Believed to be originated from a twelfth century French game called paume, Tennis is now a very popular sport played by people of all ages worldwide. It is played by millions of people as a recreational activity and also as a professional sport in the international arena.
The player of each team tries to play the ball in a way that the player of the opposite team is not able to play a good return. The ball used in the game is a hollow rubber ball and a racket is used to strike it.
The history of tennis dates back to several thousand years. It is believed that the game was the invention of the European monks who played it for entertainment during the religious ceremonies. By the fourteenth century, the game became popular across many monasteries in Europe much to the disappointment of the Church.
In the years to come, tennis began gaining popularity as a sport in France. It was played by the members of the Royal Family and other noblemen.
The first tennis courts were established in 1874 in the United States and they were devised by Major Walter Wingfield. The modern tennis courts are based on the design provided by Wingfield but a few changes have been made a number of times.
Soon the game spread to the other parts of the world including Canada, Russia, China, and India. The version of tennis that is played today traces its origin to the game that was played in Birmingham, England in the nineteenth century. This was known as "lawn tennis".
In England, the first tennis championship took place in 1877; it was sponsored by the All England Croquet Club at a little place called Wimbledon. This game included only two male players (singles).
The first recorded women's tournament was played in Dublin in 1879.
Today, tennis is one of the most spectacular sports played worldwide. The major tennis tournaments played in the world include the four Grand Slams: Australian Open, French Open, the US Open, and the Wimbledon. The major male tennis players in the world include Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. Among the top female tennis players are Steffi Graf, Maureen Connolly, Lottie Dod, Helen Jacobs, Serena Williams, Martina Navratilova.
| 2013 ATP Men's Tennis Tournament Schedule |
| Event Date | Tennis Tournaments | Location/City | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 14 - Jan 27 | Australian Open | Melbourne | Australia |
| Feb 4 - Feb 10 | ATP Open Sud de France | Montpellier | France |
| Feb 4 - Feb 10 | ATP VTR Open | Vina Del Mar | Chile |
| Feb 4 - Feb 10 | ATP PBZ Zagreb Indoors | Zagreb | Croatia |
| Feb 11 - Feb 17 | ATP ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament | Rotterdam | Netherlands |
| Feb 11 - Feb 17 | ATP Brasil Open | Sao Paulo | Brazil |
| Feb 11 - Feb 17 | ATP SAP Open | San Jose, California | USA |
| Feb 18 - Feb 24 | ATP Tour Open 13 | Marseille | France |
| Feb 18 - Feb 24 | ATP Regions Morgan Keegan Championships | Memphis, Tennessee | USA |
| Feb 18 - Feb 24 | ATP Copa Claro | Buenos Aires | Argentina |
| Feb 25 - Mar 2 | ATP Abierto Mexicano Telcel | Acapulco | Mexico |
| Feb 25 - Mar 2 | ATP Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships | Dubai | United Arab Emirates |
| Feb 25 - Mar 3 | ATP Delray Beach International Tennis Championship | Delray Beach | Florida |
| Mar 7 - Mar 17 | ATP BNP Paribas Open | Indian Wells, California | USA |
| Mar 20 - Mar 31 | ATP Sony Open Tennis | Miami, Florida | USA |
| Apr 8 - Apr 14 | ATP Grand Prix Hassan II | Casablanca | Morocco |
| Apr 8 - Apr 14 | ATP US Men's Claycourt Championships | Houston, Texas | USA |
| Apr 14 - Apr 21 | ATP Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters | Monte Carlo | Monaco |
| Apr 22 - Apr 28 | ATP BRD Nastase Tiriac Trophy | Bucharest | Romania |
| Apr 22 - Apr 28 | ATP Barcelona Open BancSabadell | Barcelona | Spain |
| Apr 29 - May 5 | ATP BMW Open | Munich | Germany |
| Apr 29 - May 5 | ATP Estoril Open | Estoril | Portugal |
| Apr 29 - May 5 | ATP Serbia Open | Belgrade | Serbia |
| May 5 - May 12 | ATP Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open | Madrid | Spain |
| May 12 - May 19 | ATP Internazionali BNL d'Italia | Rome | Italy |
| May 19 - May 25 | ATP Open de Nice Cote d' Azur | Nice | France |
| May 26 - Jun 9 | French Open | Roland Garros, Paris | France |
| Jun 10 - Jun 16 | ATP Gerry Weber Open | Halle | Germany |
| Jun 10 - Jun 16 | ATP AEGON Championships | London | England |
| Jun 16 - Jun 22 | ATP UNICEF Open | s-Hertogenbosch | Netherlands |
| Jun 17 - Jun 22 | ATP AEGON International | Eastbourne | England |
| Jun 24 - Jul 7 | Wimbledon | Wimbledon, London | United Kingdom |
| Jul 8 - Jul 14 | ATP Campbell's Hall of Fame Tennis Championships | Newport, Rhode Island | USA |
| Jul 8 - Jul 14 | ATP Mercedes Cup | Stuttgart | Germany |
| Jul 8 - Jul 14 | WTA XXV Italiacom Open | Sicily | Italy |
| Jul 8 - Jul 14 | ATP SkiStar Swedish Open | Bastad | Sweden |
| Jul 15 - Jul 21 | ATP German Open Tennis Championships | Hamburg | Germany |
| Jul 15 - Jul 21 | ATP Bogota Open | Bogota | Colombia |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | ATP Allianz Suisse Open Gstaad | Gstaad | Switzerland |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | ATP Vegeta Croatia Open Umag | Umag | Croatia |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | ATP BB&T Atlanta Open | Atlanta, Georgia | USA |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | ATP Farmers Classic | Los Angeles, California | USA |
| Jul 28 - Aug 3 | ATP Bet-At-Home Cup Kitzbuhel | Kitzbuhel | Austria |
| Jul 29 - Aug 4 | ATP Citi Open | Washington D.C | USA |
| Aug 5 - Aug 11 | ATP Rogers Cup | Montreal | Canada |
| Aug 11 - Aug 18 | ATP Western & Southern Open | Cincinnati, Ohio | USA |
| Aug 18 - Aug 24 | ATP Winston-Salem Open | North Carolina | USA |
| Aug 26 - Sep 9 | US Open | Flushing Meadows, New York | USA |
| Sep 16 - Sep 22 | ATP Tour Open de Moselle | Metz | France |
| Sep 16 - Sep 22 | ATP Tour St. Petersburg Open | St Petersburg | Russia |
| Sep 23 - Sep 29 | ATP PTT Thailand Open | Bangkok | Thailand |
| Sep 23 - Sep 29 | ATP Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia |
| Sep 30 - Oct 6 | ATP Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships | Tokyo | Japan |
| Sep 30 - Oct 6 | ATP China Open | Beijing | China |
| Oct 6 - Oct 13 | Shanghai Rolex Masters | Shanghai | China |
| Oct 14 - Oct 20 | ATP Erste Bank Open | Vienna | Austria |
| Oct 14 - Oct 20 | ATP Kremlin Cup | Moscow | Russia |
| Oct 14 - Oct 20 | ATP Tour if...Stockholm Open | Stockholm | Sweden |
| Oct 21 - Oct 27 | ATP Swiss Indoors Basel | Basel | Switzerland |
| Oct 21 - Oct 27 | ATP Valencia Open 500 | Valencia | Spain |
| Oct 28 - Nov 3 | ATP BNP Paribas Masters | Paris | France |
| Nov 4 - Nov 11 | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals | O2 Arena, London | United Kingdom |
| 2013 WTA Women's Tennis Tournament Schedule |
| Event Date | Tennis Tournaments | Location/City | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 11 - Feb 17 | WTA Qatar Total Open | Doha | Qatar |
| Feb 17 - Feb 23 | WTA Memphis International Event (US National Indoor Tennis Championships) | Memphis, Tennessee | USA |
| Feb 18 - Feb 23 | WTA Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships | Dubai | UAE |
| Feb 18 - Feb 24 | WTA XIX COPA BBVA COLSANITAS | Bogota | Colombia |
| Feb 24 - Mar 2 | WTA Brasil Tennis Cup | Florianopolis | Brazil |
| Feb 25 - Mar 2 | WTA Abierto Mexicano TELCEL Presentado por HSBC | Acapulco | Mexico |
| Feb 25 - Mar 3 | WTA BMW Malaysian Open | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia |
| Mar 6 - Mar 17 | WTA BNP Paribas Open | Indian Wells, California | USA |
| Mar 19 - Mar 30 | WTA Sony Open Tennis | Miami, Florida | USA |
| Apr 1 - Apr 7 | WTA Tour Family Circle Cup | Charleston, South Carolina | USA |
| Apr 1 - Apr 7 | WTA Whirlpool Monterrey Open | Monterrey | Mexico |
| Apr 8 - Apr 14 | WTA Barcelona Ladies Open | Barcelona | Spain |
| Apr 8 - Apr 14 | WTA BNP Paribas Katowice Open | Katowice | Poland |
| Apr 22 - Apr 28 | WTA Grand Prix S.A.R La Princesse Lalla Meryem | Fes | Morocco |
| Apr 22 - Apr 28 | WTA Tour Porsche Tennis Grand Prix | Stuttgart | Germany |
| Apr 29 - May 4 | WTA Estoril Open | Estoril | Portugal |
| May 4 - May 12 | WTA Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open | Madrid | Spain |
| May 13 - May 19 | WTA Internazionali BNL d'Italia | Rome | Italy |
| May 20 - May 25 | WTA Internationaux de Strasbourg | Strasbourg | France |
| May 20 - May 25 | WTA Brussels Open presented by BNP Paribas Fortis | Brussels | Belgium |
| May 26 - Jun 9 | French Open | Roland Garros, Paris | France |
| Jun 10 - Jun 16 | WTA AEGON Classic | Edgbaston | Birmingham |
| Jun 16 - Jun 22 | WTA UNICEF Open | s-Hertogenbosch | Netherlands |
| Jun 17 - Jun 22 | WTA AEGON International | Eastbourne | England |
| Jun 24 - Jul 7 | Wimbledon | Wimbledon, London | UK |
| Jul 8 - Jul 14 | WTA Budapset Grand Prix | Budapest | Hungary |
| Jul 15 - Jul 21 | WTA Sony Swedish Open Women | Bastad | Sweden |
| Jul 15 - Jul 21 | WTA NURNBERGER Gastein Ladies | Bad Gastein | Austria |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | WTA Tour Bank of the West Classic | Stanford, California | USA |
| Jul 22 - Jul 28 | WTA Baku Cup | Baku | Azerbaijan |
| Jul 29 - Aug 4 | WTA Mercury Insurance Open | Carlsbad, California | USA |
| Jul 29 - Aug 4 | WTA Citi Open | Washington D.C. USA | USA |
| Aug 5 - Aug 11 | WTA Rogers Cup presented by National Bank | Montreal | Canada |
| Aug 12 - Aug 18 | WTA Western & Southern Open | Cincinnati, Ohio | USA |
| Aug 17 - Aug 23 | WTA Texas Open | Dallas | Texas |
| Aug 18 - Aug 24 | WTA New Haven Open at Yale | Connecticut | USA |
| Aug 26 - Sep 9 | US Open | Flushing Meadows, New York | USA |
| Sep 9 - Sep 15 | WTA Tour Bell Challenge | Quebec City | Canada |
| Sep 9 - Sep 14 | WTA Tour Tashkent Open | Tashkent | Uzbekistan |
| Sep 16 - Sep 21 | WTA GRC Bank Guangzhou International Women's Open | Guangzhou | China |
| Sep 16 - Sep 22 | WTA Korea KDB Open | Seoul | Korea |
| Sep 22 - Sep 28 | WTA Tour Toray Pan Pacific Open | Tokyo | Japan |
| Sep 28 - Oct 6 | WTA Tour China Open | Beijing | China |
| Oct 7 - Oct 13 | WTA Generali Ladies Linz presented by voestalpine | Linz | Austria |
| Oct 7 - Oct 13 | WTA HP Japan Women's Open Tennis | Osaka | Japan |
| Oct 14 - Oct 20 | WTA BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open | Luxembourg | |
| Oct 14 - Oct 20 | WTA Kremlin Cup | Moscow | Russia |
| Oct 22 - Oct 27 | TEB BNP PARIBAS WTA Championships | Istanbul | Turkey |
| Oct 29 - Nov 3 | WTA Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions | Sofia | Bulgaria |
