Wimbledon Tennis Courts Reimagined With Hand-Knotted Rugs

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Every summer, the Wimbledon suburb in southwest London transforms into a tennis haven, thanks to the eponymous Wimbledon Championships. Last year, Indian rug company Jaipur Rugs celebrated the occasion with an innovative marketing campaign, reimagining the limits of traditional tennis courts.

As its title suggests, the brand’s The Court of Carpets campaign revolved around a tennis court, composed not of concrete, asphalt, or grass, but of 93 hand-knotted rugs. These antique rugs were then meticulously stacked and assembled into a rectangular formation, mimicking the dimensions of an actual tennis lawn. To enhance the project’s sense of immersion, the featured rugs all bore intricate patterns and rich color palettes, with a particular emphasis on a misty shade of green reminiscent of Wimbledon’s grass courts. Jaipur Rugs also carefully created the tennis net and four rackets out of bamboo silk, alongside some 120 handcrafted woolen tennis balls.

But this carpeted tennis court wasn’t just a visual experiment or marketing ploy. It also served as the site of several tennis matches, led by India’s top tennis player Rohan Bopanna. As part of his partnership with Jaipur Rugs, Bopanna faced off against four master artisans from Manpura, all of whom were women and were coached for several weeks in the lead-up to the event. During their games against Bopanna, the women all donned sarees, staging a fascinating juxtaposition between traditional and contemporary aesthetics. The Court of Carpets also highlighted the similarities between artisanship and sports, both of which demand nimble hands, lithe movements, expert precision, and, more often than not, years of training.

“Every beautiful thing takes hard work,” Lalita Kumari, one of the artisans who participated in The Court of Carpets, told Grazia India. “We are not just masters of weaving but have also mastered the game of tennis.”

In its announcement last year, Jaipur Rugs explained: “The Court of Carpets is more than just a spectacular, layered tennis lawn. Witty details were woven especially by Jaipur Rugs artisans, from the hand-knotted net that falls with a visible softness, to the neon balls of yarn with bamboo silk outlines that are used as tennis balls.”

Originally founded in 1978 by NK Chaudhary, Jaipur Rugs has long stood as one of India’s most prominent producers of hand-knotted rugs. The brand supplies carpets to more than 60 countries around the world, all while collaborating directly with artisans, especially those within rural communities. The Court of Carpets was initially conceived as a celebration of Jaipur Rugs’ London showroom, which coincided with the 2024 Wimbledon Championship.

To learn more, visit the Jaipur Rugs website.