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Tennis is a game played between either two players ("singles") or two teams of two players ("doubles"). Players use a stringed racquet to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Originating in Europe in the late 19th century, tennis spread first throughout the English-speaking world, particularly among the upper classes. Tennis is now once again an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society, by all ages, and in many countries around the world. Except for the adoption of the tie-breaker in the 1970s, its rules have remained remarkably unchanged since the 1890s. Along with its millions of players, millions of people follow tennis as a spectator sport, especially the four Grand Slam tournaments.
Tennis can be traced as far back as the ancient Greek game of sphairistike. Major Walter Wingfield borrowed the name of this Greek game, in order to name the recreation he patented in 1874. It was soon converted into a three-syllable word rhyming with “pike” and afterwards abbreviated either to sticky or the mock-French stické. At the suggestion of future British prime minister Arthur Balfour, Wingfield eventually decided on "lawn tennis," a name that he had also patented for the game. Its establishment as the modern sport can be dated to two separate roots. In 1856, Alex Ryden, a solicitor, and his friend Joao Batista Pereira, a Portuguese merchant, who both lived in Birmingham, England played a game they named "pelota", after a Spanish ball game. The game was played on a lawn in Edgbaston. In 1872 both men moved to Leamington Spa, and with two doctors from the Warneford Hospital, played pelota on the lawn behind the Manor House Hotel (now residential apartments). Pereira joined with Dr. Frederick Haynes and Dr. A. Wellesley Tomkins to found the first lawn tennis club in the world, and played the game on nearby lawns. In 1874 they formed the Leamington Tennis Club, setting out the original rules of the game. The Courier of 23 July 1884 recorded one of the first tennis tournaments, held in the grounds of Shrubland Hall (demolished 1948). In December 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield devised a similar game for the amusement of his guests at a garden party on his estate at Nantclwyd, Wales. He based the game on the older sport of indoor tennis or real tennis ("royal tennis"), which had been invented in 12th century France and was played by French aristocrats down to the time of the French Revolution. According to most tennis historians, modern tennis terminology also derives from this period, as Wingfield borrowed both the name and much of the French vocabulary of royal tennis and applied them to his new game:
In 1881 the desire to play tennis competitively led to the establishment of tennis clubs. The first championships at Wimbledon, in London were played in 1877. In 1881 the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association) was formed to standardize the rules and organize competitions. The comprehensive I.L.T.F. rules promulgated in 1924 have remained remarkably stable in the ensuing eighty years, the one major change being the addition of the tie-breaker system designed by James Van Alen. The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the U.S. Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island. The U.S. National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887. The Davis Cup, an annual competition between national teams, dates to 1900. Tennis was for many years predominantly a sport of the English-speaking world, dominated by the United States, Britain and Australia. It was also popular in France, where the French Open dates to 1891. Thus Wimbledon, the U.S. 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 Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge). Winning the Grand Slam, by capturing these four titles in one calendar year, is the highest ambition of most tennis players. In 1926, promoter C.C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with 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. For 42 years professional and amateur tennis remained strictly separate. Once a player turned pro he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments. In 1968, commercial pressures led to 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 has spread all over the world and has lost its upper-class English-speaking image. Since the 1970s great champions have emerged from Germany (Boris Becker and Steffi Graf), Australia (Lleyton Hewitt and Patrick Rafter), the former Czechoslovakia (Ivan Lendl, Martina Navrátilová, and Hana Mandlíková), Sweden (Björn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander), Brazil (Gustavo Kuerten), Argentina (Gabriela Sabatini, Guillermo Vilas and Gastón Gaudio), Russia (Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Marat Safin, Maria Sharapova, Anastasia Myskina, and Svetlana Kuznetsova), Belgium (Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin), France (Amélie Mauresmo, Yannick Noah and Mary Pierce), Spain (Juan Carlos Ferrero, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Carlos Moya, Conchita Martinez, and Rafael Nadal), Switzerland (Martina Hingis and Roger Federer) and from many other countries. In America, the game has seen a seismic shift from a sport that the "country-club set" played to one that is an activity for anyone. Successes by players from across the spectrum, from the working-class Jimmy Connors to great African-American stars such as Arthur Ashe and the Williams sisters Venus and Serena, have firmly established tennis as a game for all in the United States. This is perhaps best embodied in the fact that in the 1970s, when popularity of the game was at a peak, the USTA decided to move the U.S. Open from the posh West Side Tennis Club to a public park (the USTA National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows Park) that is accessible to anyone with the "greens fees" (currently $17). About the same time, the ruling body's name was also changed from United States Lawn Tennis Association to United States Tennis Association. In 1954 James Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame, a non-profit museum in Newport, Rhode Island. The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honoring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Each year, a grass-court tournament is hosted on the grounds that are home to the Tennis Hall of Fame, as well as an induction ceremony honoring new Hall of Fame members. The court The dimensions of a tennis court, in imperial units. A tennis net.Tennis is played on a rectangular, flat surface, usually grass, clay, or a hardcourt of concrete and/or asphalt. The court is 78 feet (23.77 m) long, and its width is 27 feet (8.23 m) for singles matches and 36 feet (10.97 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 the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. The net is 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) high at the posts and 3 feet (914 mm) high in the center. Lines Each of the lines that delineate the width of the court is called the baseline. The short mark in the center of each baseline is referred to as either the hash mark or the center mark. The outermost lines that make up the length are both called the doubles sideline. These are the boundaries used when doubles is being played. The area between the doubles sideline and the lines next to them is called the doubles alley, which is considered out in singles play. These lines next to the doubles sideline are the singles sidelines, and used as boundaries in singles play. The line that runs across the center of a player's side of the court is called the service line; 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 center line or center service line. The boxes this center line creates are called the service boxes; depending on a player's position, they will have to hit the ball into one of these when serving. A ball is out only if none of it has hit the line upon its first bounce. Types of courts There are three main types of court surface. Depending on the materials used, each surface provides a difference in the speed and bounce of the ball, which in turn can affect the level of play of individual players. The three most common surfaces are:
Some players are more successful on certain surfaces and are known as "specialists" for that particular court. Clay courts are considered "slow" because the loose surface causes the ball to lose speed rapidly and bounce higher. This makes it more difficult for a player to hit an unreturnable shot (a "winner") because the opponent has more time to reach and return the ball. Line calls are easily reviewable on this type of court because the ball generally leaves a visible mark. Hardcourts are generally considered to be faster than clay courts. There are many different types of hardcourts, and, dependent on the construction of the court,can be relatively slow or fast. A fast hardcourt is characterised by low bounces, where fast-serving and hard-hitting players hold an advantage. Grass is a fast surface and was the surface used at three of the Grand Slam tournaments until the Australian Open and the U.S. Open changed to hardcourts. Grass courts cause low ball bounces, which keeps rallies short and gives hard-serving and hard-hitting players an advantage. This type of court also features unpredictable ball bounces, depending on the health of the grass and how recently it has been mown. Play of a single point The players (or teams) start on opposite sides of the net. One player is designated the server, and the opposing player, or in doubles one of the opposing players, is the receiver. Service alternates between the two halves of the court. For each point, the server starts behind his baseline, between the center mark and the sideline. The receiver may start anywhere on his side of the net. When the receiver is ready, the server will serve, although the receiver must play to the pace of the server. In a legal service, the ball travels over the net (without touching it) and into the diagonally opposite service box. If the ball hits the net but lands in the service box, this is a let service, which is void, and the server gets to retake 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. Usually, there is no instance of where there are more than one let service. If the first service is otherwise faulty in any way, wide, long or not over the net, the serving player has a second attempt at service. There is also a "foot fault" which occurs when a player's foot touches the baseline or an extension of the center mark before the ball is hit. If the second service is also faulty, this is a double fault and the receiver wins the point. However, if the serve is in then 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 the player or team hitting the ball exactly once before it has bounced twice or hit any fixtures except the net provided that it still falls in the server's court. It then travels back over the net and bounces in the court on the opposite side. The first player or team to fail to make a legal return loses the point. Scoring A tennis match usually comprises one to five sets. A set consists of a number of games, and games, in turn, consist of points. A game consists of a sequence of points played with the same player serving, and is won by the first player to have won at least four points and at least two points more than his opponent. The running score of each game is described in a manner particular to tennis: scores of zero to three points are described as "love" (or zero), "fifteen," "thirty," and "forty" respectively. When at least three points have been scored by each side and the players have the same number of points, the score is "deuce." When 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 "ad out", depending on whether the serving player or receiving player, respectively, is ahead. A game point occurs in tennis whenever 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, he has a triple game point (triple set point, etc.). A break point occurs if the receiver, not the server, has a game point. It is of importance in professional tennis, since service breaks happen less frequently with professional players. It may happen that the player who is in the lead in the game has more than one chance to score the winning point, even if his opponent should take the next point(s). For example, if the player who is serving has a score of 15-40, the receiver has a double break point. Should the player in the lead take any one of the next two points, he wins the game. A set consists of 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 when he wins at least six games and at least two games more than his opponent. When each player has won six games a tiebreaker is played. A tiebreaker, 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. Only in the final sets of matches at the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, Davis Cup, and Fed Cup are tiebreaks not played. Matches consist of an odd number of sets, the match winner being the player who wins more than half of the sets. The match ends as soon as this winning condition is met. Some matches may consist of five sets (the winner being the first to win three sets), while most matches are three sets (the winner being the first to win two sets). Rules variations No-ad: The first player or doubles team to four points wins the game. One side does not have to win by two points. When the game score reaches deuce, the receiving player has the option to choose on which side of court they want to receive for the final game-deciding point. Pro set: Instead of playing multiple sets, players may play one "pro set". A pro set is first to 8 (or 10) games by a margin of two games, instead of first to 6. A 12-point tiebreaker is usually played when the score is 8-8 (or 10-10). These are often played with no-ad scoring. Super tie-break: This is sometimes played instead of a third set. This is played like a regular tie-break, but the winner must win ten points instead of seven. Super tie-breaks are used on the ATP and WTA tours for doubles. Another, informal, tennis format is called "Canadian doubles" (also referred to as "American Doubles" or "Australian Doubles"). This involves three players, with one person playing against a doubles team. For the single player, singles-court rules apply (such that the ball must be within the singles-court lines) but on the side of the doubles team, doubles-court rules apply (the alleys are considered in). The scoring is the same as a regular game. This format is not sanctioned by any official body and is only played when a fourth player is not available for normal doubles. Wheelchair tennis can be played by able-bodied players as well as people who require 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. Juniors In tennis, a junior is any player under the age of 18 who is still legally protected by a parent or guardian. Players on the main adult tour who are under 18 must have documents signed by a parent or guardian. These players, however, are still eligible to play in junior tournaments. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) conducts a junior tour that allows juniors to establish a world ranking and an Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) or Women's Tennis Association ranking. Most juniors who enter the international circuit do so by progressing through ITF, Satellite, Future, and Challenger tournaments before entering the main circuit. The latter three circuits also have adults competing in them. Some juniors, however, such as Australian Lleyton Hewitt and Frenchman Gael Monfils, have catapulted directly from the junior tour to the ATP tour by dominating the junior scene or by taking advantage of opportunities given to them to participate in professional tournaments. In 2004, the ITF implemented a new rankings scheme to encourage greater participation in doubles, by combining two rankings (singles and doubles) into one combined tally. Junior tournaments do not offer prize money except for the Grand Slams, which are the most prestigious junior events. Juniors may earn income from tennis by participating in the Future, Satellite, or Challenger tours. Tournaments are broken up into different tiers offering different amounts of ranking points, culminating with Grade A. Leading juniors are also allowed to participate for their nation in the Junior Fed Cup and Davis Cup competitions as well. As of November 16, 2006, the top three boys in the world were: 1. Thiemo de Bakker, the Netherlands; 2. Martin Kližan, Slovakia; 3. Dušan Lojda, the Czech Republic. As of November 16, 2006, the top three girls in the world were: 1. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia; 2. Caroline Wozniacki, Denmark; 3. Ksenia Milevskaya, Belarus. Shots A competent tennis player has eight basic shots in his or her repertoire: the serve, forehand, backhand, volley, half-volley, overhead smash, drop shot, and lob. Serve Tim Henman serving. A serve (or, more formally, a "service") in tennis is a shot to start a point. The serve is initiated by tossing the ball into the air and hitting it (usually near the apex of its trajectory) into the diagonally opposite service box without touching the net. The serve may be hit under- or overhand. Experienced players strive to master the conventional overhand serve to maximize its power and placement. The server may employ different types of serve:
Some servers are content to use the serve simply to initiate the point; advanced players often try to hit a winning shot with their serve. A winning serve that is not touched by the opponent is called an ace; if the receiver manages to touch it but fails to successfully return it, it is called a service winner. Grips Players may use the continental, semi-western, western, extreme western or eastern grips during play. Different grips generally are used for different types of spin and shots. Forehand Roger Federer preparing to hit a forehand.For a right-handed player, the forehand is a stroke that begins on the right side of his body, continues across his body as contact is made with the ball, and ends on the left side of his body. There are various grips for executing the forehand and their popularity has fluctuated over the years. The most important ones are the continental, the eastern, "semi-western" and the western. For a number of years the small, apparently frail 1920s player Bill Johnston was considered by many to have had the best forehand of all time, a stroke that he hit shoulder-high using a western grip. Few top players used the western grip after the 1920s, but in the latter part of the 20th century, as shot-making techniques and equipment changed radically, the western forehand made a strong comeback and is now used by many modern players. No matter which grip is used, most forehands are generally executed with one hand holding the racquet, but there have been fine players with two-handed forehands. In the 1940s and 50s the Ecuadorian/American player Pancho Segura used a two-handed forehand to devastating effect against larger, more powerful players, and many females and young players use the two-handed grips today. At a professional event in 1951 the forehand drives of a number of players were electronically measured. Pancho Gonzales hit the fastest, 112.88 mph, followed by Jack Kramer at 107.8 and Welby Van Horn at 104. Backhand Maria Kirilenko hits a backhand.For right-handed players, the backhand is a stroke that begins on the left side of their body, continues across their body as contact is made with the ball, and ends on the right side of their body. It can be executed with either one hand or with both and is generally considered more difficult to master than the forehand. For most of the 20th century it was performed with one hand, using either an eastern or a continental grip. The first notable players to use two hands were the 1930s Australians Vivian McGrath and John Bromwich, but they were lonely exceptions. The two-handed grip gained popularity in the 1970s as Björn Borg, Chris Evert, Jimmy Connors, and later Mats Wilander used it to great effect, and it is now used by a large number of the world's best players, including Andre Agassi and Venus Williams. Andy Roddick uses the "extreme western" grip to create massive amounts of top spin. It is difficult to do this and also causes injuries when done incorrectly. Two hands give the player more power, while one hand can generate a slice shot, applying backspin on the ball to produce a low trajectory bounce. The player long considered to have had the best backhand of all time, Don Budge, had a very powerful one-handed stroke in the 1930s and '40s that imparted topspin onto the ball. Ken Rosewall, another player noted for his one-handed backhand, used a deadly accurate slice backhand with underspin through the 1950s and '60s. A small number of players, notably Monica Seles, use two hands on both the backhand and forehand sides. Other shots Justine Henin volleying.A volley is made in the air before the ball bounces, generally near the net, and is usually made with a stiff-wristed punching motion to hit the ball into an open area of the opponent's court. The half volley is made by hitting the ball on the rise just after it has bounced, once again generally in the vicinity of the net. The swinging volley is hit out of the air as the player approaches the net. It is an offensive shot used to take preparation time away from the opponent. From a poor defensive position on the baseline, the lob can be used as either an offensive or defensive weapon, hitting the ball high and deep into the opponent's court to either enable the lobber to get into better defensive position or to win the point outright by hitting it over the opponent's head. If the lob is not hit deeply enough into the other court, however, the opponent may then hit an overhead smash, a hard, serve-like shot, to try to end the point. Finally, if an opponent is deep in his court, a player may suddenly employ an unexpected drop shot, softly tapping the ball just over the net so that the opponent is unable to run in fast enough to retrieve it. Tournaments Tournaments are often organized by gender and number of players. Common tournament configurations include men's singles, women's singles, doubles (where two players of the same gender play on each side), and mixed doubles (with a member of each gender per side). Tournaments may be arranged for specific age groups, with upper age limits for youth and lower age limits for senior players. There are also tournaments for players with disabilities. In the four Grand Slam tournaments, the singles draws are limited to 128 people for each gender. Players may also be matched by their skill level. According to how well a person does in sanctioned play, a player is given a rating that is adjusted periodically to maintain competitive matches. For example, the United States Tennis Association administers the National Tennis Rating Program, which is divided into the following ratings (with higher numbers indicating more skill): 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, and 7.0. Average club players under this system would rate 3.0-4.5 while world class players would be 7.0 on this scale. Tennis strategy In tennis, a player uses different strategies that both enhance his own strengths and exploit his opponent's weaknesses in order to gain the advantage and win more points. Players commonly specialize in a certain style of play, focusing on what they do best as a means of beating their opponents. Based on their style, players generally fit into one of three types: baseliners, volleyers and all-court players. A baseliner plays from the back of the tennis court, around the baseline, preferring to trade groundstrokes rather than to come up to the net (except in certain situations). A volleyer tries to approach the net and hit volleys, putting pressure on the opponent. All-court players fall somewhere in between. Aggressive baseliner An aggressive baseliner tries to win the point by hitting winners from the back of the court, attacking with fast balls that the opponent cannot reach or return properly. He may not try to win the point outright with one shot, but instead may hit the ball from side to side until he spots an opening. Aggressive baseliners normally have at least one great groundstroke, often the forehand. An aggressive baseliner can overpower and overwhelm most opposition. However, when going for winners, he can also produce many errors. Two great old-time players, R. Norris Williams and Ellsworth Vines, were famous for being unbeatable when their strokes were "on"; they played with such little margin for error in making their strokes, however, that they when they were not 100 percent "on" they could be beaten by inferior players. Some all-time great aggressive baseliners are Bill Johnston, Ivan Lendl, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, Monica Seles, and Steffi Graf. Most players today are aggressive baseliners; a few notable ones are Marat Safin, Fernando Gonzalez, Andy Roddick, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters, Maria Sharapova and Lindsay Davenport. Defensive baseliner A defensive baseliner, or counterpuncher or retriever, returns every ball and relies on the opponent making mistakes. He has consistent shots, makes few errors of his own while making it difficult for opponents to hit winners. A counterpuncher must have speed and agility to cover the court. He is a fighter, and has to have willingness to chase down every ball to frustrate opponents. Usually he also has great passing shots to score points when the opponent is at the net. Counterpunchers often excel on slow courts, such as clay courts. The court gives them extra time to chase down shots and it is harder for opponents to create winners. Counterpunchers are often particularly strong players at low-level play, where opponents can not make winners with regularity. Great counterpunchers of all time include Mats Wilander, Björn Borg, Guillermo Vilas, Michael Chang, Miloslav Mecir and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. Active players who employ this strategy are Rafael Nadal, Lleyton Hewitt, David Nalbandian, Guillermo Coria and Anastasia Myskina. Serve and Volleyer A serve and volleyer has a great net game, is quick around the net, and has fine touch for volleys. Serve and volleyers come up to the net at every opportunity when serving. They are almost always attackers and can hit many winners with varieties of volleys and drop volleys. When not serving, they often employ the "chip-and-charge", chipping back the serve without attempting to hit a winner and rushing the net. The serve and volleyers' strategy is to pressure the opponent to try to hit difficult passing shots. Serve and volleyers benefit from playing on fast courts, such as grass or fast concrete. The quick bounce and faster pace of play give them an advantage because opponents have less time to set up for a passing shot. The number of serve and volley players is decreasing in today's professional tennis, however, because this strategy requires more experience to master and to defeat other playing styles. Some of the great ones in history are Jack Kramer, Frank Sedgman, Pancho Gonzales, Lew Hoad, John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Goran Ivanisevic, Pete Sampras, Stefan Edberg, Patrick Rafter, Greg Rusedski, Jana Novotná, and Martina Navratilova. Bill Tilden, the dominant player of the 1920s, preferred to play from the backcourt and liked nothing better than to face an opponent who rushed the net — one way or another Tilden would find a way to hit the ball past him. In his book Match Play and the Spin of the Ball, Tilden propounds the theory that by definition a great baseline player will always beat a great serve-and-volleyer. Some of the best matches of all time have pitted great baseliners such as Björn Borg or Andre Agassi against great serve-and-volleyers such as John McEnroe or Pete Sampras. All-court player All-court players lie somewhere in between baseliners and volleyers. They usually have an attacking game, mixing some groundstrokes and volleys to keep the opponent guessing. They are very versatile; when an all-court player's baseline game is not working, he may switch to a net game, and vice versa. Among the best all-court players of all time are Bill Tilden, Ellsworth Vines, Don Budge, Ken Rosewall, and Rod Laver. Pancho Gonzales was seen by most observers as being as a serve-and-volleyer; he considered himself, however, an all-court player. Great all-court players today include Roger Federer, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Martina Hingis, and Amélie Mauresmo. Doubles Strategy Though strategy is important in singles, it is even more important in doubles. The additional width of the alleys on the doubles court has a great effect on the angles possible in doubles play. Consequently, doubles is known as a game of angles. There are three basic doubles strategies:
The ideal is both-up strategy, often called "Attacking Doubles" because the net is the "high ground," and both-up strategy puts both players close to it, in a position to score because of their excellent vantage points and angles. A team in the both-up formation, however, is vulnerable to a good lob from either opponent at any time. So, to be successful with Attacking Doubles, they must have penetrating volleys to prevent good lobs and good overhead shots to kill poor ones. Teams that play Attacking Doubles try to get into the both-up formation on every point. When serving, their server follows most first serves to the net and some second serves. So, Attacking Doubles is also called serve-and-volley doubles. When receiving, their receiver follows most second-service returns to the net. At the touring professional level, Attacking Doubles is the strategy of choice. Up-and-Back Strategy At lower levels of the game, not all players have penetrating volleys and strong overhead shots. So, many use up-and-back strategy. The weakness in this formation is the large angular gap it creates between partners, a gap that an opposing net player can easily hit a clean winner through. Nonetheless, up-and-back strategy is versatile, with both offense and defense in it. In fact, since the server and receiver must begin each point at the baseline, virtually every point in doubles begins with both teams in this formation. Teams without net games strong enough to play Attacking Doubles can play both-up when they have their opponents on the defensive. So, they patiently play up-and-back for a chance to hit a forcing shot and bring their baseliner to the net. Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are variations of up-and-back strategy. In Australian doubles, the server's partner at net lines up on the same side of the court, fronting the opposing net player, who serves as a poaching block and blind. The receiver then must return serve down the line and is liable to have that return poached. In the I-Formation, the server's net partner lines up in the center, between the server and receiver so he or she can poach in either direction. Both Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are poaching formations that can also be used to start the point for serve-and-volley doubles. Both-Back Strategy Both-back strategy is strictly defensive. You normally see it only when the opposing team is both-up. From here the defenders can return the most forcing shots till they get a chance to hit a good lob or an offensive shot. If their opponents at net become impatient and try to angle the ball away when a baseliner can reach it, the defender can turn the tables and score outright. 
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