Tennis players at Game Set Match Tennis Academy take an all-round approach to the sport while honing their skills.
The Craighall academy’s owner, Carla Farina said while the academy catered for players aged four to adult, those around the age of 12 and 13 have a particularly busy schedule over the next few months. Many of the academy’s high-performance players are busy playing for their schools in various leagues while they also have the Pro Kennex Mini on their minds, which is coming up in Pretoria.
Then there is the Central Gauteng Schools trials and later Nationals for their age category in Bloemfontein that will keep the youngsters busy until April. But Farina is still focusing on working on the core tenets of her tennis coaching with the players, whether they are competing in all these events or not.
“For ages four to six it is all about ball skills but for all the older youngsters, whether they are playing competitively yet or not, it is about making sure they can play in matches and doing fitness on the greens,” Farina said.
“Conditioning is important because even if you have a forehand like Roger Federer, if you cannot get to the ball it does not help. We do our fitness on the grass because it is better on the joints.”
Furthermore, Farina makes sure all her players play lots of matches against each other. “But the most important thing is having fun while young. So we play lots of games that are fun and help them learn.”
The coach explained that these included making rules in matches such as only allowing one serve, awarding two points for winners, or even making players hit 100 balls in a rally before a point can be counted. “Right up to high school they need to have fun, that is most important. They are also learning discipline and life lessons like not giving up.”
For Farina, being strict with the older groups, including not allowing too much chatter or ill-discipline, and having mutual respect by treating them as adults, also helps get the most out of players and helps them reach their full potential.
Details: Game Set Match Tennis Academy carla@gamesetmatch.co.za; 083 445 9777.
Also check out:
“Tennis is a sport for life” – Craighall coach sets out to inspire local players
