There are many people who love tennis. However, not everyone really knows how it works. It is very common to enjoy matches on television or even live. But, sometimes it’s hard to follow the game because you don’t really know what the rules of tennis are. Considering that it is not as popular a sport as football, for example, its rules have not become as popular as the latter sport. Even so, there is not much data that needs to be understood to know everything that happens in a tennis match . In this way, we will better understand the attitude of the athletes and the strategies they use to win the match.
the basis of tennis
As we all know, tennis is a racket sport that takes place on a rectangular court . This is delimited by lines that, in turn, indicate different surfaces, each one boasting a different function. The game is based on hitting a ball with the racket so that it bounces on the other court. To do this, it is essential that it passes over the net that divides the field in half. Likewise, another of the objectives is to ensure that the opposing player or players cannot return it or, at least, are not capable of doing so until the ball has not hit the ground twice, since, in this case, the hit would be in vain.
Tennis is adapted to all kinds of people and levels , and its rules are very simple to follow. Therefore, it is ideal for both adults and children. In this way, it is common to find people playing individually or in pairs on the course. It is also very common to find teams made up of women, men or men and women.
What are the rules of tennis?
As we have said before, the rules of tennis are not difficult to follow . However, they are not usually as well known because it is not the most followed sport today. Now, athletes like Rafa Nadal, Serena Williams or Andre Agassi have set the bar very high and more and more people are enjoying each of their competitions, as is the case with many other players.
In order for a match to take place, a minimum of two players are required . The most common modality is individual, that is, one against one. Now, matches are also held, even in important competitions, in which there are four people on the pitch. The latter would be called playing tennis in doubles or pairs .
scoring in tennis
In tennis, scoring is counted in games . The latter are unmarked as 15, 30 and 40 the first three points. If you want to win the game, it is essential to reach four points , keeping, yes, at least a distance of two points with the opponent to achieve it. In the event that there is a tie at 40, play must continue until there is a two point advantage between the two athletes.
Each time six games (or seven, in the case of a tie-break or tie-break ) are won, a set is added. Usually, the winner is the one who wins two out of three sets or three out of five , which is what happens in competitions such as the men’s Grand Slam .
The tie-break takes place when a limit of games per set is set (there are seven in official competitions) and it is tied as it is one point away from the established limit. In this way, a kind of “game” takes place that ends when one of the participants reaches seven points or obtains a difference of two points from that mark.
Court
In tennis, players are required to change sides of the court as the match progresses . In this way, they will be in the same conditions and the competition will be much fairer. Likewise, it must measure 23.77 meters in length and 8.23 meters in width. In the case of a doubles match, the court is 10.97 meters wide.
What techniques are prohibited by the rules of tennis?
All serves must be carried out from the right side . Now keep in mind that the ball can never bounce on or off the baseline. The reason is that the rules of tennis require that this element must always bounce in the left inner square. Likewise, when it comes to playing a point, the players cannot have contact with the net. Otherwise, the player who touched it will lose that point.
What is needed to play tennis?
When playing tennis , all you need is a rectangular court that meets the measurements outlined above. This has to boast of a network located in the center of it. Likewise, two or four players can participate and they will have to use a racket each and a ball in total.
What are the categories that mark the rules of tennis?
If we focus on professional tennis, we can talk about two categories: women’s and men’s . Each of them has its own competition system.
men’s tennis
Within men’s tennis, today, there are two very important organizations. On the one hand, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) ; on the other, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) . A tennis player’s career path begins with the ITF Future Tour . He would later qualify on the ATP Challenger Tour , and could later make it to the ATP Tour . The latter is divided into numerous categories, which are determined by the tournament taking place at a given time. In this way, the ATP Tour tournaments are divided into: Masters 1000 , Grand Slams , ATP 250 , 500 , ATP Finals and Davis Cup .
women’s tennis
Similarly, women’s tennis is made up of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and the ITF. In principle, the sporting path is very similar to the one followed by male athletes in this sport. Thus, it begins with the ITF Women’s World Tour and then continues with the WTA Challenger Series . The next step, only for the athletes who got enough points in the Challenger, is the WTA Premier . The WTA Premier 5 would come next, and the next steps would be the WTA Premier Mandatory and the WTA Finals . Now, if we have to mention the elite of women’s tennis, we have to name the Grand Slams . The latter coincides with men’s tennis.
The most outstanding tennis players today
To this day, some of the most prominent male tennis players are Novak Djokovic , Rafa Nadal and Dominic Thiem . Likewise, we cannot leave out names like Roger Federer or Andre Agassi . On the other hand, within women’s tennis, the biggest names in this category are Ashleigh Barty , Naomi Osaka , Simona Halep and Serena Williams . All of them have won numerous competitions, even on more than one occasion, giving viewers thrilling tournaments from the first minute to the last.
