87-588: Martin Kližan ( Slovak pronunciation: [ˈmartiŋ ˈkliʐan] ; born 11 July 1989) is a Slovak professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 24, achieved on 27 April 2015, and No. 73 in doubles, achieved on 4 May 2015. He won the 2006 French Open boys' singles title. He is currently the No. 3 Slovak player. In 2005, he won the European Junior Championship in
174-536: A felt coating. Traditionally white, the predominant colour was gradually changed to optic yellow in the latter part of the 20th century to allow for improved visibility. Tennis balls must conform to certain criteria for size, weight, deformation , and bounce to be approved for regulation play. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) defines the official diameter as 65.41–68.58 mm (2.575–2.700 in). Balls must weigh between 56.0 and 59.4 g (1.98 and 2.10 oz). Tennis balls were traditionally manufactured in
261-409: A racket and balls. The components of a tennis racket include a handle, known as the grip, connected to a neck which joins a roughly elliptical frame that holds a matrix of tightly pulled strings. For the first 100 years of the modern game, rackets were made of wood and of standard size, and strings were of animal gut . Laminated wood construction yielded more strength in rackets used through most of
348-430: A tennis racket strung with a cord to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent's court . The object is to manoeuvre the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. If a player is unable to return the ball successfully, the opponent scores a point . Playable at all levels of society and at all ages, tennis can be played by anyone who can hold
435-542: A best-of-five, wins the match. Only in the final sets of matches at the Olympic Games and Fed Cup are tiebreaks not played. In these cases, sets are played indefinitely until one player has a two-game lead, occasionally leading to some remarkably long matches . In tournament play, the chair umpire announces the end of the match with the well-known phrase " Game, set, match " followed by the winning person's or team's name. A game point occurs in tennis whenever
522-529: 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 annual tennis tournament took place at Leamington Lawn Tennis Club in Birmingham in 1874. This
609-627: A call from the server to his opponent. It was popular in England and France, although the game was only played indoors, where the ball could be hit off the wall. Henry VIII of England was a big fan of this game, which is now known as real tennis . An epitaph in St Michael's Church, Coventry , written c. 1705 , read, in part: Here lyes an old toss'd Tennis Ball: Was racketted, from spring to fall, With so much heat and so much hast, Time's arm for shame grew tyred at last. During
696-557: A doubles team. The single player gets to utilize the alleys normally reserved only for a doubles team. Conversely, the doubles team does not use the alleys when executing a shot. The scoring is the same as for a regular game. This format is not sanctioned by any official body. "Australian doubles", another informal and unsanctioned form of tennis, is played with similar rules to the Canadian doubles style, only in this version, players rotate court position after each game, each player taking
783-571: A group of American and French tennis players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences. The most notable of these early professionals were the American Vinnie Richards and the Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen . Players turned pro would no longer be permitted to compete in the major (amateur) tournaments. In 1968, commercial pressures and rumours of some amateurs taking money under the table led to
870-581: A poor start of the year, he found very good subsequent form at the Australian Open . Starting from qualifying, his achieved his best result in Australia by reaching the third round as a lucky loser, where he lost to another lucky loser: Stéphane Robert . He continued his good form at the 500 tournament in Rio . Starting again from qualifying, he reached the second round. This result saw Kližan return to
957-545: A racket, including wheelchair users . The original forms of tennis developed in France during the late Middle Ages . The modern form of tennis originated in Birmingham , England, in the late 19th century as lawn tennis . It had close connections to various field (lawn) games such as croquet and bowls as well as to the older racket sport today called real tennis . The rules of modern tennis have changed little since
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#17327805720751044-568: A result he returned to the top 400 at world No. 369 on 24 June 2024 and to the top 350 on 5 August 2024. Ugo Humbert In January 2022, Martin Kližan faced criticism after publishing post on Instagram, in which he attacked the sexual orientation of former tennis player [Martina Navrátilová] because of her statement towards tennis player [Novak Đoković] regarding his refusal to be vaccinated. Kližan leaned against Navrátilová and called her "the most famous tennis lesbian" and said with contempt for her sexual orientation: " I do not know if Mrs. Navrátilová
1131-413: A sequence of games played with service alternating between games, ending when the count of games won meets certain criteria. Typically, a player wins a set by winning at least six games and at least two games more than the opponent. If one player has won six games and the opponent five, an additional game is played. If the leading player wins that game, the player wins the set 7–5. If the trailing player wins
1218-492: A sequence of sets. The outcome is determined through a best of three or five sets system. On the professional circuit, men play best-of-five-set matches at all four Grand Slam tournaments, Davis Cup, and the final of the Olympic Games and best-of-three-set matches at all other tournaments, while women play best-of-three-set matches at all tournaments. The first player to win two sets in a best-of-three, or three sets in
1305-463: A set down. On his way to the title, Kližan saved eight match points (five against Roberto Bautista Agut and three against Nicolas Mahut ). Kližan seized his second ATP 500 title at the 2016 German Open , defeating Pablo Cuevas in the final in straight sets. Kližan started the season with in Chennai , where he received a bye in the first round and lost in the second round to Aljaž Bedene . This
1392-454: A solicitor, and his friend Augurio Perera developed a game that combined elements of racquets and the Basque ball game pelota , which they played on Perera's croquet lawn in Birmingham , England. In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club on Avenue Road, Leamington Spa . This is where "lawn tennis" was used as the name of an activity by a club for
1479-628: A tennis court at the Staten Island Cricket Club at Camp Washington, Tompkinsville, Staten Island , New York. The first American National championship was played there in September 1880. An Englishman named O.E. Woodhouse won the singles title, and a silver cup worth $ 100, by defeating Canadian I. F. Hellmuth . There was also a doubles match which was won by a local pair. There were different rules at each club. The ball in Boston
1566-459: A turn at playing alone against the other two. As such, each player plays doubles and singles over the course of a match, with the singles player always serving. Scoring styles vary, but one popular method is to assign a value of 2 points to each game, with the server taking both points if he or she holds serve and the doubles team each taking one if they break serve. Wheelchair tennis can be played by able-bodied players as well as people who require
1653-482: A wheelchair for mobility. An extra bounce is permitted. This rule makes it possible to have mixed wheelchair and able-bodied matches. It is possible for a doubles team to consist of a wheelchair player and an able-bodied player (referred to as "one-up, one-down"), or for a wheelchair player to play against an able-bodied player. In such cases, the extra bounce is permitted for the wheelchair users only. 2014 Brasil Open Too Many Requests If you report this error to
1740-405: Is a let or net service , which is void, and the server retakes that serve. The player can serve any number of let services in a point and they are always treated as voids and not as faults. A fault is a serve that falls long or wide of the service box, or does not clear the net. There is also a "foot fault" when a player's foot touches the baseline or an extension of the centre mark before the ball
1827-534: Is a popular worldwide spectator sport. The four Grand Slam tournaments (also referred to as the majors) are especially popular and are considered the highest level of competition for the sport. These tournaments are the Australian Open , played on hardcourts ; the French Open , played on red clay courts ; Wimbledon , played on grass courts ; and the US Open , also played on hardcourts. Additionally, tennis
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#17327805720751914-572: Is acknowledged that this stereotype still exists). In 1954, Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame , a nonprofit museum in Newport, Rhode Island. The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honouring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Part of the appeal of tennis stems from the simplicity of equipment required for play. Beginners need only
2001-434: Is aware of how the most important process in the world works, namely the process of human race reproduction, if by any chance she reads this post, then, Mrs. Navrátilová, a woman with a woman and a man with a man cannot conceive a newborn. " Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles ) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles ). Each player uses
2088-482: Is called the doubles alley, playable in doubles play. The line that runs across the centre of a player's side of the court is called the service line because the serve must be delivered into the area between the service line and the net on the receiving side. Despite its name, this is not where a player legally stands when making a serve. The line dividing the service line in two is called the centre line or centre service line. The boxes this centre line creates are called
2175-434: Is hit. If the second service, after a fault, is also a fault, the server double faults , and the receiver wins the point. However, if the serve is in, it is considered a legal service. A legal service starts a rally , in which the players alternate hitting the ball across the net. A legal return consists of a player hitting the ball so that it falls in the server's court, before it has bounced twice or hit any fixtures except
2262-519: Is not played, the set is referred to as an advantage set , where the set continues without limit until one player leads by a two-game margin. A "love set" means that the loser of the set won zero games, colloquially termed a "jam donut" in the US. In tournament play, the chair umpire announces the winner of the set and the overall score. The final score in sets is always read with the winning player's score first, e.g. "6–2, 4–6, 6–0, 7–5". A match consists of
2349-417: Is often the same width as the others. The players or teams start on opposite sides of the net. One player is designated the server , and the opposing player is the receiver . The choice to be server or receiver in the first game and the choice of ends is decided by a coin toss before the warm-up starts. Service alternates game by game between the two players or teams. For each point, the server starts behind
2436-422: Is unusual in that it is played on a variety of surfaces. Grass , clay , and hard courts 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. Artificial turf courts can also be found. The lines that delineate the width of the court are called the baseline (farthest back) and the service line (middle of
2523-480: The 2017 BNP Paribas Open , Kližan lost in the second round to Pablo Cuevas and in the first round of Miami in first round to Benoît Paire . This was followed by a first-round loss in Marrakesh to qualifier Laslo Djere . Kližan qualified for the main draw of the 2017 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters , but he lost to Nicolás Almagro in the first round, after receiving two game penalties for unsportsmanlike conduct in
2610-535: The 2018 Generali Open Kitzbühel with a career record of 127–128 in singles, Kližan ensured his record would have more wins than losses by not only reaching the semifinals, but by also going on and winning the whole tournament. Kližan did just that, defeating Denis Istomin in the final, top seed Dominic Thiem as well as Dušan Lajović in the quarterfinals, against whom he saved two match points. Kližan and Thiem met again in St. Petersburg Open final, this time Thiem won. It
2697-565: The China Open , Kližan got revenge by turning the tables on Nadal, defeating him in the quarterfinals. Kližan played at the 2015 Australian Open as the 32nd seed. He retired from his second-round match against João Sousa . Kližan won his third ATP doubles title at the Rio Open , partnering Philipp Oswald . He played two singles matches and also the doubles match in a Davis Cup tie against Slovenia, which Slovakia won 5–0. Originally,
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2784-656: The French Championships date to 1891, although until 1925 they were open only to tennis players who were members of French clubs. Thus, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis. Together, these four events are called the Majors or Slams (a term borrowed from bridge rather than baseball ). In 1913,
2871-490: The US Open . In his first main-draw Grand Slam tournament appearance, he lost to former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero in the first round. Later in the year, Kližan won his first Challenger tournament as a wildcard in his hometown of Bratislava at the Slovak Open . He would subsequently break into the top 100 in September of the following year. In his Wimbledon debut, Kližan defeated Juan Ignacio Chela 11–9 in
2958-630: The World Covered Court Championships for indoor courts were awarded annually; Sweden, France, Great Britain, Denmark, Switzerland and Spain each hosted the tournament. At a meeting held on 16 March 1923 in Paris, the title "World Championship" was dropped and a new category of "Official Championship" was created for events in Great Britain, France, the US and Australia – today's Grand Slam events. The impact on
3045-443: The 1890s. Two exceptions are that until 1961 the server had to keep one foot on the ground at all times, and the adoption of the tiebreak in the 1970s. A recent addition to professional tennis has been the adoption of electronic review technology coupled with a point-challenge system, which allows a player to contest the line call of a point, a system known as Hawk-Eye . Tennis is played by millions of recreational players and
3132-530: The 18th and early 19th centuries, as real tennis declined, new racket sports emerged in England. The invention of the first lawn mower in Britain in 1830 is believed to have been a catalyst for the preparation of modern-style grass courts, sporting ovals, playing fields, pitches, greens, etc. This in turn led to the codification of modern rules for many sports, including lawn tennis, most football codes, lawn bowls and others. Between 1859 and 1865, Harry Gem ,
3219-406: The 20th century until first metal and then composites of carbon graphite, ceramics, and lighter metals such as titanium were introduced. These stronger materials enabled the production of oversized rackets that yielded yet more power. Meanwhile, technology led to the use of synthetic strings that match the feel of gut yet with added durability. Under modern rules of tennis, the rackets must adhere to
3306-643: The IOC decided to reintroduce tennis as a full-medal sport at Seoul in 1988. The Davis Cup , an annual competition between men's national teams, dates to 1900. The analogous competition for women's national teams, the Fed Cup , was founded as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the ITF. In 1926, promoter C. C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with
3393-666: The International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF), now the International Tennis Federation (ITF), was founded and established three official tournaments as the major championships of the day. The World Grass Court Championships were awarded to Great Britain. The World Hard Court Championships were awarded to France; the term "hard court" was used for clay courts at the time. Some tournaments were held in Belgium instead. And
3480-463: The Olympics after the 1924 Games , but returned 60 years later as a 21-and-under demonstration event in 1984. This reinstatement was credited by the efforts of then ITF president Philippe Chatrier , ITF general secretary David Gray and ITF vice president Pablo Llorens, with support from International Olympic Committee president Juan Antonio Samaranch . The success of the event was overwhelming, and
3567-546: The Slovak nominations were announced without Kližan, but he later changed his decision and decided to partake in the tie. In April, Kližan won his third ATP title in Casablanca , defeating Daniel Gimeno Traver in the final. In Barcelona , he reached the semifinals, where he lost to eventual champion Kei Nishikori . At the 2015 French Open , Kližan defeated Frances Tiafoe in the first round and lost to Gilles Simon in
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3654-687: The United States and Europe. Although the process of producing the balls has remained virtually unchanged for the past 100 years, the majority of manufacturing now takes place in the Far East . The relocation is due to cheaper labour costs and materials in the region. Tournaments that are played under the ITF Rules of Tennis must use balls that are approved by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and be named on
3741-563: The abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the Open Era , in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players were able to make their living from tennis. With the beginning of the Open Era, the establishment of an international professional tennis circuit, and revenues from the sale of television rights, tennis's popularity has spread worldwide, and the sport has shed its middle-class English-speaking image (although it
3828-454: The arm than most strings. Most synthetic strings are made from monofilament or multifiliament nylon strings. Monofilament strings are cheap to buy, and are used widely by many recreational level players for their all round performance, while multifilament strings are created to mimic natural gut more closely by weaving together fibres, but are generally more expensive than their monofilament counterparts. Polyester strings allow for more spin on
3915-432: The ball than any other string, due to their firm strings, while keeping control of the ball, and this is why many players use them, especially higher player ones. Kevlar tennis strings are highly durable, and are mostly used by players that frequently break strings, because they maintain tension well, but these strings can be stiff on the arm. Hybrid stringing is when a tennis racket is strung with two different strings for
4002-410: The baseline, between the centre mark and the sideline. The receiver may start anywhere on their side of the net. When the receiver is ready, the server will serve , although the receiver must play to the pace of the server. For a service to be legal, the ball must travel over the net without touching it into the diagonally opposite service box. If the ball hits the net but lands in the service box, this
4089-406: The baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. It is held up by either a cord or metal cable of diameter no greater than 0.8 cm ( 1 ⁄ 3 in). The net is 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) high at the posts and 3 feet (0.91 m) high in the centre. 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
4176-442: The chair umpire in tournament play. A break point occurs if the receiver, not the server , has a chance to win the game with the next point. Break points are of particular importance because serving is generally considered advantageous, with servers being expected to win games in which they are serving. A receiver who has one (score of 30–40 or advantage), two (score of 15–40) or three (score of love–40) consecutive chances to win
4263-424: The court). The short mark in the centre of each baseline is referred to as either the hash mark or the centre mark. The outermost lines that make up the length are called the doubles sidelines; they are the boundaries for doubles matches. The lines to the inside of the doubles sidelines are the singles sidelines, and are the boundaries in singles play. The area between a doubles sideline and the nearest singles sideline
4350-606: The eventual champion Daniil Medvedev . Martin Kližan's retirement to be announced after Wimbledon was reported on 2 June 2021, according to information published by the Slovakian Tennis Federation. He played his last match at Wimbledon on 22 June 2021. Since his retirement, Kližan ran in the local elections for Mayor of Petržalka and applied for the position of president of the Slovak Tennis Association, both of which failed. During
4437-400: The fifth set in the first round, before losing in five sets to Viktor Troicki in the second round, despite being 2–1 up in sets. He competed in men's singles at the 2012 Summer Olympics , as well as the men's doubles with Lukáš Lacko . At the 2012 US Open , Kližan advanced to the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career, upsetting fifth seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in
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#17327805720754524-524: The final. At Roland Garros , Kližan had his best French Open result to date. He reached the third round after defeating World No. 11 Kei Nishikori in straight sets and Robin Haase . At the beginning of the grass season, he reached the quarterfinals, where he was beaten by Richard Gasquet in Eastbourne . At Wimbledon , he lost in the first round in four sets to former champion Rafael Nadal . At
4611-604: The first round again, this time he played Novak Djokovic . After the points from winning the 2016 German Open were deducted, Kližan dropped out of the top 100. Kližan reached the round of 16 at the Sofia Open , where he was defeated by Stan Wawrinka in three sets. In March, Kližan won the Indian Wells Challenger tournament. At the Barcelona Open later in the year, he beat Novak Djokovic for
4698-399: The first time in five encounters (1–4). Kližan later lost in quarterfinals to Rafael Nadal . In Munich , Kližan qualified into the main draw and reached the quarterfinals, where he lost to Chung Hyeon . Kližan qualified for the main draw at Roland Garros , where he lost in the second round to Gaël Monfils . During the grass season, Kližan did not play at any ATP tournaments. Coming into
4785-440: The first time. In Tennis: A Cultural History , Heiner Gillmeister reveals that on 8 December 1874, British army officer Walter Clopton Wingfield wrote to Harry Gem, commenting that he (Wingfield) had been experimenting with his version of lawn tennis "for a year and a half". In December 1873, Wingfield designed and patented a game which he called sphairistikè ( Greek : σφαιριστική , meaning "ball-playing"), and which
4872-497: The following guidelines; The rules regarding rackets have changed over time, as material and engineering advances have been made. For example, the maximum length of the frame had been 32 inches (81 cm) until 1997, when it was shortened to 29 inches (74 cm). Many companies manufacture and distribute tennis rackets. Wilson, Head and Babolat are three of the most commonly used brands; however, many more companies exist. The same companies sponsor players to use these rackets in
4959-533: The four recipient nations to replace the "world championships" with "official championships" was simple in a general sense: each became a major nation of the federation with enhanced voting power, and each now operated a major event. The comprehensive rules promulgated in 1924 by the ILTF have remained largely stable in the ensuing 80 years, the one major change being the addition of the tiebreak system designed by Jimmy Van Alen . That same year, tennis withdrew from
5046-772: The free time, he was watching his previous tennis matches. After a re-watch of the 2014 China Open quarterfinals win against Nadal, Kližan started having ideas about a comeback to professional tennis. In September 2023, he started preparing and training at the IMG Academy . In December 2023, Kližan made his return for the qualifying at the M15 ITF tournament in Antalya . In 2024, Kližan won four ITF tournaments: in Heraklion, Telde, Valldoreix and in Reggio Emilia. As
5133-404: The game (tying the set 6–6) a tiebreak is played. A tiebreak, played under a separate set of rules, allows one player to win one more game and thus the set, to give a final set score of 7–6. A tiebreak game can be won by scoring at least seven points and at least two points more than the opponent. In a tiebreak, two players serve by 'ABBA' system which has been proven to be fair. If a tiebreak
5220-411: The game has break point , double break point or triple break point , respectively. If the receiver does, in fact, win their break point, the game is awarded to the receiver, and the receiver is said to have converted their break point. If the receiver fails to win their break point it is called a failure to convert. Winning break points, and thus the game, is also referred to as breaking serve , as
5307-565: The hopes that the company name will become better known by the public. There are multiple types of tennis strings, including natural gut and synthetic stings made from materials such as nylon , kevlar , or polyester . The first type of tennis strings available were natural gut strings, introduced by Babolat. They were the only type used until synthetic strings were introduced in the 1950s. Natural gut strings are still used frequently by players such as Roger Federer. They are made from cow intestines, and provide increased power, and are easier on
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#17327805720755394-553: The mains (the vertical strings) and the crosses (the horizontal strings). This is most commonly done with two different strings that are made of different materials, but can also be done with two different types of the same string. A notable example of a player using hybrid strings is Roger Federer, using natural gut strings in his mains and polyester strings in his crosses. Tennis balls were originally made of cloth strips stitched together with thread and stuffed with feathers. Modern tennis balls are made of hollow vulcanized rubber with
5481-450: The modern style. Louis was unhappy with playing tennis outdoors and accordingly had indoor, enclosed courts made in Paris "around the end of the 13th century". In due course this design spread across royal palaces all over Europe. In June 1316 at Vincennes , Val-de-Marne, and following a particularly exhausting game, Louis drank a large quantity of cooled wine and subsequently died of either pneumonia or pleurisy , although there
5568-399: The net. A player or team cannot hit the ball twice in a row. The ball must travel over or round the net into the other players' court. A ball that hits the net during a rally is considered a legal return as long as it crosses into the opposite side of the court. The first player or team to fail to make a legal return loses the point. The server then moves to the other side of the service line at
5655-408: The official ITF list of approved tennis balls. Tennis is played on a rectangular, flat surface. The court is 78 feet (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
5742-488: The player who is in the lead in the game needs only one more point to win the game. The terminology is extended to sets (set point), matches (match point), and even championships (championship point). For example, if the player who is serving has a score of 40–love, the player has a triple game point (triple set point, etc.) as the player has three consecutive chances to win the game. Game points, set points, and match points are not part of official scoring and are not announced by
5829-410: The player's scores equal at 40 apiece, the score is not called out as "40–40", but rather as "deuce". If at least three points have been scored by each side and a player has one more point than his opponent, the score of the game is "advantage" for the player in the lead. During informal games, advantage can also be called "ad in" or "van in" when the serving player is ahead, and "ad out" or "van out" when
5916-640: The quarterfinals in Umag and winning his first-round match in Montreal against Thomaz Bellucci , lost in the first round of every tournament, peaking at the 2013 US Open , where he lost to Donald Young . He did not play for six weeks due to a wrist injury and withdrew from St. Petersburg , where he was the defending champion. Kližan started the year with a first-round loss at the Nouméa, New Caledonia Challenger tournament to World No. 258 Kimmer Coppejans . After
6003-449: The receiver has disrupted, or broken the natural advantage of the server. If in the following game the previous server also wins a break point it is referred to as breaking back . Except where tiebreaks apply, at least one break of serve is required to win a set (otherwise a two-game lead would never occur). Another, however informal, tennis format is called Canadian doubles . This involves three players, with one person playing against
6090-414: The receiving player is ahead; alternatively, either player may simply call out "my ad" or "your ad". The score of a tennis game during play is always read with the serving player's score first. In tournament play, the chair umpire calls the point count (e.g., "15–love") after each point. At the end of a game, the chair umpire also announces the winner of the game and the overall score. A set consists of
6177-463: The second round in four sets. Coming into 2013 , Kližan was expected to reach at least the top 20. However, with his inconsistent nature, Kližan alternated good results with very bad ones. After first-round losses at the start of the season, he reached the quarterfinals in Rotterdam . Due to this result, he reached his career-high singles ranking of World No. 26. He went on with poor results until
6264-461: The second round. He later received wild card into challenger in Prostějov . Kližan defeated fellow Slovak player Norbert Gombos in the first round, but lost in the second round to young Serbian player Laslo Djere . In July, Kližan again played Davis Cup for Slovakia and won both his matches. He subsequently won his fourth title in Rotterdam , beating Gaël Monfils in the final, coming back from
6351-471: The semifinals in Casablanca . At the 2013 French Open , he lost in the second round against eventual champion Rafael Nadal , despite winning the first set. Subsequently, he participated in a Challenger tournament in Caltanissetta, Italy, where Kližan suffered a shocking loss to non-ranked player Pablo Carreño Busta in the first round. Afterwards, Klizan returned to the main tour and after reaching
6438-404: The service boxes; depending on a player's position, they have to hit the ball into one of these when serving. A ball is out only if none of it has hit the area inside the lines, or the line, upon its first bounce. All lines are required to be between 1 and 2 inches (25 and 51 mm) in width, with the exception of the baseline which can be up to 4 inches (100 mm) wide, although in practice it
6525-417: The singles court on each side. The modern tennis court owes its design to Major Walter Clopton Wingfield . In 1873, Wingfield patented a court much the same as the current one for his stické tennis (sphairistike). This template was modified in 1875 to the court design that exists today, with markings similar to Wingfield's version, but with the hourglass shape of his court changed to a rectangle. Tennis
6612-468: The start of a new point. A game consists of a sequence of points played with the same player serving. A game is won by the first player to have won at least four points in total and at least two points more than the opponent. The running score of each game is described in a manner peculiar to tennis: scores from zero to three points are described as "love", "15", "30", and "40", respectively. If at least three points have been scored by each player, making
6699-445: The third set. In Budapest , Kližan defeated two qualifiers: Maximilian Marterer and Bjorn Fratangelo , before losing to top seed and eventual winner Lucas Pouille in the quarterfinals. In Munich , Kližan defeated Nicolás Kicker and Mischa Zverev , before losing to Chung Hyeon in the quarterfinals. At the 2017 French Open , Kližan defeated Laurent Lokoli in the first round before losing to World No. 1 Andy Murray . This
6786-500: The top 100 of the rankings at World No. 97. In São Paulo , Kližan reached the quarterfinals, where he lost to semifinalist Thomaz Bellucci . Starting from qualifying once more, Kližan surprisingly won the BMW Open , beating Mikhail Youzhny and Tommy Haas en route to the final, where he defeated top seeded Fabio Fognini . It was the second final and second title in Kližan's main-circuit career. He won both titles beating Fognini in
6873-407: The under-16 category, in both singles and doubles. In doubles, his partner was compatriot Andrej Martin . Kližan then went on to win the 2006 French Open boys' singles competition. As a young man, Kližan posted a 54–21 win–loss record in singles and 58–18 in doubles. He reached the boys' No. 1 combined world ranking on 1 January 2007. Kližan turned pro in 2007 . In 2010 , Kližan qualified for
6960-613: Was also suspicion of poisoning. Because of the contemporary accounts of his death, Louis X is history's first tennis player known by name. Another of the early enthusiasts of the game was King Charles V of France , who had a court set up at the Louvre Palace . It was not until the 16th century that rackets came into use and the game began to be called "tennis", from the French term tenez , which can be translated as "hold!", "receive!" or "take!", an interjection used as
7047-491: Was followed by a first-round loss in Sydney , where he retired with a foot injury. He then lost a tight, five-set match against No. 4 seed Stan Wawrinka at the Australian Open . Kližan reached the quarterfinals in both Sofia and Rotterdam . As he was the defending champion in Rotterdam , his ranking dropped substantially after these tournaments. In Acapulco , Kližan lost in the first round to top seed Novak Djokovic . At
7134-413: Was followed by two Challengers, where he played as the top seed. In Prostějov , Kližan lost in the second round to qualifier Markus Eriksson (ranked 476 at the time). In Poprad-Tatry , he lost to Roberto Carballés Baena in the quarterfinals. Kližan played one grass tournament before Wimbledon . In Antalya , he retired in his first-round match against Marsel İlhan . At Wimbledon , Kližan retired in
7221-993: Was larger than the one normally used in New York. On 21 May 1881, the oldest nationwide tennis organization in the world was formed, the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association ) in order to standardize the rules and organize competitions. The US National Men's Singles Championship, now the US Open , was first held in 1881 at the Newport Casino , Newport, Rhode Island . The US National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887 in Philadelphia . Tennis also became popular in France, where
7308-522: Was one of the original Olympic sports , and has been consistently competed in the Summer Olympic Games since 1988 . Historians believe that the game's ancient origin lay in 12th-century northern France, where a ball was struck with the palm of the hand. Louis X of France was a keen player of jeu de paume ("game of the palm"), which evolved into real tennis , and became notable as the first person to construct indoor tennis courts in
7395-492: Was soon known simply as "sticky" – for the amusement of guests at a garden party on his friend's estate of Nantclwyd Hall , in Llanelidan , Wales. According to R. D. C. Evans, turfgrass agronomist , "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
7482-516: Was the first loss in seven finals for Kližan in an ATP World Tour final. In Sydney , Kližan lost in the second round to Andreas Seppi . Kližan then lost in the first round of Australian Open to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Kližan played for Slovakia in Davis Cup match against Canada, he won one of his singles rubbers and also in doubles alongside Filip Polášek , but Slovakia eventually lost 2–3. In Sofia , Kližan reached quarterfinals, where he lost to
7569-524: Was three years before the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club would hold its first championships at Wimbledon, in 1877. The first Championships culminated in a significant debate on how to standardise the rules. In the United States in 1874, Mary Ewing Outerbridge , a young socialite, returned from Bermuda with a sphairistikè set. She became fascinated by the game of tennis after watching British army officers play. She laid out
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