Boys & Girls: 44th Astrid Bowl Charleroi, Belgian International Junior Championships - ITF Grade 1 - 2008.

Salmon · Tennis legend

RE: Boys & Girls: 44th Astrid Bowl Charleroi, Belgian International Junior Championships - ITF Grade 1 - 2008.

XCW4EVA · County player

Has Dan even grown physically at all? I heard he hadn't had much of a spurt upwards?

Salmon · Tennis legend

No idea. It doesn't matter - if he can do well he will know matter what.

Goldenslam · Intermediate Club Player

I agree players like Safin did not play many juniors along with the few others that you mentioned but that was because they were having success at senior level, we are talking about a lad who was good young due to height etc & being able to play his senior game from an early age, when you talk of Dan's peers improving more than him it is because they are physically better & have more weapons.
Now in all honesty "getting back to the good old days" when were they? to put it bluntly I think Dan is just not good enough........yet!
I am not saying he wont bt but at the moment he is not good enough to say bye to the seniors & when you talk of players skipping seniors such as Safin...neither Cox or Evo are in Safin, Nadal, Davydenko or Eysserics' league.
Horse's for course's & whilst we may have a couple of good prospects, we don't have a potenial derby winner........yet!
I know the guys are working hard each & everyday but it's on the match court that players are really judged & unless players are producing in the top end of juniors & winning futures at this ages, like most of the top 250 ATP were, then we really are wasting our time on this conversation because they are still to learn their trade!

johnnylad · Tennis legend

So if you're not winning futures by the age of seventeen stick to juniors.

I like it!

Please don't let the LTA get their hands on Laura Robson.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Back to the action briefly -

Thompson has beaten DE LOVINFOSSE GAETAN (BEL) 6-2 6-4

He has made good strides this year after a bit if bad press last year.

Girls Main Draw

Amy Askew vs Nicole Bartnik

Emily Askew vs DELEFORTRIE ANOUK (BEL)

Jade Curtis gets a bye

Salmon · Tennis legend

Cox not being good at the men's game from a young age is ridiculous. He got his first point when he was 15 and 2 and made his first quarters around a month short of his 16th birthday. That's something 99% of people fail to match.

And the best days of Coxy's career are surely 2005, no? The titles early on, the great run in Roehampton, taking a set off Mankad, reaching the quarters in Wrexham after beating Duclos and Fabrice Martin...

Of course Cox or Evo aren't in their league. When did the LTA allow them to become that good?

I just wish that Cox never came back from Spain. He was far, far better off at Marbella. We're just going to have another Goodall or Kasiri or Baker this way - they didn't stop playing ITFs till it was too late.

Goldenslam · Intermediate Club Player

ok johnnylad - we are getting somewhere!!!

So what you are saying is if you are losing first or second round of junior events........leave the juniors behind & go play harder senior events!!
Makes great sense!!!

It's obvious these boys are not ready yet ot just not good enough!!

Regarding your pathetic "dont let the LTA get there hands on Laura Robson" statement........too late she has been working with the LTA for years........so pat on the back for the LTA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Goldenslam · Intermediate Club Player

It's like banging my head against a wall......you lot have heard & taken in so much crap from rumours that you really do not know what you are talking about!!!!! If you saw the set up in Marbella that Cox had you would laugh your pants off........his coach encouraged him to spend more time in the pool than on court!!!

Salmon · Tennis legend

johnnylad wrote:

Please don't let the LTA get their hands on Laura Robson.

Plus the Rens, George Morgan and Liam Broady.

Imagine if the same policy had been applied to La Robson. She would be made to play 14s events till she would become the number 1 in Europe - in that case she would be ranked around 300 in ITFs even now.

Salmon · Tennis legend

Goldenslam wrote:

It's like banging my head against a wall......you lot have heard & taken in so much crap from rumours that you really do not know what you are talking about!!!!! If you saw the set up in Marbella that Cox had you would laugh your pants off........his coach encouraged him to spend more time in the pool than on court!!!

Okay, maybe that's right 'cause I don't know and can't confirm it. But the scheduling was at least 500% more effective then.

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Goldenslam said -

So what you are saying is if you are losing first or second round of junior events........leave the juniors behind & go play harder senior events!!
Makes great sense!!!
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No. That's not only what you have said, but what you have done.

We are saying if you have got into the TOP 1000 in the world as a small man by the age of 16 and a half to 17, back yourself and get a coach who will back you to keep going and test yourself.

Don't take money off people who insist you serve your apprenticeship in events that don't matter, don't challenge you and don't improve you.
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Goldenslam said -

It's obvious these boys are not ready yet ot just not good enough!!
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That seems true enough now (due to a lack of confidence in my opinion) but if you look back at the history books there were already good enough once and got dragged backwards.
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Goldenslam said -

Regarding your pathetic "dont let the LTA get there hands on Laura Robson" statement........too late she has been working with the LTA for years........so pat on the back for the LTA!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Fair enough. Hold my hands up. I was under the impression she was something of a privateer. I was obviously wrong. Pat on the back for the LTA so far. Here's a case where Gilbert's advice would seem to fit.

Salmon · Tennis legend

Much of what Robson has done has got nothing to do with the LTA and she was indeed a privateer once (from what I know) before settling down at Bisham Abbey.

In fact, Laura Robson owes a hell lot to a man named Nick Saviano who runs an academy in Sunrise, Florida. She spent some time there before her incredible trip in late 2006 when she won Eddie Herr and reached the semis of the Orange Bowl.

Not taking credit away from the LTA, of course. They've done brilliantly over the last few months with Laura. But the LTA aren't the only ones responsible...

-- Edited by Greenleaf at 15:37, 2008-05-26

johnnylad · Tennis legend

Goldenslam wrote:
It's like banging my head against a wall

We'll have to agree to disagree as my head feels sore from the other side of the same wall.

Can't comment the Marbella stuff as I know nothing about it.

But the results don't lie, and Cox was more effective at seniors a year ago than he at juniors now.

We are suggesting that that is a problem.

Salmon · Tennis legend

I think that a time comes when you're too good for something. Don't we so very often see top 50 players take WCs at Challengers and fail to win the thing?

How else can anyone on this planet explain Evans beating Cervenak (around ATP 450) and then losing to Tennys Sandgren in a week's time. Cervenak would probably beat Sandgren by 2 and 2.