All-India Hard Court Championships

{{Infobox tennis tournament

| name = All-India Hard Court Championships

| type = defunct

| founded = {{start date and age|df=yes|1946}}

| editions =

| ended = {{end date and age|df=yes|1972}}

| event name =

| location =Amaravati
Bombay Madras
Hyderabad
Trivandrum

| venue =Madras Gymkhana Club

| tour =

| surface = Clay

}}

The All India Hard Court Championships {{cite book |last1=Robertson |first1=Max |title=The encyclopedia of tennis. |date=1974 |publisher=Viking Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-670-29408-4 |page=264}} also known as the All India Hard Court Tennis Championships was a combined men's and women's clay court tennis tournament founded in 1946.{{cite web |title=History |url=https://aitatennis.com/history/ |website=aitatennis |publisher=All India Tennis Association |access-date=15 February 2023 |location=New Delhi, India}} The championships were first played at the Madras Gymkhana Club grounds, Madras, Tamil Nadu, India. The championships ran until 1972 before it was discontinued as part of the worldwide tennis circuit.

History

Tennis was introduced to India in the 1880s by British Army and Civilian Officers.(AITA) In 1946, the All India Tennis Association established a national level tournament called the All India Hard Court Championships.{{cite news |last1=Ranganathan |first1=Shilu |title=Memories of Madras – Field days |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/Memories-of-Madras-ndash-Field-days/article16206273.ece |access-date=15 February 2023 |work=The Hindu |publisher=The Hindu Group |date=20 July 2010 |location=Chennai, Tamil Nadu |language=en-IN}} In 1947, 1955 and 1959 this tournament was held in conjunction with the Western India Championships. The championships were staged until 1972 when they were discontinued as part of the worldwide tennis circuit.

Location and Venues

The championships were staged mainly in Madras, but also throughout India in different locations such as Amaravati, Bombay,{{cite news |title=Dorothy Head (United States) won the women's singles title in the All-India hard court tennis championships at Bombay yesterday. |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000564/19510110/112/0005 |access-date=15 February 2023 |work=Dundee Courier |publisher=The British Newspaper Archive |date=10 January 1951 |location=Angus, Scotland |page=5 |format=Subscription}} Hyderabad and Trivandrum.

References