WHAT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A YOUNG TENNIS PLAYER?

It’s almost impossible to describe what everything is important, but there are factors that accelerate the development of a young player. My intention is not to create or discover an equation on how to become a Grand Slam winner.

Every journey begins with the player… what he dreams of, what his goals are. I specifically emphasize the dreams and goals of the young player (child) and not the wishes of parents and coaches. In every sport, even in tennis, nothing happens overnight. I always tell my players that tennis is not a sprint, but a long distance run. Everything must be done slowly and properly planned for a long-term journey.

If everything was quick and without preparation, everyone would be a winner. Is that competition? Does being the best mean just that? Of course not.

To start playing tennis at the age of 5 and win an ATP/WTA tournament of any series at the age of 11 or 12 is impossible… so far no one has succeeded. It should be emphasized that players achieve their top results when they are between 21 and 27 years old. After that it is necessary to maintain performance, which is perhaps the biggest challenge of a professional tennis player. A good example is the BIG 3 (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic), who have maintained their competitive selves for almost two decades. Such players are hungry not so much for competition, but the challenge that awaits them… how to become even better?

It is important to know that in tennis, success is counted in the absolute competition. The results achieved in the junior categories are only the first obstacles on this long road (if you are the best U12 player, it does not mean that you will be the best U16 player and it certainly does not mean that you will be the best player in the world). The factors for success in tennis, judging by conversations with other coaches and my own experience, are as follows:

  • Parents (all-round support and dedication for the child/player),
  • Coach (offers all conditions for training – court, props, club…),
  • Money (financial contribution from family, association, club, sponsors),
  • Talent (a player with exceptional motor and cognitive abilities).
    • I will write a little more about talent next time

All of the above does not help if we do not prepare the player and do not change and supplement the right tennis path during their development. That is why, we coaches prepare a training process for each player for a period of 3, 6 months or more. We discuss with parents and players (tennis triangle) when to include them in fitness training, how many tournaments will they play, etc. There are many questions, but more important are the decisions we make. A “wrong” or “right” decision takes the player down a path… a path that can be curved and have a very close destination, or a path that is straight and has an end goal very far away. It cannot be ruled out that wherever the player is standing (curved or straight path), he can always “CREATE” his own path, go back the way he came and decide on another direction. I’m not saying that there aren’t wrong and right decisions… I’m saying that not every path leads to the very top.

Like a river that flows into a lake or sea, there is only one path to the very top of tennis. The question is: From which direction is the player coming?

  • There are players who were almost unnoticeable in the junior category due to their “bad” results, however late in their tennis career they developed and became one of the best.
  • Then we have players who achieved solid results in the junior category and made a quick breakthrough into the “elite”, for example: Roger Federer, Carlos Moya, etc.
  • Then there are players like Rafael Nadal, Andre Aggasi, etc. who were successfull very early on in ATP/WTA tournaments, were more mature than their peers and had great training conditions. Young prospect Carlos Alcaraz is a good example of such player.

Tennis, or any sport for that matter, is presented more as a game in early childhood, which later develops into a more serious training activity at a young age. Even for competitively less successful players, sport can be a distinctly positive experience if they can progress, play, have fun and learn. Parents should therefore nurture a positive sporting spirit in their children, set a good example for them, and never put sport results as a priority. Parents should raise their child in a direction that helps him succeed in sports by showing:

  • Moral values ​​(justice, honesty…),
  • Social values ​​(respect, kindness…),
  • Emotional values ​​(desire to work, compassion…).

The coach also plays an important role. Of course we want each player to behave in a correct and fair sporting manner, so we, the coaches, must behave in this way ourselves. If we want the players to have their equipment ready and care for them, then we need to show this as well. To push an athlete to the limit, we have to put ourselves there. More or less, what the child takes away from the court is the value and dedication of the coach, who shows that on and off the tennis court.