As I have said many times in my blogs, life for the majority on the pro tennis tour is far from glamorous. The tournament hotels are cheap and cheerful – basic and (usually) clean – but far from the four or five star hotels frequented by the top tier players. The alternative is self cateringContinue reading “87. HOME SWEET HOME”
Tag Archives: parents
86. DOUBLE CHECK THE DETAILS
Each and every tournament that it staged on the ITF and WTA/ATP tours, has a Fact Sheet, which players can access in the weeks leading up to the event. These fact sheets provide details such as the tournament dates (for the qualifying and main draw events, singles and doubles); transport guidelines (nearest airport, station etc);Continue reading “86. DOUBLE CHECK THE DETAILS”
85. A JOB LIKE NO OTHER
The job of being a tennis pro is like no other. What other job takes you from playing a match in Chiasso, Switzerland one day to playing another in Charlottesville, USA only 48 hours later? What other job needs you to be not only physically strong, but also mentally tough, tactically aware, super organised, quickContinue reading “85. A JOB LIKE NO OTHER”
84. THE 10K CLUB!
When I started Reality Tennis and my associated blogs, I did so for a number of reasons. Firstly because, having travelled with my player on the ITF Junior tour, I had a head filled with so many stories and experiences that I found it quite overwhelming at times and I felt that it would beContinue reading “84. THE 10K CLUB!”
83. NO RIGHT TO DEFEND?
At the start of this year, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced a new tournament format. Gone are the W25, W40, W60 and the W80 events – replaced now by W35s, W50s and W75s. Previously the letter/number combination indicated the gender of the tournament and the value of the prize money on offer. So aContinue reading “83. NO RIGHT TO DEFEND?”
82: LIFE LONG FRIENDS
One of the nicest things about being on the tennis tour (as a player and as a parent) is that you get to meet a whole host of lovely people, from different countries and different cultures, and all with some kind of interest in tennis. These may be people like Denise and Mike in Altenkirchen,Continue reading “82: LIFE LONG FRIENDS”
81. SOLE TO SOLE
The tennis tour is played on a variety of different surfaces – red clay (the ‘dirt”) in Europe and South America; grey/blue clay in the US; hard/acrylic (worldwide); grass (predominantly, although not exclusively, in the UK); and carpet (with and without sand, indoor and outdoor – various places around the world, including Germany, Japan, ItalyContinue reading “81. SOLE TO SOLE”
80. PLAYERS PARTIES
One of the fun things to go to on the tour, are the players parties. Often held at the start of the week, these are often put on by the tournament organisers and all players and their support teams are invited, as well as sponsors, members of the hosting club, and the officials. These partiesContinue reading “80. PLAYERS PARTIES”
79. SETTING THE SCENE – FINALS DAY
Finals Day has arrived and your player is still in the tournament. The schedule is set. Play starts at 12.00 Noon. But before then there is a lot to be done! The players want to practice. The tournament organisers need to prepare the court. If the tournament is on a hard court then this canContinue reading “79. SETTING THE SCENE – FINALS DAY”
78. NOT ANOTHER TAKE AWAY?
Elite athletes typically like to eat clean. Good wholesome food – a few carbs, lots of protein and plenty of fresh fruit and veg. Makes sense right? Then why do the tennis organisers very frequently, accommodate players in hotels with no, or very limited catering, and in locations that are far away from affordable restaurantsContinue reading “78. NOT ANOTHER TAKE AWAY?”
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