My last post dealt with tennis rules. It’s just fitting to have a follow-up post on some of the basic tennis vocabulary in order for us to fully understand and enjoy the game of tennis. Admittedly quite a few of the terminologies sound rather funny to our ears; e.i. love, donut, bagel, bye and so forth.
So here are some of the tennis vocabulary; pertaining directly about the game itself:
- Love – means zero or nothing. It is a rule in the game that when the player wins a certain round, he will say the score aloud, as to “15-love”.
- Kill – to “put the ball” away and end the point.
- Put Away Volley – a volley hit beyond the opponent’s reach.
- Taking the Net – moving from the baseline Position to the net position.
- Double Fault – called when the server fails to serve correctly on both 1st and 2nd serves. The server then loses this point.
- Cross Slice – a shot hit with underspin, or backspin, and sidespin at the same time.
- Dink Shot – a soft dipping shot that just clears the net; used often in doubles, especially on the return of serve.
- Lob – to hit the ball over your opponent’s head using a lot of topspin. Best played when your opponent is at the net.
- Ground Stroke Slice – a groundstroke hit with an open-faced racquet producing backspin or underspin.
- Hitting On the rise – playing the ball before it has reached the peak of its bounce. Also known as “taking the ball early.”
- Inside-Out – a forehand that is to run around the ball to take it on your forehand, even though it has been hit to you in a natural backhand position.
Tennis Vocabulary – Other basic terms used in tennis:
- Moon Ball – a very high lob mixed into a baseline exchange, primarily used to change the tempo.
- Flat Face – when the strings of the racquet are perpendicular to the ground and the racquet meets the ball squarely, with a little spin.
- Let – called when a point is to be replayed. A common example is when a serve clips the top of the net but still lands correctly in the court.
- Unforced Error – where a player is not under any pressure from an opponent yet plays a shot that does not land in the court.
- Vertical Face – when the hitting area of the racquet is at a right angle to the ground or “on edge,” as opposed to an open or a closed face.
- All- Rounder – a player with the ability to play well both offensively and defensively.
- “No-man’s” Land – the area between the baseline and the service line.
- Donut – a score of zero(0) games in a set may be referred to as a Donut.
- Bye – before the start of a tournament seeded players can be given a Bye, which means they are automatically awarded a place in the second round of the tournament.
- Seeding – a graded list of the best players entering a tournament. The best players are normally “seeded” before a tournament begins. This prevents these players from being drawn against each other; knocking each other out during the early rounds of the competition.
Other tennis vocabularies
- Knockout Competition – a tournament whereby players are eliminated when they lose a match. Most events are played with this format, except for the Masters, the Hopman Cup, the Davis Cup, or the Fed Cup.
- Serena Slam – a term created after Serena Williams consecutively won all 4 Grand Slam events, but not in the same season. In 2002 Serena won the French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open, followed by the Australian Open in 2003.
- Tennis Elbow – pain in the elbow caused by too much play, improper technique, improper tension, or any combination of the three.
- Lucky Loser – in some knockout tournaments, one defeat does not automatically result in elimination. Beaten players have the chance to play again, if, for instance, a player withdrew. These players are known as “lucky losers.”
- Clay Court – a court with a surface made of crushed shale, stone or brick. It can be red or green. The French Open is played on clay courts.
- Golden Set – a set of tennis which is won 6-0 without dropping a single point. Only one player in the history of professional tennis has ever achieved this, Bill Scanlon (USA). It was against Marcos Hocevar (Brazil) in the first round of the WCT Gold Coast Classic at Del Ray (Florida, USA) on 22 February 1983. Bill Scanlon won the match 6-2, 6-0.
The above tennis vocabularies are just a few of the terminologies that are most common. I am sure that you can muster a few more than listed in this post. One thing is for certain; knowing these terms will give you a better understanding of the game and better appreciate its history. Admittedly quite a few of the terminologies sound rather funny to our ears.