Tennis rackets have evolved greatly from the laminated wood
rackets that used to be used to what we now know as rackets today. In the
1960's Wilson created a steel framed racket which became popular because the
famous tennis player Jimmy Connors used it. In 1968 Spalding created the aluminium
racket. The aluminium framed racket while lighter and more flexible than wood
or steel was a lot less accurate therefore most professional and amateur tennis
players continued to use either steel or wood rackets. In 1975, the improvement
of aluminium led to oversized tennis rackets being created. Since aluminium
became much lighter than wood or steel, tennis rackets could be larger than
before without throwing off the player's game. With larger rackets, players
were able to put more spin or slice on the ball which is very useful in a game
of tennis. In the 1980's the first graphite tennis racket was created. The
graphite racket was lighter and stronger than aluminium and players could hit
the ball a lot harder with it. Today, tennis rackets are made out of graphite
mixed with other materials such as tungsten and titanium.
There are seven parts to a tennis racket: the head, rim,
face, neck, butt, handle and strings. Apart from the basic foundation, rackets
vary depending on height, weight, colour, stringing and more. All of these
variables apart from the colour can have various effects on one's game. Rackets
can weigh between 230g (very lightweight) and 350g (heavyweight). A lighter
racket is easier to move so players are able to swing it faster while a heavy
racket gives a player more balance and power while hitting the shots. Rackets
also have different head sizes- a smaller head giving the player more control
over the ball and a larger head giving the player more room for error and more
power in their shots. The stringing on rackets can also greatly effect one's
game. If a racket is strung loosely the player is able to put more power and
spin onto the ball, if the racket is strung tightly then the racket has more
control over the ball and one is able to predict the power and angle the ball
will be hit at.https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Tennis_racket_owned_by_Gerald_R._Ford.JPG |
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