Southern India Championships | |
---|---|
Defunct tennis tournament | |
Founded | 1889 |
Abolished | 1980 |
Location | Madras, Tamil Nadu, India |
Venue | Madras Gymkhana Club |
Surface | Grass |
The Southern India Championships [1] also known as the South Indian International Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament was founded in 1889 as the South India Championship. [2] The championships was played at the Madras Gymkhana Club grounds, Madras, Tamil Nadu, India. The championships ran until 1980 before it was discontinued.
Tennis was introduced to India in the 1880s by British Army and Civilian Officers. [3] As early as 1883, the first tennis courts laid in Madras were at the Madras Cricket Club (MCC). [4] In 1884 Madras Gymkhana Club built its first tennis courts. In 1889 the South India Championship was founded and played at the Madras Gymkhana Club, Madras, Tamil Nadu, India. During the 1930s to 1950s the tournament was known as the South Indian International Championships. The championships were staged until 1980 when they were abolished.
Tamil Nadu is the southernmost state of India. The tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population, Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, who speak the Tamil language, one of the longest surviving classical languages and serves as its official language. The capital and largest city is Chennai.
Chennai, formerly known as Madras, is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is the state's primate city and is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian census, Chennai is the sixth-most populous city in India and forms the fourth-most populous urban agglomeration. Incorporated in 1866, the Greater Chennai Corporation is the oldest municipal corporation of India and the second oldest in the world after London.
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