A Week of Learning...

This post is a few observations from the tennis world this week...'Proper Planning', Cheating & Racket Smashing all come to mind! Enjoy

So the week started off with exciting prospects for 4 Cambridge players in the Waikato Junior ITF. Paddy Cameron, Jay Kite, Daniel Rogers & Marizka Oberholzer had all trained exceptionally hard in the lead up and for all of them it was either their 1st or 2nd event ever of this type! And what a learning curve the week was.

On these big occasions it makes you realise how nerves play such a factor, and also the importance of having a plan. Brad Gilbert (a coach to Agassi for sometime) is always remembered for saying, 'Better to have a bad plan than no plan at all!' and he is dead right.

It was a great hurdle for these guys to reach and Marizka claimed her first world ranking point by winning her first round match. This is excellent news and paves the way for other Cambridge players to try and surpass in the coming months and years! She is the first player to do this from Cambridge, so this is a great benchmark, well done Marizka!

She then played the number 1 seed in the 2nd round and the girl was 3 years older, so it was an interesting insight, even though losing the match 6-0 6-0, it showed up the key areas to improve over the next 3 years!

Proper Planning
As for the boys, the take home point was the ability to create a plan and be disciplined enough to stick to it! Things do not magically happen on the tennis court, players have to make things happen and take chances when they present themselves. All 3 of the guys were too passive and almost let the moment pass them by. But we have talked about it, and that is a good thing to learn as in the next ITF, you hope it will be different! Whatever the plan is, coming to the net, stepping in to be aggressive, pressuring the 2nd serve; this will be a big focus for these guys in the coming months so they can execute a plan and also develop flexibility to adapt it given the situation(s) they face. We shall keep you posted to see how it goes, but if this can be achieved expect in coming months for all 3 boys to gain a junior World Ranking sooner rather than later.

Cheating
...or hooking...is such a bad area of the sport, to the point that in US College Tennis the net cords on serves are played out because whenever someone aced another player, the receiver would call it as a let....one of the variety of tricks a player can do to stifle their opponents success. This did not happen at the Junior ITF in Hamilton...but 'hooking' will always happen because of how much is on the line. And even if you were accidentally 'hooked', chances are you will feel hard done to because of the pressure that comes at this level, where everyone is scrapping for points and a chance to move up the ladder!

There were some instances of it at the ITF in Hamilton, but what can we do about it? You have to take it in your stride as if you let it effect you negatively, your whole game goes to pot, and that is pretty much, EXACTLY what your opponent wants to happen. In my opinion there is no room for getting even, it is much better to let your tennis do the talking and knuckle down, and get the referee involved at the first suspicion that the match could go this way. Otherwise you lose focus, you start not thinking about your game and your plan, and suddenly the wheels come off and you wonder why you lose the match.  Keep your head.

Racket Smashing...
I'm not going to lie to you, I had 3 brand new Yonex RD7s as a junior player going around the 12s/14s circuit in the UK and loved them...the racket of choice of Richard Krajicek (Wimbledon Winner in 1996). However as a young player I had a hell of an anger problem, every time I lost a close point the racket would come into contact with ground, I can't believe how nice my parents were that they did not drag me off the court! This led to 2 of them being broken in pretty bad circumstances on court during matches. At 130 pounds a racket that was a pretty expensive mistake to make. But at that young age it was a failure to be able to process the information, as there is so much of it to take in. 'But I'm better than this guy....', 'I can always make that shot in practice...', 'What do I do this guy hits the ball so hard and I can't cope!' - a failure to adapt or learn that the game is about solving a problem when on court, how to beat the person the other side of the net. Instead the frustration of losing gets too much and boils over to the point that the racket cops the blame. Ok(ish) if you get given 20 rackets a year by your sponsor....not when your parents save hard for the rackets.

So what can we do? It was actually not a coach that taught me how to deal with it, I eventually processed it myself after losing a first round match I shouldnt have done, I realised how much energy I had wasted in the match by being so hard on myself and so negative. I can imagine how negative I must have looked on court, I had beaten myself before I had any chance to beat the other guy! From that day on I became much more placid on court, much more positive, and used the frustration in a positive way. 'Let it go' 'Reset' 'Play. Recover. Prepare.' all these typical coaching tips come to mind as a much better way to deal with any negativity!

What happened after that day? I started winning more matches and ENJOYED my tennis much more as I had a clear head and mind! I could start clearly working out what I needed to do rather than taking it out on myself. Try it for yourself if you do turn in on yourself on court...it will help so much. Approach the game as a problem solver, and enjoy that challenge!

Finally...


Well done to all Waipa Winter Series players. Congratulations to Sam Lumsden and Jamie Hepworth for outstanding performances! Next one is September 4th in Cambridge. 


PS - We can now unveil that our new Performance Coach Pete has signed a sponsorship deal with HEAD for the 2011/12 season. He will be using the Head Prestige as his frame of choice....what a great racket! See more about it here....

Visas, Cars, ITFs and Weddings!

1991 Honda Civic - wheeled and dealed this week!

What a week it has been! Coaches coming and going (about to), car wheeling and dealing for Pete, junior tournaments, Visa issues for Vicky and I plus some fantastic training and hitting going on across our squads.

Pommy Pete arrives!
Last Thursday Pete Hoyland, our new coach from the UK, arrived and has settled in really well so far. I picked him up at the airport and he was surprisingly chirpy after the longest flight of his life! Until about 8.30pm anyway!! Everyone has been impressed with his enthusiasm, encouragement and rapport he has created very quickly with the juniors he has worked with. We are all really enjoying his input and he has already been instrumental in helping prep our top juniors for the ITF that is happening this week in Hamilton. Long may it continue!

Daniel Rogers, Marizka Oberholzer, Jay Kite and Paddy Cameron are all entered into the Junior ITF, and most are just one win away from getting their first world ranking point! Not too bad considering only in Sep 2008, not one local club player at Cambridge was even playing Regional Tournaments. I love it that these guys are setting the bar for the next crop of players in the area to try and beat, I am really proud and impressed at how hard they have worked to get there. Training 3 x per week before school is not everyone's cup of tea, but these guys slog it out and the results are coming!

Look out for Pete's 1991 Honda Civic!!! A brief meeting with a self-confessed 'Wheeler & Dealer' in Te Rapa McDonalds led us to this beauty with almost a quarter million kms on the clock! It felt pretty dodgy at the time (as buying cars of Trade Me can be!) but the car is running like a dream and at least the guy was upfront about his career! I am sure the car will serve Pete well as he settles into the Kiwi lifestyle.

Phew...Visa sorted!
So many of you will know that Vicky has been in the process of renewing her Visa, and had applied under the Essential Skills section. Amazing how picky they can be given how few female tennis coaches there are in the whole of New Zealand, let alone in the Waikato. Plus how many have such an awesome skill set as our very own Vicks? None!! She has been a huge asset to Progressive Tennis and her coaching in the schools and local clubs has been awesome! I even hear there could be a foray into the Premier League tennis this season for her ;) watch this space!

Anyhow with a few tweaks and plenty of evidence to show the need for a coach like Vicky in the area, her Visa has been approved, and we are looking forward to seeing more of her fantastic mini tennis and tiny tots players move through the ranks. No one can underestimate how important it is to coach the 'little-people' well. Not only can it put them off tennis if done badly, but if they reach their teen years with no solid foundation of technique/athleticism, it makes the job doubly difficult to enjoy or achieve in tennis.

And for myself, Jen and I had applied for Residency but are putting it on hold until after the wedding as there is too much to do, too many forms to fill out! I am very lucky as of the 270 or so points we get, she provides about 250 of them with her PhD!!

Pop Down To Hamilton This Week...
Want to see some of the upcoming tennis talent in the world? They will be playing at the Junior ITF at Waikato Tennis Centre in Hamilton East this week 22nd to 26th August. It will be running all day every day this week, boys and girls. Come and support our local players but also witness upcoming talent from Aussie, Japan, China and I think as far away as Russia!

We Do Miss the UK...even with the riots!
Due to a severe case of missing Maltesers, 'real' Cadbury Dairy Milk/Galaxy, Sunday Roasts and the proximity to Spain, Vicks is taking a well deserved break back to her homeland. Obviously she will be sorely missed for the weeks she is away but with Robbie Wilkinson and Pete Hoyland ready to step in and help where they can, we are sure there will be a smooth transition while she is away.

Nadal fell victim to Mardy Fish 6-3 6-4 and hasn't won a tourney since the French Open now!

On a more global note, how well has Mardy Fish done this week in Cincinnati http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/14604113.stm
until he played Andy Murray anyway. The resurgence of the serve & volley game of the Henman era proved you can still take time away from players even of Nadal's stature! You would pick him to make the last 8 of the US Open on that form.

Babolat Gear Comes In!
Many of you will know I am proudly sponsored by Babolat and less of a shameless plug than to really say I am loving the new racket I have taken off their hands for this season. The new Pure Storm GT is fantastic and I am really looking forward to getting out and hitting with it on court read about their range here http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Babolatracquets.html -

 I am very lucky but having used their racquets since I was 12, I hope it continues for another 15 years!

10 days til I head back to the UK for my wedding! Suit and rings sorted I can't wait! 

New Times - Moving with the Digital Age!

So moving into the 3rd year of Progressive Tennis running tennis programmes in the Waikato region, we thought, right, well it's about time we actually started moving into the 21st Century (especially as we are already 11 years in!) and get with the digital age. So Facebook, finally a website and now our fantastic new blog!

What can you expect from this blog? Pretty much what it says on the left hand side of the page! We will be pulling together stories from the tennis world that will hopefully inspire our young up and coming players, finding out from coaches and players what life is like, but keeping it fresh with local stories from our Mini Tennis Tribe and Tiny Tots also!

Because as the saying goes 'Tennis is a sport for life' - we get stories of child prodigies at 3 whose families have given up everything and moved to a tennis academy for the kids shot at stardom. We hear of players like Kimiko Date-Krumm, who at over 40 is still beating top 10 players on the Tour! But importantly we also now hear of tennis stories in our own back yard. These are the stories I really love. Like the first time we go teach tennis at Primary Schools in Cambridge and it is the first time the kids have held a racket or hit a ball...that is satisfying as a coach. That means tennis is getting out there in the community and finally kids in the area, after a long period of decline in tennis, are now able to at least consider it as a choice!

And it is working! Taking a grassroots approach has meant we now have tennis 'in the community'; a growing base of older players that want to train more, play more, and achieve more. They have chosen tennis as one of, or indeed their only, sport. That makes it so satisfying being part of a super coaching team! And looking at the little superstars we have coming through the mini tennis tribe, well I think the future is safe for tennis in the area. And it is a privilege to be working with so many good players, supportive families in a sports mad country!

The sense of being able to try the sport (through Grasshoppers In School tennis or club tennis) and take it to whatever level you wish to is the most satisfying outcome overall, and as Progressive Tennis that is a value we try and support and live by. Once a week in the Summer is fine with us, if it is fine with you....want to train 6 times a week and before school also...go on then we can do that too!

Our new addition to the Progressive Tennis coaching team arrives on Thursday. Pete Hoyland is a top player in the UK and we are very lucky to have him on our coaching staff. He will be joining the performance side of things mainly at Cambridge Racquets Club, but I am sure he will be able to share his wisdom with many of our players! Next update we will let you know how he is feeling when he arrives - and how we get on sourcing a 'used' car for him! Will also be inviting a couple of guest bloggers as well, details to follow!