
Indian Tennis comprises both the games of Lawn Tennis and Table Tennis and India has earned significant recognition and reputation in the international arena, in both the games. The Indian Tennis and Table Tennis players have shown great performances in various prestigious regional and international tournaments, so far and have brought a lot of glory for the country, as well.
The
History of Indian Tennis is quite old and the game was brought into India by the British Army and Civilian Officers, during 1880s. The game got immense popularity among the Indians within no time. The main reason behind this was the easy rules and regulations of the game and also the excitement attached to the game. Once getting popularity in India, Tennis saw several tournaments to be organised during the later half of the 19th century. Some of the major Tennis tournaments of that time in India were the Punjab Lawn tennis Championship at Lahore and the Bengal Lawn Tennis Championship at Kolkata. All the Indian T
ennis tournaments were used to be organised for promoting the game and also developing the entire scenario of Indian Tennis.
For a better
management of Indian Tennis, several state and national associations were also established in India during the first half of the twentieth century. The associations have played an important role in producing a large number of talented Tennis players to represent India in the international arena. Apart from the Tennis associations, several
Indian Tennis academies are also working hard to produce talented Tennis players in India. The associations and academies are strictly following the
rules of Tennis, as instructed by the
All India Tennis Association (AITA). The
Indian Tennis players like Jaidip Mukherjee, Vijay Amritraj, Ramanathan Krishnan, Ramesh Krishnan, Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, Sania Mirza, etc. have got considerable success in various international Tennis tournaments. India has also seen a number of
Arjuna Awardees in Tennis, who have been honoured by the Government of India through this award.
On the other hand,
Table Tennis in India is not that much old as Indian Tennis. The game of Table Tennis started to be played in India in an organised manner during the 1930s, after the formation of
Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) in 1937. India has been an integral part in the
history of Table Tennis, as it was instrumental in the establishment of the game`s international body, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). Like Indian Tennis, there are several
Table Tennis associations in India, as well. The associations are working with a common objective of improving the current scenario of Table Tennis in India. Apart from that, they are also striving hard to produce as many as talented
Indian Table Tennis players, as they can.
The Table Tennis associations in India are getting a huge help from the
Indian Table Tennis Academies, which are situated all over India. They are working relentlessly to present world class Table Tennis players to India and also to help in a batter management of Table Tennis in India. They teach the young and budding players all the necessary
terms of Table Tennis and also the rules of Table Tennis. Though, the Indian Table Tennis associations are mainly in charge of organising various
Table Tennis tournaments in India, the academies also sometimes organise their own tournaments. As they have tried hard so far, India has produced a large number of talented Table Tennis players. A number of them have also later become the
Arjuna Awardees in Table Tennis.
(Last Updated on : 31/01/2009)