Overview

The sport of tennis has been played in one form or another for more than 800 years. It can trace its roots to games played by monks in the 12th century. Through the years the game has evolved from one in which the ball was struck with the hands to the modern game in which rackets are used to propel the ball in excess of 150 miles per hour. From the sport of the elite to the sport played by elite athletes, tennis has grown immensely in the past 135 years and it remains one of the few sporting pastimes that is played extensively by people of all ages and all nationalities. The Historical Dictionary of Tennis presents a comprehensive history of the game through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, photos, and over 500 cross-referenced dictionary entries on places, teams, terminology, and people, including Arthur Ashe, Björn Borg, Don Budge, Chris Evert, Roger Federer, Billie Jean King, Rod Laver, Suzanne Lenglen, John McEnroe, Rafael Nadal, Martina Navratilova, and Bill Tilden. Appendixes of the members of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, the Major Championships of Tennis, and the Olympic games are included. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about tennis.

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9780810872370

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Reviews

This alphabetized lexicon profiles the people, groups, events, techniques, court terms, and geographical locations of tennis history. Following an event chronology that commences with 1874 and concludes with 2011, Grasso (Historical Dictionary of Basketball) offers a concise historical overview in his 17-page introduction. Black-and-white player photographs sometimes accompany the multiparagraph, cross-referenced entries. Nine appendixes provide quick-reference to Hall of Fame inductees and championship winners from various international competitions. Library Journal

This alphabetized lexicon profiles the people, groups, events, techniques, court terms, and geographical locations of tennis history. Following an event chronology that commences with 1874 and concludes with 2011, Grasso (Historical Dictionary of Basketball) offers a concise historical overview in his 17-page introduction. Black-and-white player photographs sometimes accompany the multiparagraph, cross-referenced entries. Nine appendixes provide quick-reference to Hall of Fame inductees and championship winners from various international competitions. Library Journal From its medieval roots to the modern-day grand-slam events, tennis is a popular sport, for both players and fans. This dictionary covers the history, rules, competitions, and personalities of the sport of tennis, from 1874 to 2011. The introduction gives the roots of the modern sport, details grand-slam events, mentions the tennis boom of the 1970s, and ends by discussing current tennis events. Arranged alphabetically by subject, the dictionary itself covers rules, scoring, events, and countries. Most importantly, major players are featured, showcasing their personalities and their importance to tennis. For many fans, it is the players who provide the most interest, and this work is filled with biographical information. All of the big names in the sport are included: Bill Tilden, Maureen Connolly, Arthur Ashe, Jimmy Connors, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Venus and Serena Williams. Nine appendixes list information on and winners of the major Open and Cup events as well as International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees and Olympic Games champions. The work concludes with a bibliography of historical, biographical, and instructional materials as well as tennis periodicals and websites. The most useful feature of any historical dictionary of a sport is the organization of the people, events, history, rules, terms, and champions in one concise volume, and this work is a fine example. Recommended for public, school, and academic libraries where there is an interest in sports, and for libraries owning other volumes in this series. Booklist

Author Information

John Grasso is an Olympic historian and Treasurer of the International Society of Olympic Historians.

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