Tennis
The Grafton tennis section boasts 8 all-weather floodlit courts, four of which are modern artificial clay.
Social tennis is run on Wednesday evenings and Sunday afternoons, where everyone is encouraged to join in. Tuesday evenings has been set aside for men's doubles, whilst Monday evenings has traditionally been made available for women's doubles.
The Grafton prides itself on defeating the London weather and a determined minority always play throughout winter.
To encourage sporting rivalry the Grafton tennis section runs singles leagues, with eight leagues of six players. Each league runs for around two months. Each player plays every other in a best of three set match, with promotion and relegation at the end of each cycle. You will be slotted into a league which is roughly consistent with your level.
There is a summer Wimbledon style tournament which runs from May to July, with a large entry into men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles. The ultimate prize is to be immortalised on the winners' board which goes back to 1888.
The Grafton Cup is played over a single day at the beginning of the summer, where doubles teams compete against each other in single set matches. The winners receive the cup but miss out on most of the barbecue and ethnic cooking which is available through the day.
The club also fields three men's teams, one women's team, and a mixed doubles team in the Surrey leagues. Matches are usually played on weekend mornings against other clubs in the area.
For those who are less interested in the Federer/Nadal type struggles of the leagues and the inter-club matches, there are plenty of opportunities to find others who simply want to knock a ball around for fun.
The Grafton Tennis club also promotes coaching and has five professional coaches running busy summer chedules. Whether you are a complete beginner or a county player, there are group sessions, individual sessions, junior coaching and much more for players of all levels.
For more information, see our website tennis page at https://graftontennisandsquash.com/tennis/
