Why so important? 

Tennis is slightly different to many other sports young people play. As an individual sport it can be very demanding mentally and physically. Many players thrive on the competition and challenge of playing tennis. Team sports can provide a sense of shared responsibility when competing.  

Ace Tennis Camps has for the last seven years, created great learning environments with positive and encouraging coaches. The campers at Ace Tennis know they are in an atmosphere of learning and support for their development.  

Here is our guide to keep players in tennis throughout the year.

Keep it fun   

Coaches and parents should work together to ensure that all aspects of a players tennis schedule is about them having fun and developing. When the funs stops usually so does the player. Keeping a young player with friends and in a good club environment, with perhaps social events is a great place to be.

Limit the pressure    

Children may enjoy playing tennis, without the need to compete in a structured way. Tennis being a game for life means there are many more skills being developed in match play. Ace Tennis has a daily schedule that includes match play but is often in team format and is explained to the campers it is about learning what needs to be improved or way of seeing what has been improved. Coaches should understand their players and know the level of expectation they can place on their shoulders.

Express themselves 

If you look at the current crop of top players in both the men's and women's games you will see a variety of styles and techniques. Allow young players to express their sense of personal style. This is often influenced by who their favourite players are at the time.  A big part of this is also making sure young players are not afraid to make mistakes. This is a very important point as this can drain much of the enjoyment.

The right emphasis

Is the environment too competitive, is the emphasis too much on winning all the time.  Goal setting can help this, perhaps a player lost a match but saw a vast improvement in their second serve.  This could be the positive point to be drawn upon with the actual result not a factor.

Competition for time  

Living in the digital age, there are so many options in a young persons leisure time. Tennis and sport in general has some big rivals in the form of computers, television and games consoles. Its up to the coaches and the parents to make sure sport is an integral part of each week. Aside form the obvious health benefits of being active, there are so many valuable lessons to be learnt on the courts and playing fields. Keeping a player motivated, enthused and encouraged will help maintain the desire of the player to stay in the sport we all love.

Thank you for reading and have a great month!