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Tennis · Interesting Facts

Chapter 3: Tournaments

10 parts · 10 tests · 100 facts · updated 15 October 2026 · markdown

Tennis beyond the majors and the team cups: exhibitions with odd courts and record crowds, a mixed team league with a hit song, and new formats that make matches shorter.

3.31Exhibitions and Showdowns

A half-grass, half-clay court, the biggest tennis crowd ever, a handicap match in Las Vegas, World TeamTennis and the Hopman Cup.

Test 1Show matches and team eventsTake a test

  1. The court was built at the Palma Arena just for the exhibition; it took 19 days to lay, and 6,800 people watched.

    Source: ABC News, 'Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces' (2007); Tennis Majors · recall

  2. 51,954 people filled Cape Town Stadium, beating the 42,517 who had watched Federer play Alexander Zverev in Mexico City three months earlier.

    Source: Al Jazeera, 'Federer, Nadal shatter attendance record in Match in Africa' (2020); ABC News · recall

  3. Connors, 40, won 7-5, 6-2 against Navratilova, 35, in Las Vegas.

    Source: Tennis Majors, 'The day Connors defeated Navratilova in the Battle of Champions' (tennismajors.com) · recall

  4. As player-coach she was one of the first women to coach professional male athletes; the Freedoms went 39-5 in their first season.

    Source: Britannica, 'World Team Tennis'; ESPN, 'Billie Jean King sells majority stake in World TeamTennis' (2017) · recall

  5. 'Philadelphia Freedom' never mentions tennis, but it was written as a tribute to King and became the team's theme.

    Source: Britannica, 'World Team Tennis'; ESPN, 'Billie Jean King sells majority stake in World TeamTennis' (2017) · recall

  6. Hopman led Australia to 16 Davis Cup titles between 1939 and 1967.

    Source: ITF and AP reports on the Hopman Cup (2023, 2025); Tennis365, 'Hopman Cup returns' · recall

  7. A tie has a men's singles, a women's singles and a mixed doubles.

    Source: ITF and AP reports on the Hopman Cup (2023, 2025); Tennis365, 'Hopman Cup returns' · recall

  8. 1974, 1989, 2007 and 2020.

    Source: Britannica; Tennis365; ABC News; Al Jazeera · recall

  9. 6,800, 42,517 and 51,954.

    Source: ABC News, 'Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces' (2; Al Jazeera, 'Federer, Nadal shatter attendance record in Match in Africa' (2020) · recall

  10. Nadal won 7-5, 4-6, 7-6, saving two match points and taking the tiebreak 12-10.

    Source: ABC News, 'Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces' (2007); Tennis Majors · recall

3.32New Formats

Shorter and stranger ways to play: Fast4, the rule trials of the Next Gen Finals, the Ultimate Tennis Showdown and a famous junior event.

Test 1Experiments with scoring and timeTake a test

  1. Fast4 also plays a deciding point at deuce and lets serves that clip the net stay in play.

    Source: ABC News, 'Roger Federer beats Lleyton Hewitt in Fast4 exhibition tennis match' (2015); CNN · recall

  2. Federer won the match in five short sets in front of a sold-out crowd.

    Source: ABC News, 'Roger Federer beats Lleyton Hewitt in Fast4 exhibition tennis match' (2015); CNN · recall

  3. Hawk-Eye Live made the calls with an automated voice; the chair umpire was the only official on court.

    Source: ATP via Internazionali BNL d'Italia, 'ATP announces trial of rules changes for Next Gen ATP Finals'; ESPN (2017) · recall

  4. Sets went to four games with a tiebreak at 3-3, deuce was decided by one point, and a shot clock ran between points.

    Source: ATP via Internazionali BNL d'Italia, 'ATP announces trial of rules changes for Next Gen ATP Finals'; ESPN (2017) · recall

  5. Players served points in pairs for ten minutes; whoever led at the buzzer won the quarter.

    Source: Sky Sports, 'Ultimate Tennis Showdown: Patrick Mouratoglou debuts tennis brainchild' (2020); uts.live · recall

  6. Mouratoglou, then Serena Williams's coach, launched it in 2020 while the tours were stopped by the pandemic.

    Source: Sky Sports, 'Ultimate Tennis Showdown: Patrick Mouratoglou debuts tennis brainchild' (2020); uts.live · recall

  7. Eddie Herr founded the event; it is one of the most important junior tournaments in the world.

    Source: USTA Orange Bowl, History (ustaorangebowl.com); USTA junior champions · recall

  8. 1947, 2015, 2017 and 2020.

    Source: USTA Orange Bowl; ABC News; ATP; Sky Sports · recall

  9. Perth from 1989 to 2019, then a break, Nice from 2023 and Bari in 2025.

    Source: ITF and AP reports on the Hopman Cup (2023, 2025); Tennis365, 'Hopman Cup returns' · recall

  10. Each card lasts two service points; examples include 'winner counts three' and 'steal the serve'.

    Source: Sky Sports, 'Ultimate Tennis Showdown: Patrick Mouratoglou debuts tennis brainchild' (2020); uts.live · recall

3.33The Oldest Tournaments

Events older than most majors: Dublin's first women's championship, Canada's two cities, Cincinnati and Monte Carlo.

Test 1Tournaments of the 1800sTake a test

  1. The event was played in Dublin, five years before Wimbledon held a women's event.

    Source: Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, history (fitzwilliamltc.com) · recall

  2. Fitzwilliam was founded in 1877, the year of the first Wimbledon.

    Source: Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, history (fitzwilliamltc.com) · recall

  3. The men and women swap cities from one year to the next.

    Source: Tennis Canada, National Bank Open history (nationalbankopen.com) · recall

  4. It is one of the oldest tournaments in the United States.

    Source: Cincinnati Open, history (cincinnatiopen.com) · recall

  5. The name came from the three states that meet near Cincinnati: Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

    Source: Cincinnati Open, history (cincinnatiopen.com) · recall

  6. It was among the first clubs built for many sports at once.

    Source: The Queen's Club, history (queensclub.co.uk) · recall

  7. It has been played at the Monte-Carlo Country Club since 1928.

    Source: Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, history (montecarlotennismasters.com) · recall

  8. 1879, 1881, 1897 and 1899.

    Source: Fitzwilliam LTC; Tennis Canada; Monte-Carlo Masters; Cincinnati Open · recall

  9. 1877, 1879 and 1886.

    Source: Fitzwilliam LTC; The Queen's Club · recall

  10. Wimbledon first held its Ladies' Singles in 1884.

    Source: Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, history (fitzwilliamltc.com) · recall

3.34The Grass-Court Swing

The short season before Wimbledon: Queen's, Halle, Eastbourne, 's-Hertogenbosch and the week added in 2015.

Test 1Grass before WimbledonTake a test

  1. It sits close to Barons Court Underground station.

    Source: The Queen's Club (queensclub.co.uk) · recall

  2. He won it in 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Andy Murray · recall

  3. He won his first in 2003, weeks before his first Wimbledon title.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Roger Federer · recall

  4. The courts lie just behind the seafront of the Sussex town.

    Source: LTA, Eastbourne (lta.org.uk) · recall

  5. The event is played at Rosmalen, on the edge of the town.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com) · recall

  6. The extra week gave players more time on grass.

    Source: Wimbledon.com, 'Grass court season extended' (2015) · recall

  7. It moved to grass when the season was lengthened.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Stuttgart Open · recall

  8. One week each, then the Championships.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), calendar · recall

  9. 1990, 1993, 2015 and 2016.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com) · recall

  10. The roof lets play go on in the rain, years before Wimbledon had one.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Terra Wortmann Open (Halle) · recall

3.35The Clay-Court Swing

Spring on clay: Nadal's court in Barcelona, a car for the champion in Stuttgart, Madrid's Magic Box and Hamburg.

Test 1Clay before ParisTake a test

  1. It became the Pista Rafa Nadal.

    Source: Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, history (barcelonaopenbancsabadell.com) · recall

  2. He won his first in 2005 and his last in 2021.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Rafael Nadal · recall

  3. Eight of them came in a row, from 2005 to 2012.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Rafael Nadal · recall

  4. The event is sponsored by a car maker based in Stuttgart.

    Source: WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), Porsche Tennis Grand Prix · recall

  5. It is one of the few clay events played under a roof.

    Source: WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), Porsche Tennis Grand Prix · recall

  6. Its three main courts sit under movable roofs.

    Source: Mutua Madrid Open, venue (mutuamadridopen.com) · recall

  7. It is one of the oldest tournaments in Germany.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Hamburg Open · recall

  8. 1892, 1897, 1930 and 2002.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com) · recall

  9. 11, 12 and 14.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Rafael Nadal · recall

  10. The Caja Magica opened in 2009 for the Madrid Open.

    Source: Mutua Madrid Open, venue (mutuamadridopen.com) · recall

3.36North American Summer

Hard courts from the desert to Florida and on to the US Open: a park event, a billionaire's tournament and a court inside a football stadium.

Test 1Hard courts in North AmericaTake a test

  1. It was held in Rock Creek Park so that anyone could come.

    Source: Mubadala Citi DC Open, history (mubadalacitidcopen.com) · recall

  2. The Lindner Family Tennis Center has grown around it.

    Source: Cincinnati Open, history (cincinnatiopen.com) · recall

  3. The Oracle founder has rebuilt much of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

    Source: BNP Paribas Open, history (bnpparibasopen.com) · recall

  4. The former player wanted a big event for both men and women.

    Source: Miami Open, history (miamiopen.com) · recall

  5. Both events are played in March under the sun of California and Florida.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com) · recall

  6. She came back in 2015 and was greeted with a standing ovation.

    Source: WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com); BNP Paribas Open · recall

  7. It ranked the players across the events that lead to the US Open.

    Source: USTA, US Open Series (usopen.org) · recall

  8. March, March, late July, August, then the US Open.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), calendar · recall

  9. 1969, 1979, 2009 and 2019.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); tournament histories · recall

  10. The event moved from Key Biscayne to Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins.

    Source: Miami Open, history (miamiopen.com) · recall

3.37Indoor Tournaments

The great indoor halls: Basel, Rotterdam, Stockholm and Vienna, and the ball boy who came back to win.

Test 1Tennis under a roofTake a test

  1. His first title there came in 2006, his tenth in 2019.

    Source: Swiss Indoors Basel, history (swissindoorsbasel.ch) · recall

  2. The hall stands next to the St. Jakob football stadium.

    Source: Swiss Indoors Basel (swissindoorsbasel.ch) · recall

  3. It is one of the last events before the season-ending finals.

    Source: Swiss Indoors Basel (swissindoorsbasel.ch) · recall

  4. It is one of the biggest indoor events of the winter.

    Source: ABN AMRO Open, history (abnamro-open.nl) · recall

  5. Krajicek won Wimbledon in 1996.

    Source: ABN AMRO Open, history (abnamro-open.nl) · recall

  6. The Kungliga tennishallen takes its name from the royal family's long support for the game.

    Source: Stockholm Open, history (stockholmopen.se) · recall

  7. The hall also hosts concerts and the Eurovision Song Contest of 2015.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Erste Bank Open (Vienna) · recall

  8. Stockholm in mid-October, Basel late in October, then the Paris Masters.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), calendar · recall

  9. The early 1990s, 2006 and 2019.

    Source: Swiss Indoors Basel (swissindoorsbasel.ch) · recall

  10. He fetched balls at his home tournament as a boy.

    Source: Swiss Indoors Basel (swissindoorsbasel.ch) · recall

3.38Asia and the Gulf

Big events from Doha to Beijing: a flower-shaped roof, Federer's 100th title and a record pay cheque in Shenzhen.

Test 1Tennis in AsiaTake a test

  1. It took the autumn Masters slot, played at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena.

    Source: Rolex Shanghai Masters, history (rolexshanghaimasters.com) · recall

  2. He became the second man to reach 100, after Jimmy Connors.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Roger Federer · recall

  3. It was the biggest pay cheque in tennis at the time.

    Source: WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), WTA Finals 2019 · recall

  4. Chennai had hosted it from 1997 to 2017.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Maharashtra Open · recall

  5. Li Na won the French Open in 2011 and the Australian Open in 2014.

    Source: WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), Wuhan Open · recall

  6. It long opened the men's season in the first week of January.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Qatar Open · recall

  7. It opened in 2011 at the National Tennis Center.

    Source: China Open, venue (chinaopen.com) · recall

  8. 1993, 2009, 2014 and 2019.

    Source: ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com) · recall

  9. From the Gulf across India to China and Japan.

    Source: Tournament venues, ATP and WTA calendars · recall

  10. The magnolia is Shanghai's city flower.

    Source: Rolex Shanghai Masters, venue (rolexshanghaimasters.com) · recall

3.39Junior Events

Where champions start: Les Petits As, the Eddie Herr, junior Wimbledon and the junior team cups.

Test 1Junior tennisTake a test

  1. It is played indoors every winter and is billed as the world championship for 12- to 14-year-olds.

    Source: Les Petits As, history (petitsas.com) · recall

  2. He was 13 at the time.

    Source: Les Petits As, past winners (petitsas.com) · recall

  3. It is played each autumn and draws juniors from around the world.

    Source: IMG Academy, Eddie Herr (imgacademy.com) · recall

  4. The first junior events came in the first years after the war.

    Source: Wimbledon.com, junior champions · recall

  5. He won the boys' doubles too, and the men's singles five years later.

    Source: Wimbledon.com, junior champions · recall

  6. A player can compete until the end of the year in which they turn 18.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), junior rules · recall

  7. The Junior Billie Jean King Cup is its girls' event.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Junior Davis Cup · recall

  8. 1972, 1993, 1998 and 2000.

    Source: Wimbledon.com; Roland-Garros; Les Petits As · recall

  9. 14 and under, 16 and under, 18 and under.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); Les Petits As · recall

  10. Four years later she won three senior majors.

    Source: Roland-Garros official site, junior champions (rolandgarros.com) · recall

3.40Wheelchair Tennis

A ten-year unbeaten run, a Japanese great, Wimbledon's first wheelchair singles and the chair itself.

Test 1The wheelchair gameTake a test

  1. She did not lose a singles match for ten years.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Esther Vergeer · recall

  2. She won in Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London.

    Source: International Paralympic Committee (paralympic.org) · recall

  3. The Japanese champion added 22 doubles titles.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Shingo Kunieda · recall

  4. Wheelchair doubles had been played there since 2005.

    Source: Wimbledon.com, wheelchair events · recall

  5. The Scot also won Paralympic gold in Rio the same summer.

    Source: Wimbledon.com, wheelchair champions · recall

  6. He won it with Australia at Beijing 2008, aged 17.

    Source: Paralympics Australia, Dylan Alcott (paralympics.org.au) · recall

  7. It is the wheelchair game's version of the Davis and Billie Jean King Cups.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), World Team Cup · recall

  8. 1985, 2003, 2016 and 2023.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); Wimbledon.com · recall

  9. 4, 28 and 470.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); IPC · recall

  10. The angle, called camber, widens the base and helps the chair spin.

    Source: ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), wheelchair tennis · recall

Sources

Primary/official sources only, no Wikipedia citations: ABC News, Al Jazeera, Britannica, ESPN, the ATP, the ITF, Sky Sports, CNN, Tennis Majors, the USTA Orange Bowl. The majors, the Davis and Billie Jean King Cups, the Laver Cup, the United Cup, the Olympics and the Battle of the Sexes are asked in Knowledge Testing and left out on purpose.

  • Swiss Indoors Basel (swissindoorsbasel.ch)4
  • ITF and AP reports on the Hopman Cup (2023, 2025); Tennis365, 'Hopman Cup returns'3
  • Sky Sports, 'Ultimate Tennis Showdown: Patrick Mouratoglou debuts tennis brainchild' (2020); uts.live3
  • Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, history (fitzwilliamltc.com)3
  • Cincinnati Open, history (cincinnatiopen.com)3
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com)3
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), calendar3
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Rafael Nadal3
  • ABC News, 'Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces' (2007); Tennis Majors2
  • Britannica, 'World Team Tennis'; ESPN, 'Billie Jean King sells majority stake in World TeamTennis' (2017)2
  • ABC News, 'Roger Federer beats Lleyton Hewitt in Fast4 exhibition tennis match' (2015); CNN2
  • ATP via Internazionali BNL d'Italia, 'ATP announces trial of rules changes for Next Gen ATP Finals'; ESPN (2017)2
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Roger Federer2
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com)2
  • WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), Porsche Tennis Grand Prix2
  • Mutua Madrid Open, venue (mutuamadridopen.com)2
  • Miami Open, history (miamiopen.com)2
  • ABN AMRO Open, history (abnamro-open.nl)2
  • Wimbledon.com, junior champions2
  • Al Jazeera, 'Federer, Nadal shatter attendance record in Match in Africa' (2020); ABC News1
  • Tennis Majors, 'The day Connors defeated Navratilova in the Battle of Champions' (tennismajors.com)1
  • Britannica; Tennis365; ABC News; Al Jazeera1
  • ABC News, 'Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces' (2; Al Jazeera, 'Federer, Nadal shatter attendance record in Match in Africa' (2020)1
  • USTA Orange Bowl, History (ustaorangebowl.com); USTA junior champions1
  • USTA Orange Bowl; ABC News; ATP; Sky Sports1
  • Tennis Canada, National Bank Open history (nationalbankopen.com)1
  • The Queen's Club, history (queensclub.co.uk)1
  • Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, history (montecarlotennismasters.com)1
  • Fitzwilliam LTC; Tennis Canada; Monte-Carlo Masters; Cincinnati Open1
  • Fitzwilliam LTC; The Queen's Club1
  • The Queen's Club (queensclub.co.uk)1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Andy Murray1
  • LTA, Eastbourne (lta.org.uk)1
  • Wimbledon.com, 'Grass court season extended' (2015)1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Stuttgart Open1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Terra Wortmann Open (Halle)1
  • Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, history (barcelonaopenbancsabadell.com)1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Hamburg Open1
  • Mubadala Citi DC Open, history (mubadalacitidcopen.com)1
  • BNP Paribas Open, history (bnpparibasopen.com)1
  • WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com); BNP Paribas Open1
  • USTA, US Open Series (usopen.org)1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com); tournament histories1
  • Swiss Indoors Basel, history (swissindoorsbasel.ch)1
  • Stockholm Open, history (stockholmopen.se)1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Erste Bank Open (Vienna)1
  • Rolex Shanghai Masters, history (rolexshanghaimasters.com)1
  • WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), WTA Finals 20191
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Maharashtra Open1
  • WTA, tournament profiles (wtatennis.com), Wuhan Open1
  • ATP Tour, tournament profiles (atptour.com), Qatar Open1
  • China Open, venue (chinaopen.com)1
  • Tournament venues, ATP and WTA calendars1
  • Rolex Shanghai Masters, venue (rolexshanghaimasters.com)1
  • Les Petits As, history (petitsas.com)1
  • Les Petits As, past winners (petitsas.com)1
  • IMG Academy, Eddie Herr (imgacademy.com)1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), junior rules1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Junior Davis Cup1
  • Wimbledon.com; Roland-Garros; Les Petits As1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); Les Petits As1
  • Roland-Garros official site, junior champions (rolandgarros.com)1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Esther Vergeer1
  • International Paralympic Committee (paralympic.org)1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), Shingo Kunieda1
  • Wimbledon.com, wheelchair events1
  • Wimbledon.com, wheelchair champions1
  • Paralympics Australia, Dylan Alcott (paralympics.org.au)1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), World Team Cup1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); Wimbledon.com1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com); IPC1
  • ITF, junior and wheelchair tennis (itftennis.com), wheelchair tennis1