Discover the Top 9 Unbelievable Tennis Fun Facts You Never Knew!

1. Sam Groth's Record-Breaking Serve

When Sam Groth's tennis serve went faster than a furious kangaroo on a pogo stick, he didn't just turn heads; he made history: This Australian player smashed the fastest-ever men's tennis serve at a mind-bending 263 km/h (163.4 mph) during the Busan Open in South Korea in May 2012, but alas, it didn't pave the way to victory—Uladzimir Ignatik from Belarus bounced back to win the match 4-6, 3-6.
Source => tenniscompanion.org

2. Rufus the Wimbledon Hawk

Meet Rufus, the feathered bouncer of Wimbledon: a tennis-loving Harris's hawk with a rather unique job. For 15 years, Rufus has been keeping uninvited guests, specifically pigeons, from crashing the party at Wimbledon’s 42-acre grounds, even earning the prestigious title of "Bird Scarer" on his very own security photocard pass. When he's not on bird-bouncing duty, Rufus can be seen flexing his talents at Westminster Abbey, hospitals, airfields, and even landfill sites. This celebrity avian even has his own social media presence and was named one of Britain's best-known birds after a dramatic birdnapping saga that ruffled the world's feathers.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

Did you know the badminton birdie has a cork base and 16 prime goose feathers? These feathered friends create drag, making gameplay more strategic! Discover more fun facts now!

=> Fun Facts about Badminton

3. Tennis in the Sky: Dubai's Highest Court

Forget high-stakes poker, tennis players have their heads in the clouds in Dubai: The Burj Al Arab hotel boasts the world's highest tennis court on its helipad, standing at a dizzying 211 meters and encompassing 415 square meters. In 2005, tennis megastars Andre Agassi and Roger Federer even tested their sky-high skills in a friendly match atop this vertigo-inducing court.
Source => northernarchitecture.us

4. Tennis Stars and Their Zodiac Signs

When the stars align and the tennis courts transform into astrological battlegrounds, you know the cosmic racquets are out to play! Watch out for those Geminis with their celestial swing and Leos ruling the Grand Slam Pride Lands: Gemini tennis players, like Steffi Graf, Venus Williams, and Novak Djokovic, display exceptional racquet skills, but it's the Leos such as Roger Federer and Pete Sampras who clinch top spots, boasting 31 Grand Slam titles between them; illustrating that when it comes to tennis, perhaps it's written in the stars.
Source => sallykirkman.com

5. Tennis-Playing Monks in Medieval France

Holy Smashes, Batman! Tennis-playing monks had a racket on church grounds in medieval France: However, the Bishop of Exeter spoiled their game, scolding them for their blasphemous and destructive behavior, which involved dismantling wooden structures in the cloister's penthouse roof to create their makeshift court – and thus, setting the ball rolling for lawn tennis to emerge in the late 1800s.
Source => tennis.com

6. The Longest Tennis Match in History

You might think Superman's endurance is impressive, but wait until you hear about these tennis players who kept the ball rolling for hours on end, possibly taking breaks to munch on invisible ants: John Isner and Nicolas Mahut played the longest tennis match in history at the 2010 Wimbledon, lasting 11 hours and 5 minutes, spread over three days with Isner winning 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68, both players serving over 100 aces, and forever immortalizing their epic battle at court 18 with a commemorative plaque.
Source => olympics.com

7. Wimbledon's First Winner

Before tennis players aced their way to millions, they settled for some shiny cups and guinea pigs: The first Wimbledon champion, Spencer Gore, took home a 25-guinea silver cup along with 12 guineas in prize money, which roughly amounts to a whopping £2,000 or $2,500 in today's currency.
Source => posterspotlight.wordpress.com

8. Shakespeare and Wimbledon's Strawberries

Strawberry fields aren't forever, but they do sneak into Shakespeare's world of drama and folklore, leaving a trail of confusing fertility symbols and deceitful handkerchiefs: It turns out Wimbledon's favorite snack of strawberries and cream has its roots in the playwright's works like Othello and The Tragedy of King Richard III, where the tasty fruit is linked to the Virgin Mary's chastity, as well as riddled with scandalous implications.
Source => blog.oup.com

9. The Evolution of Tennis Fashion

Serving up style with a twist of wit: Tennis fashion has evolved from the restricting all-white corseted dresses of the 1800s to bold, expressive outfits that challenge the boundaries of conventional sportswear—thanks to Suzanne Lenglen's game-changing calf-length skirt, bare arms, and floppy hat in the 1920s.
Source => merchantoftennis.com