be used to create a tennis court, each with its own characteristics which affect the playing style of the game.


Dimensions

The dimensions of a tennis court are defined and regulated by the
International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. there are 211 nat ...
(ITF) governing body and are written down in the annual 'Rules of Tennis' document. The court is long. Its width is for singles matches and for doubles matches. The service line is from the net. Additional clear space around the court is needed in order for players to reach overrun balls for a total of wide and long. A net is stretched across the full width of the court, parallel with the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. The net is high at the posts, and high in the center. The net posts are outside the doubles court on each side or, for a singles net, outside the singles court on each side. Based on the standard rules of tennis, the size of the court is measured to the ''outside'' of the respective baselines and
sidelines In sports, out of bounds (or out-of-bounds) refers to being outside the playing boundaries of the Pitch (sports field), field. The legality of going out of bounds (intentionally or not), and the ease of prevention, vary by sport. Sports that use ...
. The "service" lines ("T" and the "service" line) are centered. The ball must completely miss the line to be considered "out". This also means that the width of the line (except for the center service line) is irrelevant to play. The center service line is , the other lines are between wide, whereas the baseline may be up to wide.


Smaller courts

The ITF's Play and Stay campaign promotes playing on smaller courts with slower red, orange, and green balls for younger children. This gives children more time and control so they can serve, rally, and score from the first lesson on courts that are sized to fit their bodies. The ITF has mandated that official competition for children aged 10 years and under should be played on "Orange" courts long by wide. Competition for children under 8 years is played on "Red" courts that are long and wide. The net is always 0.8 m high in the center.


Surfaces

Tennis is played on a variety of surfaces and each surface has its own characteristics which affect the playing style of the game. There are four main types of courts depending on the materials used for the court surface:
clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...
courts, hard courts,
grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...
courts and carpet courts. The
International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. there are 211 nat ...
(ITF) lists different surfaces and properties and classifies surfaces into one of five pace settings: * Category 1 (slow) * Category 2 (medium-slow) * Category 3 (medium) * Category 4 (medium-fast) * Category 5 (fast) Of the current four Grand Slam tournaments, the
Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
and US Open use hard courts, the
French Open The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...
is played on clay, and
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...
, the only Grand Slam to have always been played on the same surface, is played on grass. The Australian Open switched from grass to hard courts in 1988 and in its early years the French championship alternated between clay and sand/rubble courts. The US Open is the only major to have been played on three surfaces; it was played on grass from its inception until 1974, green clay from 1975 until 1977 and hard courts since it moved from the West Side Tennis Club to the National Tennis Center in 1978. ITF uses the following classification for tennis court surface types:


Clay courts

Clay courts are made of crushed shale, stone or brick. The French Open is the only Grand Slam tournament still played on clay; the courts there are made from crushed red brick (known commonly as "European clay", or ''terre battue'' in France). Clay courts slow down the ball and produce a high bounce in comparison to grass or hard courts, taking away many of the advantages of big serves. For this reason, the clay court heavily favors baseline players, as it is hard for attacking serve-and-volley players to dominate on the surface. Clay courts are cheaper to construct than other types of tennis courts, but a clay surface costs more to maintain. Clay courts need to be rolled to preserve flatness. The clay's water content must be balanced; green clay courts (see below) are generally required to be sloped to allow water run-off. Clay courts are more common in Europe and Latin America than in North America. The clay courts that do exist in the United States tend to be made of green clay, which consists of crushed basalt; they are usually known by their brand name, HarTru. A "maroon" form of clay, advertized as "American red clay", is also used at the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston, Texas. Clay courts with a top dressing of burnt shale – which makes the surface grittier and allows for faster play – can be found in Britain, especially in northern England and Scotland (where they are known as "blaes" courts). More esoteric clay-like surfaces, meanwhile, still exist in rural Australia ('antbed' courts, made out of compacted termite mounds and/or loam), India (animal dung) and the Philippines (crushed sea-shells). Historically for the Grand Slams clay courts have been used at the
French Open The French Open (), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a tennis tournament organized by the French Tennis Federation annually at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. It is chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam ...
since 1891 and the US Open from 1975 to 1977 (on green clay).


Grass courts

Grass courts are the fastest type of courts in common use. They consist of grass grown on very hard-packed soil, which adds additional variables: bounces depend on how healthy the grass is, how recently it has been mowed, and the wear and tear of recent play. Points are usually very quick where fast, low bounces keep rallies short, and the serve plays a more important role than on other surfaces. Grass courts thus tend to favour serve-and-volley tennis players. Grass courts were once among the most common tennis surfaces, but are now rare due to high maintenance costs, as they must be watered and mown often, and take a longer time to dry after rain than hard courts. Historically for the Grand Slams grass courts have been used at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...
since 1877, the US Open from 1881 to 1974, and the
Australian Open The Australian Open (stylized ΛO) is a tennis tournament organised by Tennis Australia annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is chronologically the first of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Sl ...
from 1905 to 1987.


Hard courts

Hard courts are made of uniform rigid material, often covered with an acrylic surface layer to offer greater consistency of bounce than other outdoor surfaces. Hard courts can vary in speed, though they are faster than clay but not as fast as grass courts. The quantity of sand added to the paint can greatly affect the rate at which the ball slows down. As well as acrylic, asphalt and concrete are also examples of hard court surfaces. The US Open is played on Laykold while the
Australian Open The Australian Open (stylized ΛO) is a tennis tournament organised by Tennis Australia annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is chronologically the first of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Sl ...
is played on GreenSet, both acrylic-topped hard court surfaces. Historically for the Grand Slams hard courts have been used at the US Open since 1978 and the Australian Open since 1988.


Carpet courts

"Carpet" in tennis means any removable court covering. Indoor arenas store rolls of rubber-backed court surfacing and install it temporarily for tennis events, but they are not in use any more for professional events. A short piled form of
artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass, used in sports arenas, residential lawns and commercial applications that traditionally use grass. It is much more durable than grass and easily maintained wi ...
infilled with sand is used for some outdoor courts, particularly in Asia. Carpet is generally a fast surface, faster than hardcourt, with low bounce. Notable tennis tournaments previously held on carpet courts were the WCT Finals,
Paris Masters The Paris Masters (formerly known as the Paris Open, and currently called the Rolex Paris Masters for sponsorship reasons) is an annual indoor tennis tournament for male professional players held in Paris, France at the Accor Arena, in the neighb ...
, U.S. Pro Indoor and Kremlin Cup. Since 2009, their use has been discontinued on the top tier of the ATP.
ATP Challenger Tour The ATP Challenger Tour (known until the end of 2008 as the ATP Challenger Series) is a series of international men's professional tennis tournaments. It was founded in 1976 as a replacement for the ILTF Satellite Circuit (founded in 1971) as ...
tournaments such as the Trofeo Città di Brescia still use carpet courts. The WTA Tour's last carpet court event, the International-level Tournoi de Québec, was discontinued after 2018.


Indoor courts

Some tennis courts are indoors, which allows play regardless of weather conditions and is more comfortable for spectators. Different court surfaces have been used indoors. Hard courts are most common indoors, as they are the easiest to install and maintain. If the installation is permanent, they are constructed on an asphalt or concrete base, as with outdoor courts. Temporary indoor hard courts are typically constructed using wooden floor panels topped with acrylic which are installed over the venue's standard floor. This is the system used for modern indoor professional events such as the
ATP Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant tennis event in the men's annual calendar after the four majors, as it features the top eight singles players and top eight doubles teams based on their ...
. Clay courts can be installed indoors with subsurface watering systems to keep the clay from drying out, and have been used for
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is organised by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and contested annually between teams from over 150 competing countries, making it the world's largest annual ...
matches. Carpet courts were once the most prominent of indoor surfaces, especially in temporary venues, but have largely been replaced by removable hard courts. They were used on both the ATP World Tour and
World Championship Tennis World Championship Tennis (WCT) was one of the principal organizing bodies of men's professional tennis headquartered at the WCT Lakeway World of Tennis facility, Austin, Texas, United States from 1968 to 1989. It administered the WCT Circuit a w ...
circuits, though no events currently use them. Historically, other surfaces have been used indoors such as wood courts at the defunct World Covered Court Championships and London Indoor Professional Championships. The conclusion of the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly called Wimbledon, is a tennis tournament organised by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Association annually in Wimbledon, London. It is chronologically the ...
, in 2012, was played on the lawn of
Centre Court Centre Court is a tennis court at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (also known as the All England Club) and is the main court used in the Wimbledon Championships, the third annual Grand Slam event of the tennis calendar. It is consi ...
under the closed roof and artificial lights; the Halle Open has also seen a number of matches played on its grass court in the
Gerry Weber Stadion OWL Arena, formerly Gerry Weber Stadion, is a multi-purpose stadium, located in Halle, North Rhine-Westphalia, in Germany. The capacity of the arena is 12,300 people and it opened in 1993. In early 2020, a consortium of 13 sponsors became owner ...
with the roof closed. These, however, are outdoor venues with retractable roofs.


Gallery

Below are photographs of a number of different surfaces, each featuring their relevant ITF surface code: File:HPIM2532.JPG, Code A: Acrylic ( DecoTurf) File:GreenSet Cushion - Olympic Tennis Rio 2016.jpg, Code A: Acrylic ( GreenSet) File:New colors.jpg, Code A: Acrylic ( Laykold) File:Australian Open 2010 Quarterfinals Nadal Vs Murray 20.jpg, Code A: Acrylic ( Plexicushion) File:Ausopen margaret court arena medium.jpg, Code A: Acrylic ( Rebound Ace) File:Tennis courts (geograph 7558513).jpg, Code B: Artificial clay File:Firbank Dale Tennis Club, Newport - geograph.org.uk - 1737726.jpg, Code C: Artificial grass File:Pavilion and Avenue Tennis Club - geograph.org.uk - 1556486.jpg, Code C: Artificial grass File:Hampden Park Tennis Courts - geograph.org.uk - 5815484.jpg, Code D: Asphalt File:Artificial Grass Tennis Courts at Coleshill Tennis and Sports Club - geograph.org.uk - 5914502.jpg, Code E: Carpet (outdoor; sand turf) File:Korty power game.jpg, Code E: Carpet (indoor; textile) File:Die Anlage des TC Altenstadt, Sommer.jpg, Code F: Clay (brick; i.e., ''terre battue'') File:Tennis Courts, Kirkton Park - geograph.org.uk - 1306458.jpg, Code F: Clay (shale or "blaes") File:Sanchai and Sonchat Ratiwatana Davis Cup vs PH.jpg, Code F: Clay (shell) File:Maude Tennis Courts.JPG, Code F: Clay (antbed) File:Tennis Match, Family Circle Cup 2008.JPG, Code F: Clay (green HarTru) File:Eyzahut - Court de tennis (mai 2022).jpg, Code G: Concrete File:Kingsholm Square Tennis Courts, Gloucester - geograph.org.uk - 31754.jpg, Code H: Grass File:Tennis-Carpet-Tile.jpg, Code J: Tile File:Indoors court at the Queen's club, England, before 1903.jpg, Code J: Wood (indoor)


Terminology

Common tennis court terms: * ''Advantage service box'' or ''ad court'': The receiver's left side service box, or the opponent's right for the server; significant as the receiving side for an advantage point. * ''Alley'' or ''Tramlines'': The lanes on each side of the singles court. These are only used when playing doubles. * ''Back court'': The area between the baseline and the service line. * ''Baseline'': The rearmost line of the court, furthest from and parallel to the net. * ''Center service line'': The line dividing the two service boxes on each side. * ''Center mark'': The 4-inch mark at the halfway point of the baseline used to distinguish the two halves (and service boxes) of a tennis court. * ''Deuce service box'' or ''deuce court'': The receiver's right side service box, or the opponent's left for the server, significant as the receiving side for a deuce point. * ''Service box'': The area on each side bounded by the singles sideline, the service line, and the net. There are left and right service boxes, separated by the center service line. * ''Service line'': The line that is parallel to the net and is located between the baseline and the net. It marks the end of the service boxes. * ''Side T'': The T shape formed by the service line and the singles sideline. There are four such side Ts, two on each side of the net. * ''T'' or ''Middle T'': The T shape formed by the service line and the center service line.


See also

*
List of tennis stadiums by capacity The following is a list of notable tennis stadiums by capacity, that is the maximum number of spectators they can regularly accommodate. Notes: * Stadiums ordered by their capacity (if equal, by the first stadium to reach the capacity) * Some of ...
* No-line court


References


External links


International Tennis Federation (ITF) – Tennis court construction guidelines
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tennis Court
Court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...
Sports rules and regulations Sports venues by type Playing field surfaces