Changes

The next major phase of development occurred in the 19th century, when tennis was now able to spread to the masses. During this time, both clay courts and lawn tennis emerged as features of the game. In Victorian Britain, tennis was now seen as a virtuous sport, encouraging its spread in the upper classes. The British Empire now began to also spread the sport to its Asian and other colonies as it was deemed to be a civilized game. At home, the game was seen to be an activity for ladies and gentlemen. Rules were still not standardized by the mid-19th century. Games sometimes featured two against one player or three players on one side, while court dimensions varied, including hourglass-shaped courts. One important development was by Charles Goodyear, who developed a material for tennis balls that gave them a much greater bounce. This helped to make lawn tennis and other surfaces more amenable to the game.<ref>For history of tennis during the Victorian period, see: Wilson, E. (2014). <i>Love Game: A History of Tennis, from Victorian Pastime to Global Phenomenon</i>. London: Serpent’s Tail.</ref>

The popularity of the sport led to the creation of clubs and the most significant club to adopt the game was the All England Club in Wimbledon, London. In the 1870s, croquet had become a popular sport in the United Kingdom and the development of lawn tennis made the game suitable in croquet fields. The All England club originally set aside one field for tennis but soon it was tennis that became the more popular sport among the two sports the club supported. By the 1880s, croquet was dropped and the height of the tennis net was standardized now for games in Wimbledon's rule book. The first tournament at Wimbledon, which became the origin of the Wimbledon championships of today, developed by 1877. The popularity of tennis and development of tournament play helped now to standardize rules that have remained with us, including how scoring is kept, developing at this time. The shape of the court also became standardized to its rectangular shape. The rules now largely became the same as the modern game, with the exception of tie breaks not introduced until 1971. The dress, however, was generally more formal, as men wore ties and ladies long dresses with heels. Women were not allowed to play in the Wimbledon tournament until the 1884.<ref>For history of late 19th century development of tennis, rules, and tournaments, see: Bodleian Library. (2010). The original rules of tennis. Oxford: Bodleian Library.</ref>