History

Timeline History of Tennis

Here are my headline of tennis history

1872

The first lawn tennis club in the world

Leamington, Warwickshire

1875

First rules of tennis

First rules for tennis published by Marylebone Cricket Club.

1880

Overhead smash used for the first time

Renshaw brothers

1900

David Cup created

US wins

1937

Wimbledon Televised

First tennis tournament to be televised.

Grays-Silver-Gray

1955

New balls during matched

after 7 games

Wilson-T2000

1968

Open era unites Pros and Amature

Open era begins; British Hard Courts at Bournemouth.

Wilson-BJK-Autograph

1970

1st Tie Break

Tiebreak introduced to Grand Slam tennis at US Open.

Donnay Borg Signature International

1975

First seats for players

Players allowed to sit down between ends.

Dunlop-200G

1985

Boris Becker

Youngest and first unseeded Wimbledon Men’s Singles champion.

Prince-Classic93

2005

Hawk Eye

Hawk-Eye and Player Challenges change line-calling.

Full Timeline of Tennis

YEAREVENT
1872First lawn tennis club formed in Leamington, Warwickshire.
1873Major Wingfield introduced modern tennis.
1874Wingfield patented his game.
1875Standardized tennis rules made by Marylebone Cricket Club.
1877First men’s singles championship at Wimbledon, held at Worple Road.
1880The Overhead Smash introduced by the Renshaw brothers.
1881US National Lawn Tennis Association founded; first US Championships played.
1884Women’s championship introduced at Wimbledon.
1890Canadian national championships inaugurated.
1891French Open played for the first time, open only to French residents.
1896Tennis included in the modern Olympics for the first time.
1899All England Croquet Club renamed to All England Tennis & Croquet Club.
1900Davis Cup first held; USA wins.
1905Laurie and Reggie Doherty win record Wimbledon Men’s Doubles title.
1907Norman Brookes becomes first international Wimbledon Men’s Singles Champion.
1908Charlotte Sterry becomes oldest Wimbledon Ladies Singles champion at 37 years, 282 days.
1909Arthur Gore becomes oldest Wimbledon Men’s Singles champion at 41 years, 182 days.
1913International Lawn Tennis Federation founded in Paris with 12 nations.
1920Suzanne Lenglen wins triple crown; new Wimbledon works start.
1922New Wimbledon Championships on Church Street open; capacity 14,000.
1925French Championships become international.
1927Seeding players introduced at Wimbledon for the first time.
1934Last British double: Dorothy Round and Fred Perry win Wimbledon singles titles.
1936Fred Perry wins third successive Wimbledon Men’s Singles title.
1937Wimbledon first tennis tournament to be televised.
1940WWII halts Wimbledon; bomb damages Centre Court, losing 1200 seats.
1946Wimbledon Championships reopen post-WWII.
1949Gussy Moran’s lace-trimmed knickers make global headlines.
1955Rule change: new balls changed after first seven games, then each subsequent nine.
1962Rod Laver wins Wimbledon Men’s Singles, securing first Grand Slam title.
1967Wimbledon Championships shown on colour TV for the first time.
1968Open era begins; British Hard Courts at Bournemouth.
1969Rod Laver wins pure “open” Grand Slam, achieving two Grand Slams.
1970Tiebreak introduced to Grand Slam tennis at US Open.
1971Tie-break introduced at Wimbledon if games reach 8-8 in any set.
1972ATP Association formed; Jack Kramer first Executive Director.
1973ATP boycotts Wimbledon following Nikki Pilic’s suspension.
1975Players allowed chairs on court during change of ends for first time.
1976Björn Borg wins his first Wimbledon singles title.
1977Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum opens; Virginia Wade wins Ladies Singles title.
1979Tie-break rule changed to 6-6 in games, except final sets.
1980First Sunday match at Wimbledon; Borg wins fifth consecutive title.
1984Tennis returns to Olympics as test event; won by Edberg and Graf.
1985Boris Becker becomes youngest and first unseeded Wimbledon Men’s Singles champion.
1988Australian Open moves to new tennis centre with retractable roof.
1989ATP transforms into tour body; introduces ‘Super Nine’.
1990Monica Seles wins first Grand Slam.
1990Martina Navratilova wins record 9th Wimbledon Ladies Singles title.
1992Andre Agassi wins Wimbledon.
1994Tim Henman disqualified for hitting ball girl accidentally.
1996Martina Hingis becomes youngest Wimbledon champion at 15 years, 282 days.
1998A record 131 entries for the Davis Cup.
1999Serena Williams wins first U.S. Open.
2000ATP Champions Race launched; Tennis Masters Series established.
2001Goran Ivanisevic becomes first Wimbledon wildcard to win Men’s Singles title.
2002Venus and Serena Williams ranked #1 and #2 in WTA world rankings.
2003Pete Sampras retires with 14 Grand Slam titles.
2003Roger Federer wins first Wimbledon.
2004Roger Federer wins three Grand Slam events in a calendar year.
2005Hawk-Eye and Player Challenges change line-calling.
2006Andre Agassi retires; electronic line call challenges introduced.
2007Rafael Nadal sets record with 81 straight wins on clay.
2008Rafael Nadal wins first Wimbledon.
2009Roger Federer wins French Open, considered greatest tennis player.