Strings (tennis)
In tennis, the strings are the part of a tennis racquet which make contact with the ball. The strings form a woven network inside the head (or "hoop") of the racquet. Strings have been made with a variety of materials and possess varying properties that have been measured, such as dynamic stiffness, tension retention, thickness (gauge), string texture (shape of the string), and rebound efficiency.
Grunting in tennis
Some tennis players have defended grunting. Michelle Larcher de Brito, who had a reported decibel reading of 109, said: "If people don't like my grunting, they can always leave". In a different interview she said: "Nobody can tell me to stop grunting. Tennis is an individual sport and I'm an individual player. If they have to fine me, go ahead, because I'd rather get fined than lose a match because I had to stop grunting". Former Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova, who has officially reached 101 decibels, stated, "I've done this ever since I started playing tennis and I'm not going to change". Serena Williams said that opponents grunting doesn't affect her: "I just play my game and sometimes I grunt and sometimes I don't. I'm not conscious when I’m doing it. I'm just zoned out. It doesn't really affect me if my opponent is [grunting]".