Lawn Tennis Association of Australasia

Last updated October 01, 2019

Lawn Tennis Association of Australasia (LTAA) was the tennis organisation formed after the amalgamation of New Zealand Lawn Tennis Association (now Tennis New Zealand) and six Australian state tennis associations in 1904.^[1] New Zealand split from the tennis association partnership in 1922 and hence caused dissolution of LTAA. LTAA was the founding member of the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) (now International Tennis Federation), which was established in a conference in Paris, France on 1 March 1913.^[2]

Tennis is a racket sport that can be played individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent's court. The object of the game is to maneuver the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. The player who is unable to return the ball will not gain a point, while the opposite player will.

Tennis New Zealand is the governing body of tennis in New Zealand. Founded in 1886, it is one of the world's oldest tennis associations. It is affiliated to both International Tennis Federation and Oceania Tennis Federation. Tennis NZ has six geographically divided regional centres. Tennis NZ operates all of the New Zealand's national representative tennis sides, including the New Zealand Davis Cup team, the New Zealand Fed Cup team and youth sides as well. Tennis NZ is also responsible for organising and hosting tennis tournaments within New Zealand and scheduling the home international fixtures.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national associations, and as of 2016, is affiliated with 211 national tennis associations and six regional associations.

The main motive behind the amalgamation of tennis associations of New Zealand and Australia was to develop an international tennis tournament on the basis of French Open, US Open and Wimbledon, which resulted in the formation of Australasian Championships (later become Australian Championships, in 1927, and the Australian Open in 1969).^[3] The organisation also worked in the development of tennis in both Australia and New Zealand^[4]^[5]

The French Open, officially Roland-Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May. The venue is named after the French aviator Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis championship event in the world and the second of four annual Grand Slam tournaments, the other three being the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. The French Open is currently the only Grand Slam event held on clay, and it is the zenith of the spring clay court season. Because of the seven rounds needed for a championship, the slow-playing surface and the best-of-five-set men's singles matches, the event is widely considered to be the most physically demanding tennis tournament in the world.

The United States Open Tennis Championships is a hard court tennis tournament. The tournament is the modern version of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, for which men's singles and men's doubles were first played in 1881.

The Championships, Wimbledon Tennis tournament

The Championships, Wimbledon, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, or The Championships, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and is regarded by many as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is played on outdoor grass courts, and since 2009 with a retractable roof over Centre Court.

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The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually over the last fortnight of January in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. It features men's and women's singles; men's, women's, and mixed doubles; junior's championships; and wheelchair, legends, and exhibition events. Prior to 1988 it was played on grass courts, but since then two types of hardcourt surfaces have been used at Melbourne Park – green coloured Rebound Ace up to 2007 and, afterwards, blue Plexicushion.

The Grand Slam tournaments, also called majors, are the four most important annual tennis events. They offer the most ranking points, prize money, public and media attention, the greatest strength and size of field, and greater number of "best of" sets for men, which is 5. The Grand Slam itinerary consists of the Australian Open in mid January, the French Open around late May through early June, Wimbledon in June–July, and the US Open in August–September. Each tournament is played over a two-week period. The Australian and United States tournaments are played on hard courts, the French on clay, and Wimbledon on grass. Wimbledon is the oldest, founded in 1877, followed by the US in 1881, the French in 1891, and the Australian in 1905. However, of these four, only Wimbledon was a major before 1924–25, when all four became designated Grand Slam tournaments. Skipping majors—especially the Australian Open because of the remoteness, the inconvenient dates and the low prize money—was not unusual before 1982.

Kenneth Robert Rosewall is a former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player from Australia. He won a record 23 tennis Majors, including 8 Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record 15 Pro Slam titles; overall, he reached a record 35 Major finals. He won the Pro Grand Slam in 1963. Rosewall won 9 slams in doubles with a career double grand slam. He is considered to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He had a renowned backhand and enjoyed a long career at the highest levels from the early 1950s to the early 1970s. Rosewall was one of the two best male players for about nine years and was the World No. 1 player for a number of years in the early 1960s. He was ranked among the top 20 players, amateur or professional, every year from 1952 through 1977. Rosewall is the only player to have simultaneously held Pro Grand Slam titles on three different surfaces (1962–1963). At the 1971 Australian Open he became the first male player during the open era to win a Grand Slam tournament without dropping a set. Rosewall won pro world championship tours in 1963, 1964, and the WCT titles in 1971 and 1972.

Roy Stanley Emerson is an Australian former World number one tennis player who won 12 Major singles titles and 16 Grand Slam tournament men's doubles titles. He is the only male player to have completed a Career Grand Slam in both singles and doubles. His 28 major titles are an all-time record for a male amateur player. Emerson is the first male player to win each of the four major titles at least twice in his career. He is one of only eight men to win all four majors in his career.

The Grand Prix tennis circuit was a professional tennis tour for male players that existed from 1970 to 1989. It was the more prominent of two predecessors to the current tour for male players, the ATP Tour, the other being World Championship Tennis (WCT).

Frederick Sydney Stolle, AO is an Australian former tennis player and commentator. He was born in Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia. He is the father of former Australian Davis Cup player Sandon Stolle.

Kenneth Norman Fletcher was an Australian tennis player who won numerous doubles and mixed doubles Grand Slam titles.

The game that most people call 'Tennis' is the direct descendant of what is now known as real tennis or royal tennis. Most rules of the game commonly known as tennis derive from it. It is reasonable to see both sports as variations of the same game. Most historians believe that tennis originated in the monastic cloisters in northern France in the 12th century, but the ball was then struck with the palm of the hand; hence, the name jeu de paume. It was not until the 16th century that rackets came into use, and the game began to be called "tennis." It was popular in England and France, and Henry VIII of England was a big fan of the game, now referred to as real tennis.

Albert Curtis was an Australian tennis player before World War I and medical practitioner in the area of Mental Health.

Alfred Wallace Dunlop was an Australian tennis player, born in Christchurch, New Zealand. He won the doubles title at the Australasian Championships, the future Australian Open, alongside Fred Alexander in 1908. He also reached the singles finals at the tournament that year, losing to Alexander.

World Hard Court Championships was an annual major tennis tournament held from 1912 to 1923, principally in Paris, France. The venue was the clay courts of the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud, Paris, with one exception, when they were held at the Royal Leopold Club in Brussels, Belgium, in 1922.

The 1975 Commercial Union Assurance Grand Prix was a professional tennis circuit administered by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) which served as a forerunner to the current Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour. The circuit consisted of the four modern Grand Slam tournaments and open tournaments recognised by the ILTF. The Commercial Union Assurance Masters, Davis Cup Final and Nations Cup are included in this calendar but did not count towards the Grand Prix.

Tennis enjoys a considerable following in India, although it is limited to urban areas but still it is counted among the most popular sports in India. India has produced a number of tennis players, who have achieved international recognition and have made their presence in some of the top tennis tournaments and grand slams. All India Tennis Association (AITA) established in 1920, is the governing body of tennis in India and is a member of the Asian Tennis Federation. India Davis Cup team is the most successful team of Asia in Davis Cup, who has finished as runners-up 3 times.

References

↑ "History of the Australian Open – the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific". Australian Open. Archived from the original on 20 January 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
↑ "History of the ITF". International Tennis Federation . Retrieved 26 March 2011.
↑ "The Origin of Australian Open Tennis History". Tennis Theme. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
↑ Tristan Foenander. "History of the Australian Open – the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific". Australian Open. Archived from the original on 20 January 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
↑ Grolier Society of Australia (1983). The Australian encyclopaedia, Volume 10. Sydney, Australia: Grolier Society of Australia. pp. 145 (Sydney). ISBN 0-9596604-2-9.

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[australianopen-1] "History of the Australian Open – the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific". Australian Open. Archived from the original on 20 January 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2011.

[itf-2] "History of the ITF". International Tennis Federation . Retrieved 26 March 2011.

[tennistheme-3] "The Origin of Australian Open Tennis History". Tennis Theme. Retrieved 26 March 2011.

[OfficialHist-4] Tristan Foenander. "History of the Australian Open – the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific". Australian Open. Archived from the original on 20 January 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2011.

[The_Australian_encyclopaedia,_Volume_10-5] Grolier Society of Australia (1983). The Australian encyclopaedia, Volume 10. Sydney, Australia: Grolier Society of Australia. pp. 145 (Sydney). ISBN 0-9596604-2-9.