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Tennis History

Decent Essays

History of Tennis Tennis originated in northern France in the 11th century as a type of handball played on indoor court. The introduction of a racquet in the 16th century changed the game. By the mid 19th century, it was popularized as an indoor game on a lawn in England. Major W.C. Wingfield popularized the game and devised a set of rules as well as a court in the shape of an hourglass with a net 1.5 m high. Over the next few years, the game was modified as the court became rectangular and the server was moved to the baseline. When the first Wimbledon championship was held in 1887, the game was basically the same as it is played today. Soon after its popularization in England, tennis began to spread and develop in Canada. J.F. Helmuth formed …show more content…

The early racquet strings were made of cow intestine held together by a wooden frame. The wooden frame was heavy and inconsistent, but the strings were very reliable. The racquets had a small teardrop-shaped head with a long handle. Early tennis balls were made out of leather stuffed with human and horse hair or wool and tied with a rope. By the 18th century, thin strips of wool were wound tightly around a nucleus made by rolling a number of strips into a little ball. String was then tied in many directions around the ball and a white cloth covering sewn around the …show more content…

Wooden racquets got better during these years, with improvements in laminating technology, however, they remained heavy with small heads. Compared to the contemporary racquet, even the best wood racquets were cumbersome and lacking in power. In the early 1970s, the development of aluminum racquets allowed for a lighter weight frame and a string area more than 50 percent larger than the standard 65 square inch wood racquet. Continued advancements in research over the last 30 years has allowed for the development of new materials, such as graphite and carbon fibre, which provide a stiffer, more lightweight

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