An intimate self-portrait encompassing the life, times, and career of one of the most transformative individuals--let alone athletes--of recent times.

Journeying from a blue-collar childhood to shatter tennis's exclusive country-club culture, Billie Jean King paved the way for a more open, inclusive, and equal sports environment. In her memoir, she takes us behind the scenes of the pro tennis tour, through her five years as the top-ranked woman in the world, her twenty Wimbledon championships, her thirty-nine grand-slam titles, and her watershed defeat of Bobby Riggs in the famous "Battle of the Sexes."

With her ever-present candour, King also describes the high personal price of public greatness. We see how she struggled to live authentically and the challenges she grappled with beneath the mask of fame, including entrenched sexism, an eating disorder and struggles with her sexual identity until her "outing" by a former lover led her to embrace her true self. We come to understand how, through it all, her unshakeable integrity, resilience, and sense of purpose allowed her time and again to overcome her obstacles, and, at a few dire moments, to rebound from near ruin.

Hers is the story of a pathbreaking fighter for equality, world-class athlete, and an indomitable spirit.

The game of tennis raises many questions that are of interest to a statistician. Is it true that beginning to serve in a set gives an advantage? Are new balls an advantage? Is the seventh game in a set particularly important? Are top players more stable than other players? Do real champions win the big points? These and many other questions are formulated as "hypotheses" and tested statistically. Analyzing Wimbledon also discusses how the outcome of a match can be predicted (even while the match is in progress), which points are important and which are not, how to choose an optimal service strategy, and whether "winning mood" actually exists in tennis. Aimed at readers with some knowledge of mathematics and statistics, the book uses tennis (Wimbledon in particular) as a vehicle to illustrate the power and beauty of statistical reasoning.

Formerly reserved for the elite, tennis has become a popular sport over the years. And even if you don't play yourself, the tennis lifestyle exerts a certain fascination. It's not uncommon at Grand Slams like Wimbledon to find it more interesting who's watching from the stands than who's down on the court. However, famous tennis personalities are also a source of conversation - just remember John McEnroe's infamous outbursts. This, the ultimate tennis book is dedicated to the stories on and off the court, it explains the history of the sport, shows the most important courts and tournaments, the most exciting competitions and legendary athletes. Tennis fashion and equipment are also covered, and who knows, maybe after reading this entertaining tennis compendium you will feel the need to pick up a racket. Text in English and German.

"Imply you're a tennis ace with this stylish coffee-table book" - Evening Standard More than "just a game," tennis has always been a sociable pursuit where whom and where you play defines the whole experience. An entire culture has developed around this chic pastime. Witness a whole pantheon of tennis legends who combine athleticism with stylish flair while experiencing the charisma of such modern stars as Maria Sharapova and the charm of all-time great Arthur Ashe. From Wimbledon to other prestigious venues around the globe, tennis courts are a place to see and be seen - and admire the skill of the players, of course! Crisp, sporty tennis outfits by the likes of Lacoste and Fred Perry - beautifully showcased here - epitomise a relaxed yet active life. The Stylish Life: Tennis will inspire you to brush off your volley - or at least dream about taking part in this leisurely, sophisticated world.

An intimate, original biography of tennis legend Rafael Nadal, and the first to cover his entire career.

After his award-winning look at Roger Federer, Christopher Clarey, one of the world's pre-eminent tennis writers, focuses his lens on Nadal, the Spanish force of nature. When he arrived on the scene in 2005, the record for men's singles titles at the French Open stood at six. Nadal more than doubled that total to a mind-blowing fourteen titles: one of the greatest sporting achievements in history.

Nadal won big and won often on all of tennis's surfaces: securing two Wimbledon titles on grass and six on the US Open and Australian Open hard courts. But clay, the grittiest of the game's playgrounds, is where it all came together best for his whipping forehand and warrior mindset.

Clarey, who has covered Nadal since he was seventeen, draws on interviews over twenty years with Nadal, his team and rivals like Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Brimming with behind-the-scenes insight, The Warrior tells the story of a global sporting icon, interlacing man and place in a unique, must-read account of the evolution of excellence.

Born in the segregated South in 1943, Ashe overcame racial prejudices and segregation to break into the world of tennis, which had traditionally been dominated by whites. He rose to the top of the sport, winning three Grand Slam trophies and playing on the Davis Cup team. His tennis career came to an abrupt end when he suffered a heart attack while in his thirties. Ashe began a post-tennis career that included speaking out on social issues that mattered most to him, including educational excellence for African American athletes, the injustice of the apartheid system in South Africa, and better health care for all Americans. After contracting the AIDS virus through a blood transfusion, he began to speak out on the subject of AIDS in order to help people understand the disease. After a brilliant career on the tennis court, Ashe devoted the remainder of his life to fighting for social justice at home and abroad and to fighting the illnesses that had struck him while he was still a young man. Steins tells the inspiring story of Arthur Ashe, a great tennis champion whose skills on the court as well as his exceptional and honorable personal characteristics made him stand out among all players of his generation. A timeline and other appendices highlight Ashe's career and life.

Originally published in 1930. The author was All-England Singles Champion of that time. A fascinating look at the sport at that time, accompanied with advice that is still useful and practical today. Contents Include: The Racket and How To Hold It - Footwork and Poise - Stroke Production - The Smash - The Lob (Or Clear) - Drop-Shots - The Drive - Service - Return of Service - Feinting - Tactics (General Ideas) - Doubles (Side by Side Formation) - Doubles (Back and Front Formation) - Singles - Match Winning. With photographic illustrations. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

He is one of the most beloved athletes in history and one of the most gifted men ever to step onto a tennis court – but from early childhood Andre Agassi hated the game.

Coaxed to swing a racket while still in the crib, forced to hit hundreds of balls a day while still in grade school, Agassi resented the constant pressure even as he drove himself to become a prodigy, an inner conflict that would define him. Now, in his beautiful, haunting autobiography, Agassi tells the story of a life framed by such conflicts.

Agassi makes us feel his panic as an undersized seven-year-old in Las Vegas, practicing all day under the obsessive gaze of his violent father. We see him at thirteen, banished to a Florida tennis camp. Lonely, scared, a ninth-grade dropout, he rebels in ways that will soon make him a 1980s icon. By the time he turns pro at sixteen, his new look promises to change tennis forever, as does his lightning fast return.

And yet, despite his raw talent, he struggles early on. We feel his confusion as he loses to the world's best, his greater confusion as he starts to win. After stumbling in three Grand Slam finals, Agassi shocks the world, and himself, by capturing the 1992 Wimbledon. Overnight he becomes a fan favorite and a media target.

Agassi brings a near-photographic memory to every pivotal match, and every public relationship. Alongside vivid portraits of rivals, Agassi gives unstinting accounts of his brief time with Barbra Streisand and his doomed marriage to Brooke Shields. He reveals the depression that shatters his confidence, and the mistake that nearly costs him everything. Finally, he recounts his spectacular resurrection and his march to become the oldest man ever ranked number one.

In clear, taut prose, Agassi evokes his loyal brother, his wise coach, his gentle trainer, all the people who help him regain his balance and find love at last with Stefanie Graf.

With its breakneck tempo and raw candor, Open will be read and cherished for years. A treat for ardent fans, it will also captivate readers who know nothing about tennis. Like Agassi's game, it sets a new standard for grace, style, speed and power.

This comprehensive guide, covering the entire spectrum of tennis subjects, lists and evaluates more than 950 English-language books and over 150 tennis films and videotapes. Among the subjects treated are rules and techniques of play; histories of the game; biographies and autobiographies of champion players; psychological approaches to improving one's game; advice on matters of fitness, physicial conditioning, and rehabilitation of tennis-related injuries; the construction and maintenance of tennis courts; tennis in schools and recreational settings; the administration of tournaments; tennis equipment; the traveling tennis player; tennis humor; and tennis films and videotapes.

The Sunday Times bestselling autobiography from the greatest tennis player of his generation.

No tennis player since Andre Agassi has captivated the world like Rafael Nadal. He's a rarity in today's sporting arena - a true sportsman who chooses to let his raw talent, dedication and humility define him. Rapidly closing in on his friend and rival Roger Federer's record haul of 16 grand slam victories, Nadal is an extraordinary competitor whose ferocity on court is made even more remarkable by his grace off it. This book takes us to the heart of Nadal's childhood, his growth as a player, and his incredible career.

It includes memorable highs and lows, from victory in the 2008 Wimbledon final - a match that John McEnroe called the 'greatest game of tennis ever played' - to the injury problems that have frequently threatened his dominance of the sport, to becoming the youngest player of the open era to complete a career Grand Slam in 2010. It transports us from Nadal's lifelong home on the island of Majorca to the locker room of Centre Court as he describes in detail the pressures of competing in the greatest tournament in the world.

It offers a glimpse behind the racquet to learn what really makes this intensely private person - who has never before talked about his home life - tick. And it provides us with a story that is personal, revealing and every bit as exciting as Nadal himself.