although many historians place 12th century france as the birthplace of tennis, there is evidence that a form of tennis was played thousands of years ago in ancient greece - despite the initial connection to ancient greece, the game of tennis is a decidedly french invention.

the first forms of tennis were played with hands, instead of rackets, to strike the ball - physical  tennis rackets did not make an appearance until the 16th century, when sticks were placed inside leather gloves to make hitting the ball easier. during this time, tennis was played indoors, often against walls - it did not move outside until the 1800's.