International Travelling Coach Previous Blogs

Wrexham U14 TE Garde 3, Day 7 – Finals Day

Thursday 15th December 2011

Hey Everybody! It’s the last blog of the trip so Rob has passed it over to me; Mia, as he is currently cruising down the M42 on our way home!

Today we finally got a chance to lie in as we didn’t have to leave the hotel until 9.10am. We checked out of the hotel and made our way over to the tennis centre with all of our bags. I then went straight off to get my strength and conditioning work done before joining Rob again at 10.00am for a pre-doubles / training session. We had a great session and I felt confident with my doubles game upon finishing. Rob and I then made our way outside into the freezing cold so that I could complete my endurance training for the day. I ran around the field at the back of the centre for 30 minutes and then went inside to shower, change and clean all of the mud off of my shoes!!

Following this Rob and I sat down to have lunch and I offered to buy Dan Sanders, Head Coach of Wrexham HPC, lunch as he had done me a massive favour the day before of stringing my rackets for me. He declined but I will buy him something the next time I see him! We then went to watch some of the semi-final singles matches being played before going through my doubles from the day before and then decided on tactics for my doubles final. Anastasia Mikheeva (my doubles partner) won her match 7-6(5) 6-2 against Olivia Tompkins. She then wanted an hour and a half afterwards to get some lunch and prepare for our doubles so Rob and I jumped back on court after warming up and hit some more. We hit for about 25 minutes and by that time Anastasia was ready to get back on court for the final.

We took to the court to play the final against Alexandra Herd and Sophia Haine. We stormed on through the first set taking it 6-1 with a little blip of our focus when we lost a game. Anastasia and I were working well together and playing good doubles. In the second set Anastasia’s head dropped a bit and I didn’t do a good enough job of picking her back up so disappointingly we lost that set 6-4. The 3rd set was to be a match tiebreak so we pumped ourselves up and started fresh to try and close out the match. It was very tight up until 5-6 when Alex and Sophia managed to win the tiebreak 10-7. It was a disappointing end to the day and after a quick presentation where we each receiver runners-up trophies Rob and I talked through the match before I showered, changed and grabbed a quick bite to eat before getting straight on the road home.

Mia and Anatasia (left) taking on Alex and Sophia (right) in the doubles final

It’s been good writing this for y’all to read but I’m going to try get some sleep now whilst rob is singing/shouting to Katy Perry next to me. Awkward. 😉 Bye!

These are mine & Rob’s Awards for the week:

Coach of the Week: Mark Taylor, Head Coach of Nottingham HPC – Spent more time on court than anyone (even Rob).

Player of the Week: Anastasia Mikheeva – hardest working, best attitude, most consistent, enough said!! And she tried to book a practise court for 4 hours lol!!

Most Intense Parent: Mrs Knezevic – Video to be uploaded to the ITC Facebook page soon – www.facebook.com/itctennis1

Shot of the week: Sophia Haine hitting her own doubles partner Alex Herd in the back from 2 metres away!

Most Committed Player: Sam Ibanez Roig – Travelling from Ibiza …well, Formentera but Ibiza is close enough, when he was 25th alternate.

Miss of the week: Mia Smith – 1st game, 1st set, 1st round – volley on top of the net, whiffed it!

Fashion Police Alert of the week: Rob Booth – in a big fluffy jumper.

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 6

Wednesday 14th December 2011

It was back to training today as Mia prepared for the semi-final of the doubles this afternoon and the U14 LTA National Tour event in Nottingham next week.

It was an early start this morning as I met Mia and Ema Lazic in the reception of the hotel at 7.10 am. We then made our way over to the tennis centre and had a 30 minute physical warm-up which included some medicine ball and ladder work before we got on court at 7.50 am. It was Mia’s choice to start early this morning as she wanted to get on a full court to play a set out with Ema. The girls worked hard together and after a couple of early breaks Mia played two great games to take a 5-3 lead but Ema stuck in there and fought back to level the set out at 5-5. It was at that stage that the 9 o’clock bookings had arrived, so, much to Mia’s delight (as she’d just been broken serving for the set) we had to stop the session.

Mia then grabbed a quick bite to eat before she went through her strength and conditioning for the day which included her band work and core stability exercises as well as her agility work. By this time it was about 10.30 am and, as Mia’s doubles wasn’t scheduled until around 3:30 pm, we had a nice break to relax and watch some of the other matches. It also gave us a chance to watch the girl that beat Mia and work out how we would play her if we had a rematch as she struggled in her Quarter-Final match today.

Just before 2.30 pm I sat down with Mia and we talked a little about her singles match yesterday and then we set tactics for her upcoming doubles match. Mia and Anastasia then warmed up together before they went on for their semi-final match against Holly Thompson and Georgie Walker.

Mia started a little bit slow in the doubles but the set stayed on serve until 2-2 when Anastasia got broken. In doubles its not only the server’s responsibility when they get broken and that was the case today as Anastasia hit 5 out of 5 first serves but Mia didn’t do enough to take some of the pressure off her by intercepting the volleys. Mia’s movement at the net has improved significantly since the summer but now she just needs to develop her confidence to move an extra step or two and this will enable her to be in the position to finish off a lot more volleys. At 2-3* Mia and Anastasia really raised their game; I’m not sure weather it was just because they had just been broken or whether they had now got into their stride, but they won the next 8 games in a row to lead 6-3 4-0. Georgie and Holly managed to get a game on the board but it was all too little to late as Mia and Anastasia won the next 2 games with some fantastic doubles play to take the match 6-3 6-1 and advance to the final.

Both Mia and I were happy with her performance but she wanted to do some more work on her serving accuracy and finishing first volleys so we went back on court for a really good 40 minute session. After that Mia stretched out and then we headed back to the hotel to shower and change before dinner.

All week we have been going out to dinner with either the West Hants team or Craig and Tom but tonight she had to put up with just my company. However, a solid game of ‘Words with Friends’ managed to pass the time and I must add (because I am so competitive!) that I took the win (I think Mia struggled after deleting her cheat application!!).

After Cameron made the Final of the U16 Singles event in Halton Mia is now the 2nd ITC Player to make a final this year and we hope to bring home the trophy tomorrow.

Schedule for tomorrow:

(3) Alex Herd (GBR) & Sophia Haine (GBR) vs (2) Mia Smith (GBR) & Anastasia Mikheeva (GBR) – 3rd Match after 10.00 am, After Rest.

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 5

Tuesday 13th December 2011

After a taking a loss yesterday, despite a great performance, Mia was back on court today for her consolation 1st round match and her doubles ¼ final with Anastasia Mikheeva while we had to say farewell to Sam.

It was a more relaxed start to the day today; Mia was first on at 9.30am for her consolation match so she warmed up on court with Sam from 8.30 – 9am before preparing her goals and match analysis sheet ready for the match at 9.30am.

Today she was up against Chloe Hughes who had narrowly lost to a tough Swiss girl in the main draw. The consolation matches are just the best of 3 short sets (up to 4 games with a tie-break if it gets to 4-4) so it’s very important to start fast and take the opportunities when they arise as the sets could be over very quickly. Unfortunately Mia was broken in the first game of the match but got the set back on level terms by breaking straight back. From this stage Chloe played some very smart tennis and only made 1 unforced error in the next 3 games as she took the set 4-1. Mia was striking the ball quite well but a combination of too many errors and playing a little into Chloe’s hands meant that the set was over very fast.

The second set was much more competitive; Mia took a 2-0 lead and looked completely in control but a short forehand error at 2-0*, 15-0* gave Chloe a real boost and a chance to stay in the set. Mia then served for the second set at 3-2 and had a set point but again Chloe came back to break and hold to take a 4-3 lead. Mia’s serve then let her down in a long 10 point game that saw Mia broken with only 20% of 1st serves going in. The final score was therefore 4-1, 5-3; it was a disappointing loss but Mia struck the ball well and if she can increase her consistency with the same level of play then she turn these results around.

After waiting around most of the afternoon to play doubles Mia and Anastasia were told that their opponents had withdrawn so they were through to the Semi’s without hitting a ball!! That then gave Mia a chance to speak to LTA National Coach Lucie Ahl who had watched both of her singles matches to find out her thoughts about the way she played. Following their talk we went back on court between 4.30-6pm and had a great session working on the areas that Lucie and I had identified in her matches. It’s always good for the players to get feedback from other coaches especially when they’re as experienced as someone like Lucie.

Once Mia had cooled down and stretched out we went back to the hotel to shower and change before meeting up with Rob Booth and the West Hants team for dinner at the Pub. It was then an early night as Mia has arranged a practice set with Ema Lazic at 7.30am tomorrow morning!

Schedule for tomorrow:

Girl’s Doubles Semi-Final:

Holly Thompson (GBR) & Georgie Walker (GBR) vs (2) Anastasia Mikheeva (GBR) & Mia Smith (GBR) – 5th round after 9.30am

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 4

Monday 12th December 2011

Main draw started today which saw Mia take on 4th seed Jovana Knezevic from Cyprus while it was just a training day for Sam in the hope of getting into the doubles tomorrow.

Due to practice starting at 8.30am for the main draw players Sam and I had to be at the centre at 7am to get a good amount of time on court. After going through our physical warm up we had just over an hour with the same Brazilian boy Sam hit with yesterday and Sam once again improved on the level he’s been training at throughout the session.

Early 7am start alongside Dan Sanders and the Wrexham HPC team

Mia arrived with Craig at 8.15am and had breakfast at the club before warming up for her pre match practice at 9.30am. She was expecting to be hitting with another girl who had booked with her at 10.30am but when the girl didn’t show it was down to me to warm her up!! We had a good hit for 30 minutes and Mia was seeing the ball very well which gave her a lot of confidence before the match. We then had time to get some lunch and go through the match before Mia went on.

It was always going to be a tough match today as Mia was facing a very tall Cypriote who looked more like she was 18 years old rather than 14! The first set was over quite quickly as Jovana took it 6-0 but from Mia’s point of view it was a very positive performance; she was striking the ball well and working very hard but her opponent just did exactly the same as Mia on a much more consistent basis. In total the Cypriote only missed 2 balls in the entire set!

Mia’s attitude didn’t change in the 2nd and she fought very hard to hold her serve in the first game. From then on it was obvious that Mia’s belief was starting to grow and while her hitting level stayed the same as in the 1st set she significantly reduced her unforced errors while increasing her winners. It was neck and neck throughout the set until Mia was broken at 4-4 after struggling with her serve. In the past Mia has let her head drop at times like this but she responded very well in the next game playing a superb point to go 0-15 up. Unfortunately Jovana stepped her game up and produced 3 winners in that game to take the match 6-0, 6-4. Without a doubt it was the best match I have ever seen Mia play and if she can keep up that level in training and in matches she’s going to improve very quickly.

After Mia was finished she completed her core and band work before stretching out to end a very positive day. We then returned to the hotel to have a rest before meeting back up with Tom and Craig for dinner at the pub across the road from the tennis centre.

Unfortunately Sam didn’t get into doubles today; him and his partner were 17th on the entry list (only 16 get in!) so he’ll be returning to Formentera tomorrow with his aunt.

Schedule for tomorrow:

Girl’s Consolation 1st Round:

Chloe Hughes (GBR) (1024) vs Mia Smith (GBR) (722) – 1st match at 9.30am

Girl’s Consolation Semi-Final:

Chloe Hughes / Mia Smith vs Karla Nuez Delgardo (ESP) (820) – 4th match after 9.30am

Girl’s Doubles ¼ Final:

Rebecca McCarthy (MLT) & Karla Nuez Delgardo (ESP) vs (2) Anastasia Mikheeva (GBR) & Mia Smith (GBR) – 6th match after 9.30am

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 3

Sunday 11th December 2011

We had a really good training day today as Sam continued from where he left off yesterday and Mia arrived to prepare for main draw tomorrow.

It was an early start today so that we could get enough time on court before the last round qualifying matches started at 10am. Sam and I warmed up just after 8am and then we trained together for 20 minutes before a boy from Brazil, who lost yesterday, asked if he could hit with Sam. They then had a really constructive session for just over an hour; we had to go between a couple of courts as we weren’t allowed to book any but the boys coped with that well and both got a lot out of training which was mainly restricted to half court.

Sam in training this morning

At 10am I took Sam off to the mini-tennis courts at the end of the tennis centre and we went through a tough 30 minute fitness session involving some medicine ball and core work. At 10.30am we were done for the morning so Sam and his aunt went and got some food and then sat at the centre watching some of the last round qualifying matches while I got on with some much needed emailing!

At 2pm Craig Allen arrived from Kent with Tom Wright and Mia Smith and, as none of them had been to the centre before, they spent a little while getting used to where everything was before having a very thorough warm up to get the journey out of their systems. I then went on court with Mia at 3pm and had a great hour and a half training with her while Sam was back on court with the Brazilian playing a set out. Once Mia was happy with her level she stopped and went through her pre-hab work and then stretched out. I then went over to see Sam finish off a very competitive set where he narrowly went down 6-4.

After everyone’s training was done they all signed in and then it was a quick journey back to the hotel so Craig, Tom and Mia could check in before we went back to the tennis centre to check out the draw. Once practise for tomorrow was booked we went across the road to have dinner at the pub and then all the players had an early night to prepare for their matches tomorrow.

Schedule for tomorrow:

Mia Smith (GBR) (722) vs (4) Jovana Knezevic (CYP) (236) – 3rd match after 9.30am

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 2

Saturday 10th December 2011

Big day today as Sam played his first ever match abroad and his first ever match indoors!!

After Sam and his aunt had a long day of travelling yesterday they were very pleased when I said that we’d meet at 10.30am this morning giving them a nice lie in. We then drove the short 5 minute journey to the tennis centre and warmed up at 11am before getting on court for Sam’s pre match warm up from 11.30am – 12pm. Sam was noticeably better than yesterday; he looked a lot more comfortable on the indoor courts and much more relaxed throughout the whole session.

After training we had a break for a couple of hours which gave us plenty of time to eat lunch, go through some pre match goals and get Sam ready before he went on for his match just after 2pm.

Sam was taking on 11th seed Calum MacGeoch and right from the warm up he looked really up for the match. Sam held serve in the first game and then broke Calum to take a 2-0 lead but that’s when Calum started to relax a bit more and find his range. As that happened Sam tried to do more with the ball to put Calum under pressure but it resulted in far too many unforced errors. Often trying too hard can cause you to play worse and that was definitely the case with Sam today as he went from 2-0 up to 6-2, 5-0 down. A lot of credit has to be given to Calum who played very well to absorb the pressure that Sam was putting on him in the early games but in the end consistency was the key factor.

At 6-2, 5-0 down Sam was still working very hard and fighting like you would expect of a Spaniard. He then got his reward for the hard work he was putting in as he broke Calum (when he was serving for the match) and then held his own serve (for the first time since the opening game). After Sam held to go 5-2 down Calum started to get rattled and it was obvious he wasn’t happy being on that court anymore! Sam won the first 2 points of the next game but Calum served very well and hit 3 winners from the back of the court to take that game and the match 6-2, 6-2.

It was a fantastic experience for Sam and he was quite pleased with his performance scoring it at a 7/10. We managed to have a thorough debrief about the match via Google Translator (!!) and after that Sam decided he wanted to get back on court for another hour of training to work on the areas we had identified. We had to wait until all of the matches were finished but then we got on court for a great session. It’s always a nice feeling to be the last ones training at the centre but not nice for the staff who had to wait until we were finished before they could close up!!

We had another nice meal with Rob and Selina at the Pub across the road from the tennis centre but the staff were under strict instructions (from both Rob and Selina!) that we had to get our food quickly so that they could get back to the hotel to watch the final of X Factor!!

Tomorrow we are joined by Mia Smith who is in the main draw and Tom Wright and his coach Craig Allen who are staying with us for the week. Sam’s now going to be training hard and will try to sign in for doubles on Monday.

Wrexham U14 TE Grade 3, Day 1

Friday 9th December 2011

It’s amazing how time flies by . . . it was a year ago when I first came to this event (after launching International Travelling Coach at the end of November 2010) to promote and advertise my schedule for 2011. Not much has changed in Wrexham but this year I’m here with players in both qualies and main draw so it’s going to be a great week.

My recent link with “European Tennis Tours” (www.europeantennistour.com) based in Ibiza has resulted in 14 year old Samuel Ibanez Roig joining me this week for the boy’s event. Sam has come over with his aunt (Antonia) for the week and it was a big step for Sam as he has never left Ibiza before let alone compete in an International event in Wales!

I met Sam and Antonia at Gatwick airport at 10am this morning before we made the 4 and a half hour journey to Wrexham. The journey was quite straightforward but it was rather quiet in the car as Sam doesn’t speak a word of English and Antonia’s English is very limited!!

We arrived at Wrexham just before 3pm to find that the tournament did not have any practice courts booked and so the players couldn’t train before they compete tomorrow. This was very disappointing and I think the only other time I’ve had this happen in the last 14 years was back in January at Teen Tennis in Bolton. However, because I know Dan Sanders and the team up here at the Wrexham High Performance Centre very well they did us a massive favour and moved one of their squads from 2 courts to 1 to let us train for an hour. We were very lucky to be able to do that and I think Sam was very glad to be able to hit for an hour as he’d never played indoors before and was used to very slow outdoor clay. After struggling to make contact with the ball at the start of the session (!!) Sam eventually relaxed and hit the ball well.

By this time it was around 5pm so we signed in and were told that Sam was still 25th Alternate – this means that if everyone on the acceptance list signed in he would miss out on the qualifying by 25 players. You might then ask why he’s made the journey from Ibiza to Barcelona, then from Barcelona to London and finally up to North Wales when he’s nowhere near getting into the tournament? The plain answer is that when you haven’t got a ranking you have to give these things a go to try and get in to events. I remember travelling to Sweden with a player who was 65th Alternate and he got in, his parents were unsure if it was worth the risk but I said we should give it a go. They trusted my opinion and he not only got in but he ended up qualifying and gaining his first Tennis Europe points ?

After Sam’s first visit to Sainsbury’s to stock up on food we headed back to the hotel to shower and change before returning to the tennis centre to check on the draw. To our delight Sam got into the qualifying! It was disappointing to see that other British players who were on the alternate list didn’t bother to sign in and I actually had a conversation with a HPC coach and two players this week recommending them to give it a go but they chose not to – if they had they would have easily got in.

Once again the girl’s draw is very very disappointing; for those of you that have been reading my Blogs during this year you’ll know that I’ve constantly brought up the fact that every one of the qualifying draws in the British girl’s international events have had byes in them. Today there were 8 byes and after the quality of the qualifying draws this year I hope something is done to make sure the centres that receive the £4 million that the LTA put high performance tennis are made accountable. EVERY SINGLE IHPC / HPC should have players here in both the boy’s and the girl’s draw and if they haven’t then questions should be asked as to whether they should be receiving the funding that they do. We’re all in this to create international tennis players so why aren’t players trying to compete in international events that are on their doorstep??

After booking practice courts and checking the schedule for tomorrow we met up with Rob Booth and Selina Briggs from West Hants HPC for dinner before going back to the Travelodge for an early night.

Schedule for tomorrow:

Samuel Ibanz Roig (ESP) vs (11) Calum MacGeoch (GBR) (907) – 4th round on after 10am

 

ABOUT I.t.c.

Since 2010 my aim has been to make it more affordable to travel to international tournaments with a coach. Over the past 20 years I have coached players at over 250 international tournaments ranging from U12 Tennis Europe events to a semi-finalist at a Grand Slam.

 

For more information please click here.

contact

Rob Smith

Tel: +44 (0) 7866 362251

Email: rob@itc-tennis.com

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

MAILING LIST

Sign up for the latest news and information on upcoming trips