What does the term "broken" mean in tennis

In tennis, the most common meaning of the term "broken" refers to when a tennis player breaks the other player's serve. "Breaking serve" or a "broken serve" occurs when the player who isn't serving wins a game.

The player who is serving has a distinct advantage in each game, so a break of serve is very important. To win a set, a player must either break the other's serve at least once or win the set via tiebreaker. When a player is ahead in a set due to breaking the other's serve, commentators often say he/she is "up a break". The first player to break serve in a set gains an advantage, which often leads to them winning the set.

Though much less commonly used, "broken" can also refer to a broken racket or broken bone. More rarely, an announcer might say a player is "broken", meaning they're playing very poorly.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Serena Williams won the Singles gold medal in Tennis for the United States, then went on to win a gold medal in the Women's Doubles competition with her sister Venus. With a dominant win over Roger Federer, Andy Murray took home the gold for Great Britain in Singles Tennis and then won a silver medal in Mixed Doubles with Laura Robson. The gold medal in Men's Doubles went to twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States.