page_title: Glossary of tennis terms
section_title: B
hierarchical_section_title: Glossary of tennis terms / B
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Ramasseur de balles à l'Open d'Australie 2010. English: Ball kid - 2010 Australian Open.
context_page_description: This page is a glossary of tennis terminology.
context_section_description: Backcourt: The area of the tennis court between the baseline and the service line.
   Backhand: Stroke in which the ball is hit with the back of the racket hand facing the ball at the moment of contact. A backhand is often hit by a right-handed player when the ball is on the left side of the court, and vice versa.
   Backhand smash: A type of smash played over the backhand side.
   Backspin: Shot that rotates the ball backwards after it is hit; also known as slice or underspin. The trajectory of the shot is affected by an upward force that lifts the ball. See Magnus effect.
   Backswing: Portion of a swing where the racket is swung backwards in preparation for the forward motion to hit the ball.
   Bagel: Colloquial term for winning or losing a set 6–0 (the shape of the zero being reminiscent of the round shape of a bagel). See also breadstick.
   Bagnall–Wild: A method of draw which places all byes in the first round. Introduced in the 1880s.
   Ball boy (also ball girl or ballkid): a person, commonly a child tasked with retrieving tennis balls from the court that have gone out of play and supplying the balls to the players before their service. Ball boys in net positions normally kneel near the net and run across the court to collect the ball, while ball boys in the back positions stand in the back along the perimeter of the arena. Ball boys in the back are responsible for giving the balls to the player serving.
   Ball toss: The action of throwing up the ball prior to the serve.
   Baseline: Line at the farthest ends of the court indicating the boundary of the area of play. If the ball goes over the baseline it will be the other player's point.
   baseliner: Player who plays around the baseline during play and relies on the quality of his or her ground strokes.
   Big serve: Forceful serve, usually giving an advantage in the point for the server.
   Bisque: One stroke (point), which may be claimed by the receiver at any part of the set. Part of the handicapping odds and used during the early era of the sport. Abolished by the LTA in 1890.
   Block (or blocked return): Defensive shot with relatively little backswing and shortened action instead of a full swing, usually while returning a serve.
   Bounce: The upward movement of the ball after it has hit the ground. The trajectory of the bounce can be affected by the surface and weather, the amount and type of spin and the power of the shot.
   Breadstick: Colloquial term for winning or losing a set 6–1, with the straight shape of the one supposedly being reminiscent of the straight shape of a breadstick. See also bagel.
   Break back: To win a game as the receiving player or team immediately after losing the previous game as the serving player or team.
   Break point: Point which, if won by the receiver, would result in a break of service; arises when the score is 30–40 or 40–ad. A double break point or two break points arises at 15–40; a triple break point or three break points arises at 0–40.
   Break: To win a game as the receiving player or team, thereby breaking serve. At high level of play the server is more likely to win a game, so breaks are often key moments of a match. Noun: break (service break) (e.g. "to be a break down" means "to have, in a set, one break fewer than the opponent", "to be a double break up" means "to have, in a set, two breaks more than the opponent").
   Breaker: Colloquial term for tiebreak.
   Buggy whip: Forehand hit with a follow-through that does not go across the body and finish on the opposite side, but rather goes from low to high, crosses the opposite shoulder (optionally) and finishes on the same side (similar to the driver of a horse-drawn carriage whipping a horse). Used, for example, by Rafael Nadal (racket head crosses the opposite shoulder) and Maria Sharapova (racket head stays on the same shoulder).
   Bumper guard: A piece of plastic that protects the outside of the upper-half of the racket head.
   Bye: Automatic advancement of a player to the next round of a tournament without facing an opponent. Byes are often awarded in the first round to the top-seeded players 
caption: A Ball boy in action
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