End of 2011 season thoughts

Reeltime · Satellite level

RE: End of 2011 season thoughts

RBBOT · Futures qualifying

Alica Barnett & Georgina Sellyn are also signed up for college tennis next season. Sarah Borwell now runs an organisation recruiting GB juniors for US college tennis.

-- Edited by RBBOT on Wednesday 30th of November 2011 10:57:24 AM

philwrig · Hall of fame

Right here are my thoughts. In ranking order :

Bally : Very consistent but unable to make a WTA breakthrough. Grand Slam performance as always very good. Also played well at top challenger level. Body holding up quite well, enabling her to play just about a full schedule. Played all the top events at the start of the year, competing well without picking up big points, then dropped a level in the second half but wasn't able to get into those WTA semis or better. Will need to play more aggressively to make further progress next year and of course remain fit.

Annie K : Great Aussie Open and then basically a slump until the last quarter of the year when she played unbelievably, recapturing her pre knee injury form. Struggled with serve and stamina, but appears to have improved both dramatically at the end of the season. More naturally talented I believe than Bally when on her game. Next year could be a huge year for Anne, assuming no injuries. I expect her to be GB number 1 at some stage next year.

Hev : Outstanding offseason saw her start 2011 on fire moving up the rankings very quickly, but a couple of tough defeats to McHale I feel eroded her confidence a little resulting in a plateauing of that progress. Injuries further stalled her progress but a quite unbelievable performance against Sharapova at the US open rekindled hope that it is only a matter of time before Hev enters the top 50 when everything clicks into place. Next year will be tough to start off with having to defend alot of points in the first half, but as long as her fitness/game continue to improve I expect her to finish the year inside the top 75.

Robbo : A first half to forget with regards to injury and a failed coaching appointment, left her behind the '8' ball, but an encouraging second half put her back on track. Serve getting back to its most potent best, and continuing improvements to movement/fitness put her in a good position for 2012. Still not able to back up performances day after day but her win against Hev is further proof that when max focussed can play to a much higher level than her current ranking. Next year already compromised by hopefully a minor stress fracture injury. First half in 2012 important to get a foundation in the top 100 so that position can be consolidated in the second half when all the big points drop off. I hope that she will be comfortably inside the top 100 by the yearend.

Naomi : 2011's surprise package for me. Solid first half was followed a stellar second half. Looked much sharper when I saw her at Wrexham this year. Forehand and movement are improving, and with her top 10 serve further progress I feel is inevitable with regards to her ranking number. Offseason in Mauritius with the MTA and Hingis can only help for next season. Top 150 next year I would like to think is a real possibility, also if I'm being honest would like to see her play a smaller schedule, seems to me to benefit after a break.

more to follow

philwrig · Hall of fame

Talking about Fed Cup has anyone seen this :

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/tennis/article-2070365/Andy-Murrays-mum-Judy-wanted-Fed-Cup-captain-EXCLUSIVE.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Julia Carrot · All-time great

Blimey !!

The job that was previously held by her son's girlfriend's father............ hmmmmm

Maybe she would be good. I don't really know. But it would be a good idea for them to canvass the opinions of the potential team members before making a decision. Somehow, I think that is unlikely though.

philwrig · Hall of fame

I actually like the appointment if it happens. Judy comes across as a pretty shrewd operator and I think she would be able to give the team a boost. I also noticed yesterday that she started to follow Hev and Laura on twitter... just coincidence or genuine proof that she is likely to accept the offer if it comes her way.

Scouseandy · Social player

I had thought that she could be a contender (like many other people) so I'm not surprised. I think she would be a great choice and she already knows the players well. At the end of the day, all I want the team to do is win a string of ties and reach the world group. Also, as she is well-known, she has a much better chance of making sure the womens game in this country reaches a wider audience. So why not? Who else is there?

Helen40 · Grand Slam Champion

I'm really miffed that the LTA has decided not to sponser Broady again. Surely they should be helping the palyers who are giving Britain the best hopes. Part of me hopes she defects to a country that will give her more support.

indiana · Tennis legend

Helen40 wrote:
I'm really miffed that the LTA has decided not to sponser Broady again. Surely they should be helping the palyers who are giving Britain the best hopes. Part of me hopes she defects to a country that will give her more support.

I know not all the ins and outs Helen, but the fact is that both Broadys did appear on the AEGON funding list last year and it is our understanding that it was the Broadys who asked to be taken off.

It would appear that until certain things change in the LTA, as a family they have no wish to be part of the process.

-- Edited by indiana on Thursday 8th of December 2011 05:42:54 PM

Ratty · County player

I think I'm in the "stop the culture of dependency" camp here - along with Andy Murray, of course.

Yes, I know that there is an argument that you shouldn't suddenly cut off a junior's funding when they reach 18.

But I rather like the Broady and Andrew Fitzpatrick approach. You can't really doubt their commitment - particularly AF's. If you have to hitch-hike to a tournament, scrounge through Tesco's waste bins to eat, and sleep under a shed, there's no doubting your determination. And all walks of life show that it is often the most determined - and not the most talented - who get to the top.

So, good for the LTA in cutting right back on funding players.

chavkev · Intermediate Club Player

I suppose the argument then becomes about investing more in tournaments. Try and get to a stage where we have 40+ futures a year, so that players can earn their prize money. It would also mitigate against bad draws somewhat, as a player would have plenty more chances to get a more helpful draw. More investment in challengers would be nice too, so that our younger players get their experience outside of the wild-cards to Wimbledon.

jb288 · Satellite level

On a general end-of-year note, have to say I like that the LTA are posting videos of Heather Lucy & Fran's training camp in Florida - it's nice to see where our money's going!

I guess it's a bit surprising that Heather's training with two players ranked so far below her, but I suppose they're probably not playing together so much as alongside each other - and what a great experience for Fran & Lucy.

Anyway, it's great to publicise the hard work that goes into tennis (especially compared to other sports which are more favoured). Let's hope it translates into good results!

indiana · Tennis legend

Ratty wrote:
I think I'm in the "stop the culture of dependency" camp here - along with Andy Murray, of course.

Yes, I know that there is an argument that you shouldn't suddenly cut off a junior's funding when they reach 18.

But I rather like the Broady and Andrew Fitzpatrick approach. You can't really doubt their commitment - particularly AF's. If you have to hitch-hike to a tournament, scrounge through Tesco's waste bins to eat, and sleep under a shed, there's no doubting your determination. And all walks of life show that it is often the most determined - and not the most talented - who get to the top.

So, good for the LTA in cutting right back on funding players.

I would certainly agree that determination is hugely important. There have maybe been too many British players that have relied for too long on their talent where added application, effort and determination could have served them well and maybe they have allowed themselves to be overtaken by less naturally talented players.

There are players though that to me would clearly benefit from additional funding and such as good coaching and practice facilities, and that is particularly the naturally determined, the player who has made their mission to be all they can be.

I don't particularly want to speak for him, but reading Fitzy's posts it appears to me quite clear how much he would love more funding to help his progress. I certainly get the impression that he really does feel this would help him move to the next level. He seems great at making the best of what he's got with cooking his own meals all the time etc, eeking out that extra from equipment / clothing, that's the sort of character he is. I think that is in the person and he's not going to lose all that with more funding and general support for his game. There will be other similar players, so part of the issue to me is that for every player that the extra help dilutes their effort and determination there are quite likely others that it will only help. It's not something one can generalise on.

I believe that serious determination PLUS real support from a governing body will generally be better than either each of serious determination and real support by themselves.

It's a really interesting issue, which I believe is quite complex and as I indicate is enormously effected by the individuals themselves and I'd suggest the general social circumstances not just in tennis, but more widely in society, maybe in some cases helped by family circumstances.

One can for instance speculate as to what the real motivation for so much success has been for the many successful east European players, one could say "oh maybe them getting not nearly so much help early on has made them more determined and better players", but we are talking often a different society to the UK, and it may be dangerous to try and make direct parallels, eg. maybe UK life has made some players less determined generally, rather than just looking at tennis privileges, and again I feel the right character can really benefit from more help.

-- Edited by indiana on Saturday 10th of December 2011 04:01:18 PM

Happycynic · Pro player

I notice Tara has now been given Aegon funding.

Surprised, but very happy for her. She had a great end to the season, so I hope she can use the opportunity to press forward to top 200 in the next 12 months.

Peter too · Tennis legend

chavkev wrote:
I suppose the argument then becomes about investing more in tournaments. Try and get to a stage where we have 40+ futures a year, so that players can earn their prize money. It would also mitigate against bad draws somewhat, as a player would have plenty more chances to get a more helpful draw. More investment in challengers would be nice too, so that our younger players get their experience outside of the wild-cards to Wimbledon.

Turkey managed to organise 42 ITF tournaments for women this year so I see no reason why the UK couldn't do the same.