Just wanted to point out how hopeless the change from one IT system to another has been by the lta. This started to take effect from beginning of september. Its effects have been first that no results from domestic tournaments entered under new system have been submitted to UTR through september and october. Includes last four brit tour return to elite ones, several other brit tours and lots of other tournaments. This impacts on players trying to fix up american uni places for 2021.
Secondly, the LTA rankings have been hopelessly wrong throughout october and are still wrong now...Firstly no return to elite bt points were added, also all those with itf junior points had them removed. Each week since oct 4th they try to correct one thing but often make it worse..The last two attempts seem to have added the tennis europe and then itf u18 points back but incorrectly. They have added a players total itf points up, singles and a quarter of doubles, then treated the total as if it was one tournament, which then becomes one of their counters. This increases their total significantly in a number of cases. This will now also disadvantage those applying to american uni who have not had the money, or lta backing, to do itf junior events. They will also be disadvantaged for entry into brit tours when they open up again (obviously not just at the moment). Let's hope the lta have plenty of time to sort this all out....

Daily Mail online is reporting that Esteban Carril has quit coaching at the LTA Academy in Stirling. Seemingly this was caused because with his  base being in Spain there were travelling difficulties with   the coronavirus pandemic .However he seems to have  been absent prior  to coronavirus and he's not been seen at Stirling  since March. He'll always be remembered for the rise of Johanna Konta under his coaching. In her time Jo went to Spain(2015)  for her coaching with him and  Katie Swan has been working with him in Spain in the past month. 

Coup Droit wrote:

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On the broader scale, the problem is that the LTA has not created a tennis industry that allows people to thrive in tennis outside of the LTA (except for a few very well-off people).

So the LTA is narrow-minded and heavily invested in supporting itself, each coach wanting his few protégés to be selected for extra training, european tours etc, in order to re-affirm his/her position as coach of one of the top players.

BUT, worse, there is no club system or extensive tournament system, or serious level tennis sports university system that allows players to take an alternative path.

So the LTA have it sewn up, every which way

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 Hit the nail on the head with this one, I also support many of the other points made, the biggest one being "good lookers" or protegees of coaches in high positions are encouraged and supported by the system rather than the better players and the ones potentially in position to reach in tennis. Needs to restart everything and first build us into a tennis nation as the LTA are currently and as long as I can remember more lost than an eskimo in the desert. 

Elegant Point wrote:

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Would be good if inclusion and diversity improved at the 'top' of this predominantly middle class, white male dominated board

Updated letter from LTA CEO, Scott Lloyd
www.lta.org.uk/about-us/tennis-news/news-and-opinion/general-news/2020/october/an-open-letter-update-from-lta-ceo-scott-lloyd/

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So it appears the LTA have been raiding this forum for ideas again  

The LTA has announced it is looking to appoint a new Independent Non-Executive Director to join its Board, providing an opportunity to take steps towards its ambition to lead the way on inclusion and diversity in sport.

An open recruitment process for the new LTA Board role is now underway, with further details available on the LTAs recruitment website at ambition.lta.org.uk. Applications will close Sunday 13 December 2020, with interviews held in January. The LTA is particularly focused on continuing to improve its ethnic representation and, as such, is actively welcoming applications from ethnically diverse communities as part of this process.

https://www.lta.org.uk/about-us/tennis-news/news-and-opinion/general-news/2020/november/lta-to-appoint-a-new-independent-non-executive-director-in-opportunity-to-create-more-diverse-and-representative-board/

Noticed whilst trying to enter a few tournaments via the LTA website (not impressed with the new format) that players now have an international identity number - not sure if this is the same as a World Tennis Number? if it is, then it was rolled out very quietly......

Also if entering a tournament is there a way to see the names of the other players who've entered? We could only see information on the number of entrants, not the player name/rating - useful to be able to see this information to get an idea of where you rank on the entry list.

edit : since posting the LTA website has changed and the list of entrants is available.....convinced the LTA are reading this forum. Sooooooo if you have any suggestions for them get posting 

An interesting article in the Times from Lauri Canter who mixed in Andy Murrays circle as a junior. It's insightful to read his comparison of tennis and golf.......this country has a far better record of producing strength and depth in  golf.

I'm so glad I chose golf over tennis

For those who might see the relatively unknown Laurie Canter come up on their television screens during the European Tours season finale in Dubai tomorrow and search online to find out more, the 31-year-old former tennis player-turned-golfer from Bath would like to make a clarification on the line in his profile inserted by a mistaken member of tour staff that reads: He once played against Andy Murray.

Part of the LTAs Futures squad of 12 Elite juniors his life was consumed with training and matches until it all became too much.
"You get a lot of structure early in tennis" Canter says "It was pretty full on and got to the stage where it was an awful lot they were asking of you. I had to make a decision that probably involved moving to a National Academy and the reality of that hit me. MY parents wanted me to stay in education. thank god I did because it's a huge amount to ask of someone that age to give when they are nothing more than a prospect " 

"In tennis it was all about my age group, we used to talk about rankings for players my age but not really older, in golf it's not really like that "

"In tennis, you are dust if you are not sure the top 5 or 6 players in y country by age 16. You're not going to get funding" 

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/tennis-wanted-me-to-give-up-everything-so-i-turned-to-golf-0290dvn3g