Types of tennis courts. Tennis court coating

12.05.2016

Grass courts (grass courts)

A fast type of court with low ball bounce. Grass is the oldest type of surface and has been used since the advent of the game of tennis. Currently, this is the least common type of court due to the difficulty of maintaining it, high operating costs, dependence on climatic conditions and high demands on the professionalism of players. The quality of a grass court depends on the height and density of the grass, as well as the type, hardness and moisture content of the soil.

Clay courts

A slow type of court with a high, perhaps unpredictable ball bounce, although depending on the quality of the surface materials and its maintenance, a smooth and predictable bounce can be achieved.
Soil is the most common type of tennis court surface due to its relative cheapness and minimal risk of injury.
The top covering of clay courts consists of a mixture of clay, sand and brick or stone chips, rubber or plastic chips may be added. Most often, a mixture of “tennisite” is used to construct the top layer of a clay court. During maintenance, clay courts require periodic watering, leveling, cleaning of marking lines, and, if necessary, refilling and compaction (rolling). Clay courts require the installation of a high-quality watering and drainage system, thanks to which the court will absorb excess moisture and at the same time not dry out too much in the heat.

Hard courts

They are characterized by a very fast and stable rebound of the ball; depending on the structure of the surface, they can be slightly faster or slower. Hard surface courts are less comfortable than clay (hard surface increases the load on the spine, legs and joints) and are more dangerous (high grip of shoes on the surface and lack of slippage can cause injury). Self-leveling hard court coatings are several acrylic layers of various compositions that are applied to an asphalt, concrete or wooden base. The most common acrylic coating for hard courts is Regupol. This is a five-layer coating, when applied it is possible to obtain different characteristics in terms of speed and comfort. HARD coverings, unlike ground and grass coverings, are all-weather, can be used both outside and indoors, are fairly easy to repair, and require virtually no regular maintenance.

Synthetic carpet courts

The slowest, although depending on the type of material, thickness, and number of layers, the ball’s rebound characteristics can vary significantly. Carpets come in roll or tile type and can be laid on any hard and even base. This type of coating is used mainly indoors, for the construction of indoor courts. The most popular coatings of this type are Taraflex and Supreme. Teraflex and Supreme coatings are multilayer synthetic coatings characterized by high strength and low risk of injury due to the presence of shock-absorbing layers. Another type of carpet is artificial grass, which is characterized by softness, good gliding, all-weather, and low stress on the spine, legs and joints of players. Synthetic carpeting is recognized by both professional players and amateurs.

There are other types of surfaces and coverings for tennis courts, such as wood. Such surfaces can be used for training purposes, for initial tennis training for children and adults. Professional-level training and competitions are not held on courts with such coverage.

Tennis is a sport that requires compliance with many conditions. This refers not only to the personal athletic qualities of the players and suitable equipment, but also to the conditions of the court itself, in particular, good coverage. What are the main types of different tennis court surfaces, and what are the requirements for them?

• Grass;
• Ground coating;
• Hard;
• Carpet synthetics;
• Other options.

Grass cover

When it comes to types of tennis court surfaces, grass courts are the first to come to mind. This coating is classic, which became widespread more than a hundred years ago. Such a court requires careful and expensive operation, and can only serve as a platform for representatives of professional sports who have the skill of playing fast. The best grass courts today can be found in the UK and Australia.

Ground coating

Quite popular nowadays, the coating is intended for tennis courts due to the low cost of materials for the arrangement and the low probability of injury to athletes during the game. The usual pattern of play on clay is slow speed and long rallies.

Courts covered with soil require constant monitoring of their condition and systematic maintenance. The world's best clay courts are located in Spain, South America and France.

Hard – hard surface

A universal hard surface that provides a fast and stable rebound of the ball is usually made of concrete coated with a layer of synthetic material. Pros - they are not dependent on the weather, they are used for outdoor courts and indoor courts in various rooms, and also do not require special maintenance. Disadvantages: special shoes are required, increased risk of injury and decreased visibility of the playing area on open hard courts in sunny weather. Hard is used at open championships in Australia and the USA.

Synthetic carpet

This type of coating, made from slabs or in the form of a roll, can be laid on any surface, provides excellent shock absorption, has a low risk of injury and increased strength. It is used mainly in indoor types of courts, and is very much in demand in our country - this is the court on which we host the Kremlin Cup.

Other types of tennis court surfaces

The remaining types of various coatings for tennis courts, in many respects, are extremely low-cost options that are used at the amateur level. This is a laminate, asphalt and rubber court surface.

At first glance, the soil looks almost the same everywhere, but in fact there are a lot of varieties.

The most unusual and fastest primer is gray-green (Har-Tru). It is based on basalt, and not brick as in red clay, which significantly increases the speed characteristics of this coating. Such coatings are popular in North America. The maroon clay is very similar in composition to the green clay and is used only at the US Mens Clay Court Championship in Houston.

In Europe, basically all clay courts consist of brick chips, but the lower the layer is from the surface, the larger the pieces are laid there. For example, in France, at Roland Garros they use a multi-layer coating made of various materials. The former first racket of the world, Brazilian professional tennis player Gustav Kuerten was given a piece of soil as a souvenir as a gift, on which all types of coverage are clearly visible.

At the base of the Parisian courts there is crushed stone of various sizes, then there is 10 centimeters of slag, after which a seven-centimeter layer of limestone is sprinkled on top with a two-millimeter layer of crushed brick.

Serve/Receive on clay in tennis

Serving on ground is of secondary importance. The main reason is a sharp drop in the serve speed after the ball contacts the ground. The second is high rebound. Both of these components give time to adjust to the opponent’s serve and with a high probability return the ball to his court.

But super-fast serves, more than 200 - 210 km/h, are a very formidable weapon on the ground. Such serves are difficult to accept, even on the slowest ground. Therefore, strong tennis players with good serves show quite decent results on clay.

When it comes to serving, the aggressive technique comes first. Unlike, where it is important to simply return the ball to the opponent’s side, on slow surfaces it is necessary to create pressure on the opponent from the very beginning. Therefore, you need to be able to return serve aggressively (especially the second serve). Look how Federer does it.

Strength and speed when playing tennis on clay

Perhaps one of the most important elements when playing on clay is the physical strength of a tennis player. On clay, you need to be able to attack and generate power yourself in punches, punching through your opponent. It is power tennis players who perform best on clay courts. Nadal, for example, with his powerful forehand or Wawrinka with his furious backhand. The now retired Robin Soderling had a powerful forehand.

This is explained by the fact that on a slow surface the tennis player will have time to run under a strong blow (forehand or backhand), and therefore all that remains is to execute this blow as powerfully as possible so that your opponent does not reach it.

It was after Djokovic learned to powerfully punch from the forehand and backhand that he began to show results in the game on clay. Watch how Novak puts his whole body into the punch.

Nevertheless, tennis players also achieve certain results on clay. professing fast tennis. Such as Nishikori, Ferrer, Federer. These tennis players do not have powerful shots, however, due to the fact that they return the ball quickly, their opponents have little time to make a decision. This tactic of quickly returning the ball is more relevant on fast courts, but it also occurs on slow surfaces.

Also take a look at young Tim. His titles on clay are a reflection of his playing style. Tim bets on the most powerful forehand and backhand. And although Tim has a lot of defects in the execution of these shots, he punches his opponents more often than he makes mistakes.

Movement and endurance on clay in tennis

Footwork is also one of the most important elements when playing on slow surfaces. A tennis player must be ready for a marathon. Games on clay are very long, and you need to run a lot and not get tired. Let's turn again to the king of clay, Nadal.

The Spaniard is one of the most durable tennis players in history, and many experts say that Nadal has excellent footwork. However, today Nadal is not the only one who can boast of crazy endurance; the same Djokovic, Wawrinka and Murray have excellent endurance.

What tennis players say about playing on clay

According to Federer, tennis players do not need to have a good volley or serve to play successfully on clay - it is enough to achieve high performance of the legs, perform an outstanding forehand and backhand, but the “king of clay” in the person of Nadal expressed a slightly different opinion: “It is very important to know the path to success, knowing the ways in which you can achieve results. On fast surfaces, perhaps the task is simplified, since it is permissible to rely on the serve and forehand. On clay, tactical variety is necessary, you can change your style during the match: go on the attack, concentrate on defense, go to the net or stay on the baseline. However, any surface has its own characteristics, its own difficulties. Even if you achieve good footwork, forehand and backhand, winning only due to these elements is not so easy."

Thierry Tulant, the coach of the French tennis player Gilles Simon, did not stand aside either - “We can highlight a number of moments that make the game on clay special, the main factor here is movement, and not just running around the court, but moving in combination with sliding. One might say , that sliding is a kind of art. You need to approach the ball in such a way as to catch it at the right point, otherwise the shot will not turn out at all the way you want. It requires special coordination, and if you did not catch this rhythm as a child, then Finding this movement will be very difficult. For example, such a great player as Sampras was never able to learn this, sometimes he would slide for too long, thus wasting precious centimeters and having to run extra distance just because he could not brake in time. Some players they choose a radical path - they don’t even try to do the slide.”

Physical training coach of the French Tennis Federation Paul Quéten believes that on clay you need to pay special attention to developing strength and endurance: “From the beginning you get used to the surface, your body adapts to the new sensations. Footwork on clay is a special moment. If not If you play match after match, it is impossible to hone these moments. From his words it becomes clear that the main weapon of an athlete should be his legs, tennis players need to run a lot, train explosive starting power, but they cannot pump themselves up, because they need to remain fast and resilient. It is necessary to find a balance. ”

Features of betting on clay in tennis

When betting on matches played on clay courts, you need to pay special attention to the physical condition of the athletes. If a player played the previous match with all his strength, do not be afraid to take even a large minus handicap against him (-4.5 or more for a two-set format, and -7.5 or more for a five-set format).

Beware of betting on the exact score of sets. On the ground it is almost impossible to predict.

Another important aspect is betting on mentally strong players. Such as Cuevas, Soza, Bautista Agut, Tommy Robredo. These tennis players are very difficult to beat. You must be significantly stronger than them.

The next factor is luck. On clay, luck influences the result much less than on fast surfaces, and here you will often see a stronger player win. Therefore, it is better not to play small positive handicaps; if you think that the tennis player is stronger, it is better to take him to win. You will get a higher coefficient. with the same chances of passing as a small plus handicap (+1.5).

A large plus form (+5.5) on clay is nothing more than just a handicap. And you will see a score of 6:0 or 6:1 very often in clay matches. So don't rush to take it.

Let's try to figure it out

Types of tennis court surfaces. How do they affect winnings?

The physical properties of the coating are very important to us. The ball bounces on grass the fastest of all surfaces. And besides, it is also the lowest. And at the beginning of the tournament the grass is also slippery. Especially after the rain.

Athletes with a high serve speed (more than 170 km/h) and a high percentage of first serve hits are in an advantageous situation on this surface. But active reception is not so important here.

Conclusions to all of the above in conclusion, and now let’s talk about “Grunt”

Ground coatings more common on different continents. Tournaments on this surface are held throughout most of the tennis season. At first glance, “soil” looks the same everywhere, but in fact there are quite a lot of their varieties.

Thus, the soil surfaces of North America are somewhat “faster” than European ones due to the different base.

Unlike grass, clay has a very slow and high rebound of the ball. Therefore, serving on this surface is not so important. An aggressive approach comes first here. The physical endurance of an athlete is very important.

Hard coatingone of the most popular and versatile tennis surfaces in the world. Comparative simplicity, and most importantly the cost of creating such a coating. Durability and low maintenance. They allow tournament organizers to organize it in a short time even at universal venues.

It is worth distinguishing hard in the hall (Indoor) and playing on open courts. A controlled microclimate and no interference from sun, wind or rain creates almost ideal conditions for playing in the hall. Serving comes first in the room. This is precisely why the “submitted” perform so successfully in the halls. Speed ​​of movement and reaction speed are also important in the gym. Playing technique is much more important than strength in the gym.

What makes it different open hard from playing on clay, grass and indoors, it is constantly changing external conditions. Temperature conditions vary greatly depending on the continent. Air humidity. Wind loads.

This is the most demanding coating for athlete preparation. Weaknesses in even one aspect of the game will prevent you from getting good results. “Universal fighters” have an advantage on open hard courts.

It is also necessary to mention the calendar schedule of games on various surfaces. The tennis season begins in January on hard court. Open in warm regions and closed in cool regions. At the end of March and April, games on clay are added, culminating at the end of May with the Roland Garros tournament. Then the athletes devote about a month to playing on the grass. The grass season ends with Wimbledon. After which most tournaments return to hard. By autumn it is mostly closed.

Briefly, perhaps, everything about the properties and capabilities of various coatings. Let's move on to the conclusions. To how we can use all this information to play profitably.

Today, the Russian market offers a fairly wide range of coatings for tennis courts.

Let's look at the four most common types of tennis surfaces in our country from the point of view of direct consumers, i.e. tennis players (of any level) and coaches. Let us immediately make a reservation that we consider only genuine coatings that were laid in compliance with all standards and technologies and were well maintained during operation.

COATING "HARD"

In recent years, Hard coating has taken the lead in our country in terms of use in the construction of new and reconstruction of old tennis courts. This was facilitated by: relative affordability, durability, excellent performance properties when installed both indoors and outdoors, ease of maintenance and maintainability of this type of coating.

Advantages of “Hard” coverage for players and coaches:

• medium or slow speed, medium or high ball bounce;
• the ability to conduct longer draws when playing on an account;
• facilitates the task of “setting up” and improving footwork and movement around the court, especially in the mode of sudden acceleration and braking, as well as sudden changes in directions of movement;
• facilitates the task of practicing ball rotation, “entering the ball/strike”, developing endurance and stability in the game;
• an open court dries out fairly quickly after rain, especially with properly sloped and drained surfaces;
• allows athletes to qualitatively prepare for a large number of tournaments. Since approximately 40% of tennis tournaments in the world take place on courts of this type, and their number is growing thanks to the policy of the ATP and WTA to increase the entertainment of tennis matches by reducing the speed of the ball's bounce.

• In the first months of operation of the new court, increased wear of balls and sneakers is possible, which is due to the adhesion properties of the surface. During further use (usually after 2-4 months with intensive use), wear decreases, and is subsequently compared with the wear of balls and sneakers on clay courts.

Features and “myths” about this type of coating:

• To play on hard, you need specialized tennis shoes that do not leave strong marks and protect the athlete’s foot well. It would also be a good idea to use specialized tennis socks with good softening (some athletes wear two pairs at once);
• In our country, there is an established opinion that “Hard” surfaces are the most traumatic and cause increased stress on the joints, ligaments and muscles of athletes. But as a result of an analysis of the work of tennis schools and clubs in which courts of this type were laid, with the correct organization of the training process, an increase in injuries among those involved was not revealed. o It should also be noted that the use of a hard coating with softening does not seriously affect the reduction in the risk of injury compared to a conventional hard surface laid on concrete or asphalt, and is determined by the wishes of the customer or the characteristics of the court base. Poorly executed hard softening, in addition to deteriorating the uniformity of the ball's rebound, increases the likelihood of injury to the athlete due to zones on the court that are not uniform in terms of shock absorption and grip. In some cases, when “Hard” was laid on chipboard slabs, athletes noted an increased load on the ankle joints, knees and spine and back muscles, due to the constant “springing” effect of the coating.

GROUND COATING

Clay courts have been used since the early days of tennis as an alternative to the first tennis surface, natural grass. Today, clay courts can be found in every corner of the world, especially in Europe and South America. In our country, ground covering has long been widely used both for the construction of tennis courts in the open air and under the roof (for example, in the oldest Moscow tennis halls “Dynamo” and “Shakhtar” the ground was initially laid). But it’s still worth noting that clay courts are the most efficient, high-quality and durable outdoors. The ideal combination for a tennis club or academy is a combination of indoor hard court and outdoor clay court.

• facilitates the task of “setting up” and improving footwork and movement around the court (especially in the mode of sharp acceleration, braking and changing directions of movement, sliding towards the ball);
• facilitates the task of practicing ball rotation, shortened strokes, “entering the ball/shot”, developing endurance and stability in the game;
• the value of the serve and the difference in the height of the players are leveled out;
• allows athletes to qualitatively prepare for a large number of tournaments. Approximately 40-45% of tennis tournaments in the world take place on courts of this type, and their number is growing thanks to the ATP and WTA policies to increase the entertainment of tennis matches by reducing the speed of the ball's bounce.

Disadvantages of this type of coverage for players and coaches:

• the material of the courts - tennisite - intensively contaminates the clothes and shoes of players and coaches;
• in sunny weather, it is necessary to regularly water the court to improve grip and prevent dry tennisite from being blown away by the wind;
• Depending on the quality and drainage system of the court, the coating may take a long time to dry after heavy rainfall

Features of this type of coating:

• It is necessary to use specialized tennis shoes for clay (usually with a herringbone sole pattern).

SYNTHETIC ROLL COVERINGS

Synthetic roll surfaces for tennis (Greflor Taraflex, MondoTen, Limonta Sportgame, Supreme Court, Green Set Trophy, etc.) became widely known around the world in the mid-70s. The 90s and early 2000s can be called the “golden” era of this type of surface: they were used in many ATP and WTA tournaments held in the halls; tennis clubs and academies striving to be innovative also opted for them.

Today, the popularity of this type of coating has decreased, mainly due to high cost, average durability and low maintainability. This was also facilitated by the policy of the ATP and WTA to increase the entertainment value of tennis matches by reducing the speed of the ball’s rebound, which led to the replacement of roll-type synthetic surfaces with acrylic ones (with medium or slow ball rebound).

The advantages of this type of coverage for players and coaches:

• fast and low ball bounce;
• makes it easier to practice serving, receiving, volleying, and cutting;
• low wear rate of tennis shoes and balls;
• does not stain the shoes and clothes of tennis players and coaches.

Disadvantages of this type of coverage for players and coaches:

• low durability and performance properties when installed outdoors;
• as the surface of the court wears out (usually after three to four years of intensive use), in places of the greatest gaming activity on the back line and half-court, zones with a reduced coefficient of adhesion appear, in which “slippage” of the tennis players’ feet occurs, and increasing the speed at which the ball bounces compared to the rest of the court surface.

ARTIFICIAL GRASS

Tennis covering “Artificial grass” is used in our country mainly for installation in holiday homes, hotels, boarding houses and private tennis courts. There is an opinion about the fragility and “unprofessionalism” of this type of coating. Nevertheless, if the conditions of installation and operation are observed, artificial grass can “work” for a long time and conscientiously in tennis clubs and specialized schools, both in halls and in the open air.

The advantages of this type of coverage for players and coaches:

• practically harmless in case of falls. This factor is especially important when organizing tennis lessons for beginners and children;
• medium or slow speed, medium or high bounce of the ball, which allows for longer rallies when playing for a score;
• when properly laid and filled with sand, it allows you to practice movements around the court and approaches to the ball, almost like on a clay court;
• does not stain the shoes and clothes of tennis players and coaches;
• dries quickly after precipitation, and with proper organization of the drainage system, outdoor training is possible even in the rain;
• low wear rate of tennis shoes and balls.

Disadvantages of this type of coverage for players and coaches:

• low prevalence at professional and junior tournaments.

Dmitry Dudko, coach, specialist in the implementation of the construction of tennis centers

SportBuild magazine, September 2013