The courtroom The court measures 23.77m long and 8.23m wide for singles play. The court is 10.97m wide for doubles play. A net strung by a rope or metal cable linked to two net posts divides the court into two equal halves. There are no baseline lines.
The term "court" also refers to the playing area on which the game is contested. In tennis, the term usually refers to the open space within the boundaries of a stadium or sports facility where the game is played. The field of play covers the entire court surface, which must be completely flat and hard-packed earth (or other durable material). Grass courts are used in some events such as the French Open but these are exceptional cases. Artificial turf fields are used in some countries and venues, but natural grass is generally preferred by professionals because it provides better ball control and feels more like real tennis.
The size of the court depends on the type of event being played. For singles play, the court is usually about 90 feet long and 24 inches wide. Double matches are played on courts that are 120 feet long and 36 inches wide. These measurements may vary a little from court to court at major tournaments due to the standardization of facilities between events.
There are different ways to measure a tennis court. The most common way is to say the dimension in feet.
The court is 78 feet (23.77 meters) in length. Its width for singles matches is 27 feet (8.23 metres) and 36 feet (10.97 metres) for doubles matches. The distance between the service line and the net is 21 feet (6.40 metres). There are 11,000 square feet (980 square meters)
The original construction of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) in London was done in 1877 by Henry Hutchinson and John Ericsson. It consisted of just one court that was 105 feet by 39 feet (32.19 meters by 12.00 meters). In 1880, another court was added to the north with a length of 150 feet (46.60 meters). This made a total of 355 feet (112.39 meters) of grass tennis courts. In 1897, yet another court was built on the south side of the original one. This new court was 180 feet long (55.24 meters), so that the total length of all six courts is now up to about 500 feet (152.20 meters).
In 1914, the main court was extended to its current size of 78 feet (23.77 meters). At the same time, the two other courts were reduced in size to 60 feet (18.29 meters) and 54 feet (16.43 meters). These modifications were done to make room for more spectators.
Although the doubles court is broader than the singles court, they are both the same length. The exception, which sometimes confuses inexperienced players, is that the serve-length measurements on the doubles court are shorter. The court's full width is 6.1 meters (20 feet), whereas in singles, this width is decreased to 5.18 meters (17 ft).
The main reason for these differences is that it makes serving and returning balls easier. Since there is more room on the court, opponents can't hide behind the baseline when serving, and servers don't need to run as far when returning balls.
In addition, the wider the court, the less likely it is that a ball will be hit into the net. While this may not seem like a big deal, especially since most doubles games aren't decided by shots into the net, it does make a difference!
Finally, the wider the court, the more space there is between players while they wait for their turns at the net or during changeovers. This gives them more time to think about their next moves/strokes.
In conclusion, the doubles court is 20 feet wide, instead of the normal 18 feet, because this makes serving and returning balls easier. In addition, the wider the court, the less likely it is that a ball will be hit into the net and, finally, the more space there is between players while they wait for their turns at the net or during changeovers.
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