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4 Different Types of Tennis Courts

Different types of tennis courts

By Kingsley Ibietela FelixPublished 5 days ago 4 min read
4 Different Types of Tennis Courts
Photo by Chino Rocha on Unsplash

Tennis as a sport is played on four different types of courts. Over the years, one of the most popular sports globally has been tennis.

Tennis is witnessing so many great players playing across all the different types of tennis courts.

Players like Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and so many other notable tennis players

Tennis is generally on different courts, depending on the materials used for the court surface. There are grass courts, clay courts, hard-surface courts, and carpet, also known as synthetic or indoor courts.

Furthermore, each type of court has different playing characteristics which affect the player style of play.

You can play tennis on any of the different kinds of surfaces, but when you discover the best texture that suits your game, you can always use this to your advantage in subsequent tennis matches.

In addition, these different types of tennis courts affect the speed and styles; as earlier said, some surface suits some players more than others.

Rafa Nadal is a goat on the clay surface. He is the king of clay; the other players in my mind that I know are outstanding on the clay is Dominic Thiem and also Dani Medvedev.

Roger Federer's time is also almost unbeatable on the grass surface.

Furthermore, an upcoming tennis player needs to know the different types of tennis courts, its always advisable for young tennis players to try all the different types of courts to understand the best court that will suit them.

Types of courts

The International Tennis Federation classifies the different types of tennis courts based on the speed of the surface, with each court presenting various advantages and challenges.

Furthermore, this article will take a deep look into the different types of tennis courts officially recognized.

1. Grass Court

Grass courts are one of the different types of tennis courts. These types of courts are the most traditional tennis courts.

Grass courts are the fastest type of courts; this grass court is done by growing the seed on a very hard-packed soil adding different variables to the game.

The way tennis ball bounces on the grass courts depends on the healthiness of the grass. When freshly cut grass, the ball bounces very fast, and low bounces keep rallies short.

However, the grass-court can be very slippery for players as the grass is hard to grip. The serves on this type of court are more significant than any other surface.

Furthermore, the grass-court was the most common surface in the past; people playing tennis inside the garden on the grass is why tennis is known as lawn tennis.

Most of the gardens used to play tennis then are not standard because people use them to whirl away time and have fun.

However, the grass season is now the shortest season of every tour because of its high maintenance soft.

They must be watered and mown often and take longer to dry than another surface when wet.

In conclusion, the famous grand slam tournament on the grass surface now is the Wimbledon Open.

2. Clay Courts

Clay courts are one of the different types of tennis courts. Use brick, stone, or crushed shale to make a clay court. Clay courts are now one of the most common tennis courts, especially in South America and Europe.

Furthermore, clay courts generally take many advantages away from the big servers. Players like Roger Ferrera and Serene Williams are not at an edge with this type of surface.

The surface slows down the ball producing a slow and high bounce compared to other characters; the courts offer the slowest game speed.

In addition, if you are a tennis player that relies heavily on your server to win matches, then clay courts might not be a good court for you.

In conclusion, clay courts allow players to slide and hit the ball while still in motion. The most famous grand slam played on a clay court is the prestigious French Open.

Sorry, I meant to say French open regarding the Nadal open; this article on clay court will never be complete unless a talk about a particular kind of clay in Rafael Nadal, who has more victories on the clay surface than any other player to date.      

3. Hard Courts

Hard courts are one of the different types of tennis courts. These courts are made of concrete or asphalt, which are common worldwide.

This court offers greater consistency of bounce, the players know what to expect on a hard court, and the game is relatively easy to control than on other surfaces.

Furthermore, on hard courts, the ball bounces very fast, bounces faster than the clay surface, but not as quickly as the grass surface.

In addition, the material of the hardcourt determines the fastness of the hard courts. The quantity of sand added to the paint to make the hard surface will go a long way in deciding the fastness of the surface.

Tournament organizers are gradually slowing down the fastness of the surface. They believe in having more prolonged, more exhausting rallies and killing off the breed of serve and volley players.

In conclusion, the two famous grand slams played on a hard court are the popular and prestigious US Open and The Australia Open.

The Hard courts are an all-around court, making the courts a lot more suitable for any tennis player.

4. Synthetic Courts

Synthetic courts are one of the different types of courts. These courts are artificial courts; they are carpet courts.

These types of courts are removable courts covering. You roll the carpet into an indoor arena. And they are temporarily installed for Tennis events.

Furthermore, carpet courts are generally faster than hard courts. The ball bounces fast and low on this type of tennis court, just like the grass court, making the court suitable for players with good serves and decent net game.

In conclusion, a notable tennis tournament is not held on this surface as the courts have been banned from professional games by the association of tennis professionals since 2009.

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About the Creator

Kingsley Ibietela Felix

Kingsley Ibietela Felix has been writing and editing blogs and websites for over 10 years. He is also a publisher and is here to share the best content. You can follow him on all social media platforms @iamkingsleyf.

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    Kingsley Ibietela FelixWritten by Kingsley Ibietela Felix

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