体育美语005 Tennis

(Tennis ball sounds)

Y: Hi, this is Yang Chen.

P: And I'm Patrick. And today we are playing a game of tennis.

Y: (calling out) Okay, Patrick It's your serve!

P: To serve S-E-R-V-E is to put the tennis ball in play by throwing it up into the air and hitting it with a racquet.

Y: Oh, come on, Patrick. Would you quit talking and serve the ball?

P: OK. Here I go! (thwok, thwok) Good return, Yang Chen! (Thwok─funny out sound).

Y: Hey, Patrick, that ball was over the line. The ball was out, 你出界了。我应该得一分。So it is my point.

P: That means the score is "Love Fifteen". Love for me and fifteen for you.

Y: Love? L-O-V-E? 爱？这和爱有什么关系？What's love got to do with it, Patrick? (Music─Tina Turner)

P: Love in tennis scoring means “Zero”。 And right now I have zero points.

Y: You have love - 不是你有爱情，而是说你是零分， zero points, 可是我怎么会有15分呢？

P: Tennis scoring is very complicated, isn't it? To win a game a player must win four points and two more points than his opponent. The first point is called "fifteen".

Y: 那么 the second point is called "thirty"?

P: That's right. The second point is called "thirty," and the third point is called ...

Y: Forty-five?

P: No, it is called "forty."

Y: Why not forty-five?

P: 传统上是这样 - it's just the tradition now, as there were several historical reasons for it decided by the French.

Y: Okay, serve again, Patrick! (Thwok, Thwok).

P: Oh no, I missed the ball!

Y: I guess that makes the score "love thirty"! But you have love!!!