Download This Sample
This sample is exclusively for KidsKonnect members!
To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup for free (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download!
Sign Me Up
Table of Contents
Tennis is a racquet sport that can be played individually against a single opponent, known as singles, or between two teams of two players each, known as doubles.
See the fact file below for more information on the Tennis or alternatively, you can download our 23-page Tennis worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
THE BEGINNINGS
- According to most historians, the game of tennis was invented by French monks in the 11th or 12th century. They hit a ball with their hands over a rope strung across a courtyard or against the walls of the monasteries.
- Next, players began using a glove with webbing between the fingers or a solid paddle.
- Eventually players began using a piece of webbing attached to a handle, which became the modern day racquet.
- The first tennis balls were made of wool or hair wrapped up in leather.
- The game had spread to the United States in the 1870’s.
- In 1877, the All England Croquet Club hosted a tennis cham- pionship. It was the beginning of its spread across the world.
- Tennis was introduced in Australia by 1880. The first championship was played there in 1905.
- In 1884, a women’s championship was introduced at Wimbledon, and women’s national championships were held in the United States starting in 1887.
- Traditionally, women wore full length dresses while playing for the Wimbledon tournament.
- Tennis in the 1880’s was dominated by the twin brothers William and Ernest Renshaw.
- Enter the Olympic Games in 1900, Laurie Doherty won the championship title representing his country, England.
THE BASICS
- Tennis is a game played indoors or outdoors by two players when playing singles or four players when playing doubles.
- Tennis is played on a level court usually made of grass, clay, concrete, or materials made for indoor use, such as wood or synthetics.
- As per the International Tennis Federation, the weight of a tennis ball must be between 56.0 and 59.4 grams.
- Tennis balls were originally white. In 1986, yellow balls were first introduced at Wimbledon.
- The length of a standard tennis court is 78 feet. The width of a court differs with the type of match played there. For singles matches, the width of the tennis court is 27 feet, and for doubles matches, it is 36 feet.
- The height of the net in the middle of the tennis court is approximately three feet.
- A player must score four points to win a game. Six games need to be won to win a set and two sets to win a match.
- The different shots used in tennis are: forehand, backhand, serve, volley, lob, and drop shot.
TENNIS FEATS
- Boris Becker is the youngest player ever to win a Wimbledon title. He was 17 years old in 1985 and the only unseeded player in history to win the title.
- The shortest tennis match lasted 20 minutes between Susan Tutt and Marion Bandy in 1969 at Wimbledon.
- The longest match in the history of tennis was played between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon in 2010. It lasted for about 11 hours.
- The golden cup given to the men’s winner dates back to 1887, while the trophy given to women, called the “salver,” dates back to 1864.
- Venus and Serena Williams were the first set of sisters to ever win Olympic gold medals in tennis.
- The US Open is the only major tournament to use a tiebreak in the final set for singles.
- The prize money for Wimbledon winners became equal for men and women in 2007.
- Arthur Ashe was the first African American to win the US open in 1968.
- Roger Federer has earned 20 Grand Slam singles titles until January 28, 2018. while Margaret Court has 24 singles majors.
- Australian Sam Groth recorded the fastest serve in men’s tennis at 263.44 km/h (166.69 mph).
- The fastest ever recorded service in women’s tennis was from Germany’s Sabine Lisicki at 210 km/h (130.49 mph).
- Strawberries are popular during wimbledon. Every year, 24 tons of strawberries are consumed.
- The Royal Tennis Court located at Hampton Court Palace, London, is the world’s oldest tennis court, and it is still in use.
- Built between 1526 and 1529, it was Henry VIII’s venue to indulge his love of tennis.
Tennis Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about tennis across 23 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Tennis worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the tennis which is a racquet sport that can be played individually against a single opponent, known as singles, or between two teams of two players each, known as doubles.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- The Court
- Tennis Jargon
- Male Icons
- Female Icons
- Getting to Know
- Basic Shots
- Grand Slam Queen
- Breaking Some Sweat
- A Tennis Player
- The Sport
Link/cite this page
If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.
Link will appear as Tennis Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, July 21, 2021
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.