Rackets or Racquets (American English

American English

American English is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the world's native speakers of English live in the United States....

) is an indoor racket sport played in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The sport is infrequently called "hard rackets," possibly to distinguish it from the related sport of squash

Squash (sport)

Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...

 (formerly called "squash rackets").

Manner of play

Rackets is played in a 30 by 60 foot (9.14 × 18.28 m) enclosed court, with a ceiling at least 30 feet (9.14 m) high. Singles and doubles are played on the same court. The walls and floor of the court are made of smooth stone or concrete and are generally dark in colour to contrast with the white ball. A player uses 30.5 inch (775 mm) wooden racket, known as a bat, to hit a 38mm (1.5 inch) hard white ball weighing 28 grams. Currently there are only two companies in the world producing rackets bats: Grays of Cambridge (UK) and Harrow Sports (US), in Denver, Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

. A good stroke must touch the front wall above a 26.5-inch-high wooden (often cloth-covered) board before touching the floor. The ball may touch the side walls before reaching the front wall. The player returning a good stroke may play the ball on the volley, or after one bounce on the floor. The play is extremely fast, and potentially quite dangerous. Lets (replayed points) are common, as the striker must not play the ball if doing so risks hitting another player with it. Matches preferably are observed by a "marker," who has the duty to call "Play" after each good stroke to denote that the ball is "up." Games are to 15 points, unless the game is tied at 13-all or 14-all, in which case the game can be "set" to 16 or 18 (in the case of 13-all) or 17 (in the case of 14-all) at the option of the player first reaching 13 or 14. Only the server can score — the receiver who wins a rally becomes the server. Return of service can be extremely difficult, and, in North America, only one serve is allowed. Matches are typically best of 5 games.

Because the game of squash rackets (now known as 'squash') began in the 19th century as an off-shoot of rackets, the sports were similar in manner of play and rules. However, the rules and scoring in squash have evolved in the last hundred years or so. Rackets has changed little; the main difference today is that players are now allowed brief rest periods between games. In the past, leaving the court could mean forfeiting the match, so players kept spare rackets, shirts, and shoes in the gutter below the telltale on the front wall.

The governing bodies are the Tennis and Rackets Association

Tennis and Rackets Association

The Tennis and Rackets Association is the governing body for the sports of real tennis and rackets in the United Kingdom. Its first meeting was held in 1907.-Clubs:* Britannia Royal Naval College * Seacourt...

 (UK) and the North American Racquets Association

North American Racquets Association

The North American Racquets Association is the governing body for the sport of racquets in the United States and Canada.-Member clubs:* Tennis and Racquet Club * Racquet Club of Chicago* Detroit Racquet Club* Montreal Racket Club...

.

History

Rackets began as an 18th century pastime in London's King's Bench

King's Bench Prison

The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, from medieval times until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were heard; as such, the prison was often used as a debtor's prison...

 and Fleet

Fleet Prison

Fleet Prison was a notorious London prison by the side of the Fleet River in London. The prison was built in 1197 and was in use until 1844. It was demolished in 1846.- History :...

 debtors prisons. The prisoners modified the game of fives

Fives

Fives is a British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.-Background:...

 by using tennis rackets to speed up the action. They played against the prison wall, sometimes at a corner to add a sidewall to the game. Rackets then became popular outside the prison, played in alleys behind pubs. It spread to schools, first using school walls, and later with proper four-wall courts being specially constructed for the game. Some historians assert that the game was codified through its popularity at the Harrow School

Harrow School

Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...

 in London, where it was played as early as the second half of the 18th century.

Eglinton Castle

Eglinton Country Park

Eglinton Country Park is located in the grounds of the old Eglinton Castle estate, Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, Scotland . Eglinton Park is situated in the parish of Kilwinning, part of the former district of Cunninghame, and covers an area of 400 hectares...

 has a 'Racket Hall' which is first shown on the 1860 OS map

Ordnance Survey

Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...

, but estate records show that it was built shortly after 1839, the first recorded match being in 1846. The floor is of large granite slabs, now hidden by the wooden floor. It is the very first covered racket court and is now the oldest surviving court in the world, as well as being the oldest indoor sports building in Scotland. It has been restored as a racket hall, but used as an exhibition area.
Some private clubs also built courts. Along with real tennis

Real tennis

Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" – is the original indoor racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis , is descended...

 and badminton

Badminton

Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...

, rackets was used as an inspiration for the game of lawn tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

, invented in 1873 by Walter Clopton Wingfield

Walter Clopton Wingfield

Major Walter Clopton Wingfield was a British army officer who was one of the pioneers of lawn tennis. Inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1997, an example of the original equipment for the sport and a bust of Wingfield himself can be seen at the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis...

. A vacant rackets court built into the University of Chicago's Stagg Field

Stagg Field

Amos Alonzo Stagg Field is the name of two different football fields for the University of Chicago. The earliest Stagg Field is probably best remembered for its role in a landmark scientific achievement by Enrico Fermi during the Manhattan Project. The site of the first nuclear reaction received...

 served as the location of the first artificial nuclear chain reaction

Nuclear chain reaction

A nuclear chain reaction occurs when one nuclear reaction causes an average of one or more nuclear reactions, thus leading to a self-propagating number of these reactions. The specific nuclear reaction may be the fission of heavy isotopes or the fusion of light isotopes...

 on December 2, 1942. The Stagg Field court is often mistakenly identified as having been a "squash rackets" court.
Rackets was part of the 1908 Summer Olympics

1908 Summer Olympics

The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...

 program.

The Book of Racquets was published by J. R. Atkins in 1872 and is a good guide to the game. It was reprinted to commemorate the 1981 World Rackets Challenge Match between W. J. C. Surtees and J. A. N. Prenn as a limited edition of 250 copies.

United Kingdom

There are about twenty courts in some of the major public schools

Independent school (UK)

An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...

 and private clubs in the United Kingdom.

Schools

These schools are considered to be Britain's major public schools.

• Charterhouse School
  Charterhouse School
  Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
  
   – 2 courts
• Cheltenham College
  Cheltenham College
  Cheltenham College is a co-educational independent school, located in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England.One of the public schools of the Victorian period, it was opened in July 1841. An Anglican foundation, it is known for its classical, military and sporting traditions.The 1893 book Great...
  
  
• Clifton College
  Clifton College
  Clifton College is a co-educational independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated...
  
   – recently refurbished for the world championships
• Eton College
  Eton College
  Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
  
   – 2 courts
• Haileybury
  Haileybury
  Haileybury may refer to:* Haileybury, Ontario, part of Temiskaming Shores, a city in Ontario* Haileybury and Imperial Service College, a coeducational English public school in Hertfordshire...
  
  
• Harrow School
  Harrow School
  Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...
  
   – 2 courts
• Malvern College
  Malvern College
  Malvern College is a coeducational independent school located on a 250 acre campus near the town centre of Malvern, Worcestershire in England. Founded on 25 January 1865, until 1992, the College was a secondary school for boys aged 13 to 18...
  
   – 2 courts
• Marlborough College
  Marlborough College
  Marlborough College is a British co-educational independent school for day and boarding pupils, located in Marlborough, Wiltshire.Founded in 1843 for the education of the sons of Church of England clergy, the school now accepts both boys and girls of all beliefs. Currently there are just over 800...
  
   – 2 courts
• Radley College
  Radley College
  Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
  
  
• Rugby School
  Rugby School
  Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
  
   – 2 courts
• St Paul's School (London) http://www.stpaulsschool.org.uk/page.aspx?id=8391
• Tonbridge School
  Tonbridge School
  Tonbridge School is a British boys' independent school for both boarding and day pupils in Tonbridge, Kent, founded in 1553 by Sir Andrew Judd . It is a member of the Eton Group, and has close links with the Worshipful Company of Skinners, one of the oldest London livery companies...
  
   – 2 courts
• Wellington College
  Wellington College, Berkshire
  -Former pupils:Notable former pupils include historian P. J. Marshall, architect Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, impressionist Rory Bremner, Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge, author Sebastian Faulks, language school pioneer John Haycraft, political journalist Robin Oakley, actor Sir Christopher...
  
  
• Winchester College
  Winchester College
  Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
  
   – 2 courts

Clubs

• BRNCC Dartmouth
• Hayling Island
• Manchester Tennis & Racket Club
• Queens Club, London
• RMA Sandhurst

There are also private clubs that the public may join, and a nomadic club, The Jesters.

North America

There are eight active courts in North America, all at private clubs:

• Chicago
  Chicago
  Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
  
  

Chicago has 2 courts. Opened in 1924, with a Court Tennis and two double squash courts

• Detroit

Opened in 1902, designed by the noted architect Albert Kahn. Constructed by Joseph Bickley. Originally open to the air with natural lighting until it was glazed over with lights added in 1912

• New York
  New York City
  New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
  
  

Opened in 1918 on Park Avenue, the building designed by Mckim, Mead and White. The building originally housed two courts: one was converted to a double squash court in 1956

• Tuxedo Park
  Tuxedo Park, New York
  Tuxedo Park is a village in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 731 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined...
  
  

Opened in 1902

• Philadelphia

Opened in 1907 with two courts, one of which now has been converted to a double squash court

• Boston
  Boston
  Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
  
  

Opened in 1902, with two courts, one of which has now been converted to a double squash court

• Montreal
  Montreal
  Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
  
  

Opened in 1889, the court was constructed four feet longer and two feet wider to facilitate doubles play. It was resized to regulation 60 by 30 feet in 1909

There may be unused courts elsewhere in the former British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

 that are still in good condition. Rackets is overwhelmingly a male sport.

Disused Courts / Converted Courts / Lost Courts

Country	Name	City	Information
USA	The University Club	Detroit	The last court built in North America, constructed by Joseph Bickley. This court is unused, in a now vacant building
	The Tavern Club	Cleveland	36th and Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, USA – Now houses a doubles squash court
	The Pittsburgh Athletic Association Pittsburgh Athletic Association The Pittsburgh Athletic Association is a private social club and athletic club in in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Its clubhouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places....	Pittsburgh	5th Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. The court now houses three squash rackets courts installed laterally, making use of the original walls of the hard rackets court. The marker's gallery is still present.
	St Louis Racquets Club	St Louis	Now houses a doubles squash court
	Lakewood	New Jersey	Unused
UK	Devonshire Park	Eastbourne – Sussex	Built in 1875, this court is now used as a prop store for the Eastbourne Theatre. A section of the front wall has been bricked up and used as a ladies loo for the pub next door. This court could be converted back for play.
	Belmont House	Wraxall	This is in Bristol. Built in the 1860s by Williams Gibbs, whom made his fortune out of guano bird droppings imported from the Pacific!. A popular Victorian garden fertilizer. It passed through the family and was last owned by the second Lord Wraxall. This court has now been lost. Sections of it have been taken to be part of the main house and the remaining is to be converted into a theatre
	Copped Hall	Epping	This is in Essex. The main house is under restoration, the rackets court has now been converted into a tea rooms, the gallery still remains.
	Park Place Estate	Henley-on Thames	Built in 1900, it is at the moment in disrepair, but plans were afoot to restore it to its former glory, but its future is now unsure
	Eglinton Castle Eglinton Castle Eglinton Castle was a large Gothic castellated mansion in Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, Scotland.-The castle :The ancient seat of the Earls of Eglinton, it is located just south of the town of Kilwinning...	Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland	Built in 1842 and refurbished circa 1985 as an exhibition hall.
	Fyvie Castle	Scotland	Fyvie Castle was built in 1903. Restored and used as a playhouse / exhibition space
	Stoneyhurst College,	Clitheroe, Lancashire	Converted to squash courts in 1933
	Newcastle		Part of the University Building, was being used for play as late as the 1980s. Its future is now unsure. Now used for ping pong
	Kinloch Castle	Rum, Scotland
	Rossall School Rossall School Rossall School is a British, co-educational, independent school, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St. Vincent Beechey as a sister school to Marlborough College which had been founded the previous year...		Converted to squash courts
	Royal Naval College	Greenwich	These two courts were built in 1874 & converted to squash courts in 1882, and now converted into an exhibition space
	Stonehouse	Millbay	Converted to squash courts in 1930's
	Samsome Walk	Worcester	Converted to apartments
Ireland	Leinster Lane	Dublin	Now used as a book archive for the National Library.
	Trinity College	Dublin	Now used as a bookstore and possibly to be absorbed in new building development.
	Dawson Street	Dublin	Now used as a car park, including vehicle lift.
	Carlton House	Maynooth	Believed absorbed in current commercial development.
	Curragh Army Camp		Converted to squash courts.
Gibraltar			Now converted into a Squash Club
Australia	Melbourne Club	Melbourne	Converted into squash courts 1913
Pakistan	Kuldana Cantonment, Murree Hills	Pakistan	Built in 1897, now a gymnasium still standing
India	Calcutta Racket Club	Calcutta	Converted to squash courts 1930's

Tournaments

The world championship for singles (and doubles) is decided in a challenge format. If the governing bodies accept the challenger's qualifications, he plays the reigning champion in a best of 14 games format (best of 7 games on each side of the Atlantic). If each player wins seven games, the total point score is used as a tie breaker. The current singles champion is James Stout. The current doubles champions are amateurs Alex Titchener-Barrett and Tim Cockroft, who beat amateurs, and World Title holders, Mark Hue Williams and Harry Foster in a two-legged challenge in March / April 2011. The first leg was played in the Montreal Racquet Club, and was won by the challengers 4 games to 3 The second occurred in London's Queen's Club, and was also won by the challengers 4 games to 2

The tournament system for Rackets is being revolutionised by a new World Ranking System, developed by Richard Spender and ex-New York professional, James Beaumont. The scheme is on a year experiment with the Tennis & Rackets Association and can be found at T&RA Rackets World Rankings The development of the rankings model and the online system has been sponsored by Robinson McColl Architects+Designers, founded by former doubles World Champion, Alister Robinson.

There are various tournaments that are hosted in North America and the UK.

These are:

In North America

• The Canadian Amateur Championships
• The US Amateur Championships
• The US Open
• The Western Open
• The Tuxedo Gold Rackets

In the UK

• The British Amateur
• The British Open
• The Invitational Singles
• The Manchester Gold Rackets

World Championship

Organized on a challenge basis, the first champion in 1820 was Robert Mackay (Great Britain

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....

).

Recent winners

• 2008– James Stout (Bermuda)
• 2005–8 Harry Foster (Great Britain)
• 2001–5 James Male (Great Britain)
• 1999–2001 Neil Smith (USA)
• 1988–99 James Male (Great Britain)
• 1986–8 John Prenn (Great Britain)
• 1984–6 William Boone (Great Britain)
• 1981–4 John Prenn (Great Britain)
• 1975–81 William Surtees (USA)
• 1973–4 Howard Angus (Great Britain)
• 1972–3 William Surtees (USA)
• 1954–72 Geoffrey Atkins (Great Britain)
• 1947–54 James Dear (Great Britain)
• 1937–47 Donald Milford (Great Britain)
• 1929–35 Charles Williams (Great Britain)
• 1913–29 Jock Soutar (USA)
• 1911–13 Charles Williams (Great Britain)
• 1903–11 J. Jamsetji (India)
• 1887–1902 Peter Latham (Great Britain)
• 1862 William Hart-Dyke (Great Britain)
• 1860–1862 Francis Erwood
  Francis Erwood
  Francis Elliston Erwood was designated in the Guinness Book of Records the first closed court rackets world champion. The title, together with a £400 prize, was gained following two matches in 1860, the first at the Royal Artillery Court, Woolwich and the second at the Eglintoun Arms, Maudlin...
  
  (First closed court champion)(Great Britain)
• 1860 John Charles Mitchell (Open court champion) (Great Britain)

External links

• Tennis and Rackets Association
• The Home of Rackets on the Web
• North American Racquets Association
• Detroit Racquet Club
• Tennis and Racquet Club, Boston
• Racquet Club of Philadelphia
• The Tuxedo Club
• Montreal Racket Club

Video

World Doubles Championship - Second Leg 26 March 2011 - www.realtennis.tv
Rackets on YouTube