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tennis parent education + resources

10 Key ingredients to help a junior get to national level for the first time

10 Key ingredients to help a junior get to national level for the first time

10 Key ingredients to help a junior get to national level for the first time

Every junior player's tennis journey will be highly unique, because each individual player is unique. 


However, there are many aspects that are essential, so from my personal experience, let's take a look at the 10 KEY INGREDIENTS that are universally important for such a journey to be successful.

read here

How to be a great tennis parent - May 2025

10 Key ingredients to help a junior get to national level for the first time

10 Key ingredients to help a junior get to national level for the first time

Don't push them hard enough, and they won't fulfil their potential. Push them too hard, and they'll resist and resent you. How do you win in this no-win situation?


A look at the tennis parent role on a deeper level, and advice on how to protect the parent/child bond at the same time as supporting them effectively in tennis. 

read here

How to chase your dreams - January 2025

How to chase your dreams - January 2025

How to chase your dreams - January 2025

There are 2 ways to chase your dreams in this crazy existence that is life on planet Earth; the healthy way, and the unhealthy way!


No-one ever tells you how to do it the healthy way, until now! With the help of an expert, tennis star Emma Raducanu, and a bit of depth, I'm gonna take you there! 

read here

How to make FAST progress - May 2024

How to chase your dreams - January 2025

How to chase your dreams - January 2025

Why do some people try so hard without making much progress, and others move forwards quickly and with less effort? 


I've got the simplest and very latest understanding from a world leader in the field, including the 5 MOST POWERFUL things that aid fast progress!

read here

what's it like being an itf junior?

Please work through the videos in order. Some are more intense than others, but an easy opener here with Zeki, who started his tennis journey at Hawker, and now comes back to share his experience of playing the ITF Junior circuit.

MARCUS WILLIS - pro tennis player

Many will remember Marcus from Wimbledon 2017, when he progressed through pre-qualifying, then qualifying, then a Top 100 player in the 1st round, before playing Federer on Centre Court. Here, we get an insight into his world before he became famous.

What it takes to get to pro level

One ingredient is essential - what is it?

JUDY MURRAY INTERVIEW - PART 1

Judy was kind enough to talk to me at the Surbiton Challenger. Judy has played a huge part in the development of Andy and Jamie, so her insight is invaluable!

JUDY MURRAY INTERVIEW - PART 2

More fantastic insight from Judy!

tackling the big issues!

What is excellent technique, how common is it, how does it relate to playing level, future potential, and where does talent fit into it? With  the help of 3 of our more advanced juniors, we had loads of fun looking into this and more!

tennis academies + tennis coaches

In collaboration with Frank Giampaolo, I ask the questions that many parents don't even think to seek the answer to! What makes a good tennis coach, what makes a good tennis academy, and how can I know for sure that my child is in the right place with the right people?

inside the mind of andy murray - part 1

When Andy Murray's notes, which he often reads during matches, were leaked by the press, it seemed crazy not to take full advantage to see what the former world No.1 was thinking and doing during matches. Check it out!

inside the mind of andy murray - part 2

More from Andy murray's notes!

the most precious human relationship any of us will have!

Protecting the parent/child relationship whilst supporting them to pursue sport to a high level

MAY 2025


Richard Williams famously once said 'tennis parents should be shot', a frustrated comment at the toxicity that the junior tennis tournament environment can sometimes create.


The subject of parent coaches or very pushy parents during childhood is a sticky one, that tends to be uncomfortable to discuss and therefore avoided. Not here!


To be really good, you have to play a lot from a young age. Yet nobody at a young age has the maturity or the life experience to make a clear decision to dedicate so much time to training and competing, so one or both parents will make that decision for them, and manage it for 10+ years.


Some of these kids love their tennis, some hate it. Some seem to naturally take to competing, but most struggle to handle the pressures and stress that it creates.


When the child becomes a teenager, their tennis journey can provide a safe space, a constant in their lives that makes the process of going through adolescence a little easier. It can also be the time that they rebel, and start pushing back against their tennis schedule and commitment. If they fear disappointment/rejection of the parent for doing so, they may internalise these feelings for many years, adding to an already challenging stage of their life, and perhaps leading to challenges with their mental health in their adult years.


Current Top 100 player Aleksander Kovacevic, recently said "I hated tennis, especially when I was a kid, it’s still a love-hate relationship. Tennis can take you to very dark places". Former player and legend of the game Andre Agassi is famous for saying how much he hated tennis throughout his childhood and early part of his career.


On the flip side however, you might get a teenager who discovers a love for tennis, and then resents their parents for NOT pushing them really hard when they were younger, as now they can't catch up with the players who WERE pushed from a young age.


It's not an easy situation to manage, but what you definitely don't want, is your child saying what current Top 100 player (and former Top 20) Alexander Bublik said in February 2025:


"My father was my coach, it killed our relationship. We stopped being father and son and became coach and student. When we ended that cooperation, there was nothing left between us. I can’t say I’m sad about it, it was important to maintain a good relationship at the time, now it’s not possible.”


This is a sad quote to read, because there is no relationship more precious in life than a parent/child relationship.  


A passionate, dedicated and driven parent is usually a factor when a child develops into a very high level tennis player, so it can often be necessary, but being a Mum or a Dad is already a full-time role, so how do you also take on such an intense long-term responsibility to drive your child's tennis forwards without risking harm to that precious parent/child bond?


It's not easy, especially when every tennis parent/child relationship is uniquely different. The ways to get it right will vary in every case, depending on the two unique personalities involved.


However, there's just one golden rule that if followed, should act to ensure that no damage to the long-term future of the relationship can occur.


THE GOLDEN RULE:


Always maintain an environment where your child feels completely comfortable to express their truest feelings to you, no matter what they might be. Never judge what they say, and always keep the dialogue open until you fully understand what they are expressing to you. Then work together to find solutions to any problems.


The relationship will spiral one way or the other based on the golden rule. Reacting to your child's truest feelings the right way will maintain the environment where your child feels free to express themselves without inhibition. React the wrong way, and soon your child will start to pretend, lie, and bottle up their feelings, which will lead down an increasingly toxic and potentially damaging path.


What about Andre Agassi, who famously hated being pushed so hard by his Dad, but ended up being thankful to him for the opportunities that his tennis career gave him? If Mike Agassi had listened to his son and eased up on his training, we'd never know who Andre was.


I think you can follow the golden rule at the same time as making clear your values and reasoning.


For example: Parent to the child: I believe pursuing tennis to a very high level will teach you so many valuable life lessons, and will form an important part of your overall education, so I'm going to push you, and at times I'll push you hard, BUT I will always listen to you, so don't ever feel you can't be totally honest with me about how you're feeling about it.


Now you have a parent who is in tune with their child, and willing to understand them, AND a child who now understands why the parent is doing what they are doing. Nothing is healthier than two people who fully understand each other, and it can also be a pretty good platform to achieve great things.


The second rule: 


Look, if you follow the golden rule, that's all that matters. However, the second rule will take some pressure off you, allow you to take a healthy step back here and there, and in turn will make following the golden rule easier.


The second rule is to delegate as much as you can to professional coaches. We know that your role as tennis parent is vitally important no matter how hands on or hands off you are. We also know our stuff, and will take care of whatever you want and need us to take care of, whilst giving you professional advice when you ask for it or need it.


Good luck!


By the way, I think everyone is aware of Richard Williams and his tennis parenting role with Venus and Serena, through the film King Richard. However, many don't know that Richard Williams wrote a fantastic memoir, published in 2014, called 'Black and White, the way I see it'. It's a fascinating read, and provides further insight to the incredible journey that he went on with his daughter's.

Richard Williams: Tennis parenting genius?

Frank Giampaolo Tennis Parents Education Seminar at Hawker - July 2017

Lessons learned from putting on this event with the world leader in this field, along with the reality check that you may or may not need if you're the parent of a child who is pursuing tennis to a very high level. Please set aside a good half hour to work through it. Includes a 2025 reflection edit too.

I'm ready to read it!

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