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	Volley Occurs when a player strikes the ball before it bounces. The volley is most often employed when a player is playing close to the net. The half volley is a low return of the ball just after it has bounced.
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	Fault Called if the ball is served into the net, or if it strikes the net before hitting the opponent´s court outside the service box or before exiting the court altogether.
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	Backhand For right-handed players this is a stroke played on the left hand side of the body, with the back of the hand towards the net.
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	Sidelines The boundary lines of the court lengthwise.
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	Set Singles: Usually composed of six games unless there is a tie at six. If there is a tie at six, a tie-breaker is used to determine the winner of the set. There are six games in a set and three or five sets in a match.There are six games in a set and three or five sets in a match. Doubles: In dual format, a "pro set" is used, which is composed of eight games.
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	Continental grip Name of the service grip that originated in Britain. Method of holding the racquet for playing powerful backhands, serves, volleys and smashes. The most common grip for forehand and backhand strokes.
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	Forehand A stroke played on the right hand side of the body for right handed players and on the left hand side for left handed players.
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	Let When play is interrupted a let is called and the point replayed. If the ball touches the net and then falls into the diagonally opposite service box, a let is called, and the server is permitted to serve again. When a service let is called, only the service in question is replayed.
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	Underspin The way that a ball rotates. Occurs when a player strikes the ball so that it spins from high to low as it travels forward. The bottom of the ball spins against air resistance, which forces the ball upwards. Underspin shots need to travel much lower over the net than basic drives unless you are playing an underspin lob. This shot is called a slice. Underspin causes the ball to lose speed and to bounce lower.
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	Baseline rally A rally where both players repeatedly exchange shots from their respective baselines.
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	Advantage The score that follows one point played beyond deuce. If a player wins the "advantage" point, he or she wins the game.
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	Rally An exchange of strokes after the service has been delivered.
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	Second flight The flight of the ball after it has bounced.
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	Serve and volley A tactic where players serve and then rush to the net with the aim of playing a winning volley off the opponent´s return.
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	Double-fault Two successive service faults from the same court (both serve attempts fail). The opponent wins the point.
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	Best of three (or five) Refers to the maximum number of sets in any match. In "best of three" matches, players need to win two of the three sets. In men´s tennis, most matches are "best of five," i.e. a match finishes when a player has won three sets.
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	Drive A powerful stroke with slight topspin. Given its long, straight trajectory it is well-suited as a passing shot or attempted winner.
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	Hopper The container for balls in a ball machine or a separate basket for holding large quantities of tennis balls.
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	Hitting area / zone The general area of the court where you strike the ball.
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	Match point (match ball) The score where a player only needs one more point to win the match.
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	Eastern grip A basic tennis grip originating on the East coast of the USA. Forehand grip. Describes a grip which allows the ball to be hit easily ahead of the body and the racquet swung all the way through.
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	Cross court (shot) A stroke played diagonally across the court from right court to right court or left court to left court, either long or short.
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	Stop volley A volley where the player takes the pace off the ball,so that it drops softly on the other side of the net -making it difficult or impossible for the opponent to reach.
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	Love In tennis scoring love means nothing, hence love-thirty is 0-30. A common (but unproven) explanation for the term "love" to signify a score of zero is that it originates from the French term "l´oeuf." Another explanation is based on the idea that to do something for love is to do something for nothing (zero).
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	Centre mark (center mark) A 10.16 cm (4 in) line that marks the centre of the baseline.A 10.16 cm (4 in) line that marks the centre of the baseline. When serving, players must remain on the correct side of this mark.
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	Slice A slice shot differs from a "drive" in that the backspin applied keeps it in the air for longer, causing it to travel further before bouncing.
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	Loop In groundstroke play the racket forms a loop as backswing and forward swing are joined in one continuous movement.
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	Serve or service Every point begins with a serve. From a position behind the baseline, the server has to hit the ball diagonally over the net into the opponent´s service court. Players get two attempts to serve the ball correctly in each point. In the first point of any game or set, the serve is played from the right-hand side of the court. After this the server alternates side (from right to left and vice-versa) at the start of every new point.
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	The ´V´ The angle made between the thumb and first finger of the hand.
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	Overhead Smash Powerful shot often used to return a lob that has not been hit high or deep enough. The shot is hit in a similar manner to the serve.
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	Deuce A tie at 40 is called deuce. Because a game must be won by two points, play continues from deuce until one player leads by a margin of two points.
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	Groundstroke A forehand or backhand stroke played after the ball has bounced.
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	No man´s land The area between the service line and the baseline also known as a taboo zone.
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	Topspin The way that a ball rotates. When a player strikes the ball so that it spins from low to high as it travels forward. The top of the ball spins forwards against air resistance, forcing the ball down. When you play topspin shots aim higher over the net than for a basic drive. The top of the ball spins forwards against air resistance, forcing the ball down. When you play topspin shots aim higher over the net than for a basic drive. Topspin enables a player to strike the ball with more power, because the added spin helps to bring the ball down and keep it in play.
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	Bye Free passage into the second round of a tournament. Players may be given a bye if a tournament doesn´t have enough players (e.g. if there are only 28 players in a tournament designed for 32, there will be 4 byes in the first round). Byes are always awarded to seeded players.
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	Kick serve A serve with heavy spin, causing it to change direction or bounce unexpectedly when it lands in the service court. Also known as a twist serve.
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	Game point (game ball) The point needed to win a game.
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	Breakback Situation where a player who has lost his or her service succeeds in winning the opponent´s service game, usually leveling the scores.
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	Open Refers to racket face angle when a greater hitting area is presented to the ball.
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	Twist serve A service played with topspin and side spin. The ball bounces awkwardly sideways and upwards from the service court.
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	Lob A ball sent high in the air. A high, soft return behind an opponent who has approached the net. It is frequently used to force the opponent to retreat to the back of the court to play the ball. The lob can also be used as a defensive stroke, providing time for the hitter to regain court position.
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	ATP Association of Tennis Professionals - a body to represent the leading players. The ATP Tour, the men´s professional tennis organization. The ATP Tour includes tour events outside of the Grand Slam events, Grand Slam Cup, and Davis Cup.
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	Lucky Loser / Playback In some knockout tournaments, one defeat does not automatically result in elimination. Beaten players have the chance to play against other such losers, with the winners being awarded places in later rounds. These players are known as "lucky losers."
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	ITF International Tennis Federation - the body that oversees the Grand Slams, Grand Slam Cup, Davis & Federation Cup, and the Olympics.
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	Change of ends The players change ends of the court regularly during tennis matches, e.g. after every "uneven" game (1,3,5) in a set.
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	All-rounder A player with the ability to play well both offensively and defensively.
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	Overrule The umpire´s option and privilege to correct a decision made by one of the judges.
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	Split step Assuming the ready position before changing the direction of a run.
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	USPTR United States Professional Tennis Registry.
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	Ready position A position of readiness adopted to receive the service, which acts as a starting point for all groundstrokes and volleys.
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	Service The stroke used at the start of each point.
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	Ace A valid serve that is not reached by the opponent. The server wins the point immediately.
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	Big point A crucial point deciding which player wins a set or an important game. For example, when the scores are level and the server is 30-40 down.
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	Clay court A court with a surface made of crushed shale, stone or brick. Its top surface requires regular maintenance. Plays slow.
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	Approach shot A groundstroke played just before you approach the net to volley. A shot played with the aim of winning a point quickly, often hit from mid-court deep into the corner of the opponent´s court. The attacking player normally goes to the net to intercept any return with a volley.
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	Place-up The ball toss during the service.
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	Umpire The umpire decides which player has won a point and also keeps the score. In major tournaments the umpire is assisted by a number of judges (e.g. line judges).
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	Run the ball down To chase a ball that is some distance away.
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	´Shake hands´ "Shake Hands" refers to the basic Eastern Forehand Drive grip. You shake hands with the racket and keep that grip.
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	Double-handed A player who keeps both hands on the racket handle during the forward swing of the racket.
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	Chop A backspin, defensive shot used to return fast services. Occasionally also used for drop shots.
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	Down-the-line Shot played approximately parallel to the sidelines as opposed to cross-court.
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	Baseline The line at each end of the court that runs parallel to the net and marks the boundaries lengthwise of the playing area.The line at each end of the court that runs parallel to the net and marks the boundaries lengthwise of the playing area.
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	Knockout competition A tournament whereby players are eliminated when they lose a match.
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	Stringing The elasticity of the strings depends on the tension with which the racquet is strung. In general, gut strings are more elastic than synthetic strings, as a result of which they are generally strung more tautly. Players who like to hit the ball fast and hard usually prefer tauter strings. Touch players, by contrast, tend to prefer slightly slacker stringing.
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	Server The player who initiates the point.
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	Sidespin The way that a ball rotates. When one side of the ball rotates against the air resistance, it is forced to swerve to the opposite side; e.g. a ball approaching with left hand spin will swerve from right to left.
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	Spin The way that a ball rotates. The rotation of a ball resulting from special types of strokes like slice and topspin. Spin affects a ball´s trajectory and the way it bounces.
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	First flight The initial flight of the ball after it has been struck by the racket.
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	Break (of service) Where the serving player loses the game.
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	Wide-body These are rackets that have a very broad side-on dimension.
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	The ´T´ The central area where the centre line joins the service line.
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	Wrong-foot This is to send an opponent the wrong way.
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	Game Part of a set. Every set consists of at least six games. Composed of four (love, 15, 30, 40) and possibly five (advantage) scores.
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	Palming the ball Hitting or playing the ball with the palm of your hand.
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	Biomechanics Adding power; the effect of spin; balance and control; stroke mechanics; development of power and speed; and string tension.
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	Exhibition matches Matches arranged outside competitions as a form of public entertainment. The top 10 players in the world rankings can earn enormous sums in appearance money for exhibition matches.
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	Drop shot A shot played short, dropping into the forecourt - which hardly bounces close to the net.
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	Ball machine Powered by pneumatic propulsion, a ball machine such as this one holds 135 balls and will fire them every 3 seconds at speeds of up to 33m (110ft) per second. It measures 96cm (38in)x 56cm (22in)x 33cm (13in).
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	Not up The call from the umpire when a ball, having bounced twice, is dead.
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	Sideways-on Applies to being parallel to the approaching ball´s flight.
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	Sign in When players enter their names for a tournament.
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	Service sideline The boundary line of the service court.
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	Unforced error An error made while under no pressure from the opponent e.g. mishitting a ball.
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	Alley The area of the court between the singles and doubles sidelines, also known as the ´tramlines´.
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	Flat serve A flat service is hit without spin and follows a low, straight trajectory. Given the high risk of hitting the net, it is generally better-suited for first serves.
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	Left court The area to the left of the centre line from the net to the baseline.
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	WTA Women´s Tennis Association. COREL WTA TOUR, the women´s professional tennis organization. The COREL WTA TOUR includes Grand Slam events and the Fed Cup.
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	Tie-breaker Used to determine who wins a set in case of a tie. The first player to win seven points, leading by two, wins.
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	Wildcard Irrespective of their positions in the rankings, an organizer can invite one or more players to take part in a tournament, offering them wildcards. This gives event organizers the opportunity of offering places to promising young players, or alternatively to stars who have failed to register in time for the tournament.
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	Offensive player Offensive players use aggressive tactics in an attempt to force errors from their opponents. They take risks in order to win points quickly. Offensive players often have a good serve and can volley well, in which case they usually employ "serve and volley" tactics -serving powerfully and trying to volley the return of serve for a winner.
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	Set point (set ball) The point needed to win a set.
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	Defensive player A type of player who generally stays at the baseline and tries to keep the ball in play without taking risks. Players like this leave the attacking to their opponents, winning most of their points from opponent errors.