[i]Tennis is one of the world's most widely-played sports, enjoyed by players of all ages. It also a popular spectator sport, with star players in glamorous tournaments watched on TV by millions of fans all over the world. Tennis is an [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Games]Olympic[/url] sport and is played at all levels of society and at all ages. The sport can be played by anyone who can hold a racket, including [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelchair_tennis]wheelchair users[/url]. The modern game of tennis originated[br]in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birmingham]Birmingham[/url], [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England]England[/url], in the late 19th century as lawn tennis.[sup] [/sup] It had close connections both to various field (lawn) games such as [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croquet]croquet[/url] and [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowls]bowls[/url] as well as to the older racket sport today called [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_tennis]real tennis[/url]. During most of the 19th century, in fact, the term tennis referred to real tennis, not lawn tennis: for example, in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disraeli]Disraeli[/url]'s novel [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sybil_(novel)]Sybil[/url] (1845), Lord Eugene De Vere announces that he will "go down to [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Tennis_Court,_Hampton_Court]Hampton Court[/url] and play tennis.[/i]

[i][justify]Between 1859 and 1865 [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Gem]Harry Gem[/url] and his friend [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augurio_Perera]Augurio Perera[/url] developed a game that combined elements of [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racquets_(sport)]racquets[/url] and the Basque ball game [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basque_pelota]pelota[/url], which they played on Perera's [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croquet]croquet[/url] lawn in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birmingham]Birmingham[/url], England, United Kingdom. In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club on Avenue Road, [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leamington_Spa]Leamington Spa[/url]. [br]In December 1873, British army officer Major [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Clopton_Wingfield]Walter Clopton Wingfield[/url] designed and patented a similar game ;– which he called sphairistikè ([url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_language]Greek[/url]: σφαιριστική, meaning "ball-playing"), and was soon known simply as "sticky" – for the amusement of guests at a garden party on his friend's estate of [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nantclwyd_Hall]Nantclwyd Hall[/url], in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llanelidan]Llanelidan[/url], Wales. According to R. D. C. Evans, turfgrass [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agronomist]agronomist[/url], "Sports historians all agree that [Wingfield] deserves much of the credit for the development of modern tennis." According to Honor Godfrey, museum curator at Wimbledon, Wingfield "popularized this game enormously. He produced a boxed set which included a net, poles, rackets, balls for playing the game – and most importantly you had his rules. He was absolutely terrific at marketing and he sent his game all over the world. He had very good connections with the clergy, the law profession, and the aristocracy and he sent thousands of sets out in the first year or so, in 1874." The world's oldest tennis tournament, the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Championships,_Wimbledon]Wimbledon Championships[/url], were first played in London in 1877. The first Championships culminated a significant debate on how to standardize the rules.[br][/justify][/i]

[justify][i]Tennis is played on a rectangular, flat surface. The court is 78 [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_(length)]feet[/url] (23.77 m) long, and 27 feet (8.2 m) wide for singles matches and 36 ft (11 m) for doubles matches. Additional clear space around the court is required in order for players to reach overrun balls. A net is stretched across the full width of the court, parallel with the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. It is held up by either a metal cable or cord that can be no more than 0.8 cm ([/i][i][sup]1[/sup][/i][i]⁄[/i][i][sub]3[/sub][/i][i] in). The net is 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) high at the posts and 3 feet (0.91 m) high in the center. The net posts are 3 feet (0.91 m) outside the doubles court on each side or, for a singles net, 3 feet (0.91 m) outside the singles court on each side. [/i][i]The modern tennis court owes its design to Major [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Clopton_Wingfield]Walter Clopton Wingfield[/url]. In 1873, Wingfield patented a court much the same as the current one for his [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stick%C3%A9]stické tennis[/url] (sphairistike). This template was modified in 1875 to the court design that exists today, with markings similar to Wingfield's version, but with the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hourglass]hourglass[/url] shape of his court changed to a rectangle. [/i][i]Tennis is unusual in that it is played on a variety of surfaces. [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grass_court]Grass[/url], [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_court]clay[/url], and [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardcourt]hardcourts[/url] of concrete or asphalt topped with acrylic are the most common. Occasionally carpet is used for indoor play, with hardwood flooring having been historically used. [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_turf]Artificial turf[/url] courts can also be found.[/i][br][/justify]

[justify]Tournaments are often organized by gender and number of players. Common tournament configurations include men's singles, women's singles, and doubles, where two players play on each side of the net. Tournaments may be organized for specific age groups, with upper age limits for youth and lower age limits for senior players. Example of this include the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunlop_Orange_Bowl]Orange Bowl[/url] and [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Petits_As]Les Petits As[/url] junior tournaments. There are also tournaments for players with disabilities, such as [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelchair_tennis]wheelchair tennis[/url] and deaf tennis. In the four [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Slam_(tennis)]Grand Slam[/url] tournaments, the singles draws are limited to 128 players for each gender.[br]Most large tournaments [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seed_(sports)]seed[/url] players, but players may also be matched by their skill level. According to how well a person does in sanctioned play, a player is given a rating that is adjusted periodically to maintain competitive matches. For example, the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Tennis_Association]United States Tennis Association[/url] administers the National Tennis Rating Program ([url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Tennis_Association#NTRP_Ratings]NTRP[/url]), which rates players between 1.0 and 7.0 in 1/2 point increments. Average club players under this system would rate 3.0–4.5 while world class players would be 7.0 on this scale.[/justify]

[justify][i]Rodney George Laver was born in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockhampton]Rockhampton[/url], [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queensland]Queensland[/url], Australia, on 9 August 1938.[sup][url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Laver#cite_note-Fein2002-18][16][/url][/sup][sup][url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Laver#cite_note-DeboltBaugess2011-19][17][/url][/sup] He was the third of four children of Roy Laver, a cattleman and butcher, and his wife Melba Roffey. His left-handed serve was well disguised and wide swinging. His groundstrokes on both flanks were hit with topspin, as was the attacking topspin lob, which Laver developed into a weapon. His stroke technique was based on quick shoulder turns, true swings, and accurate timing. His backhand, often hit on the run, was a point-ender that gave him an advantage. Laver was very quick and had a strong left forearm. Rex Bellamy wrote, "The strength of that wrist and forearm gave him blazing power without loss of control, even when he was on the run and at full stretch. The combination of speed and strength, especially wrist strength, enabled him to hit ferocious winners when way out of court." At the net, he had forcing volleys, often hit as stroke volleys. Especially on the backhand, he could hit sharp underspin angles as well. He was difficult to lob, because of his springing agility, and when forced to retreat, he could come up with a vicious counterpunch.[/i][/justify]