Rest In Peace NZ National Junior Teams Events.

In March 2013 I wrote an article in regards to the National Junior Teams events , you can read this here titled by clicking on the title.

National Junior Teams Event a Positive but receives little support from TNZ.

I have always had the view that Tennis New Zealand never valued this event and does not understand why it should be one of the events to receive financial support and backing by the governing body.I know that many juniors play tennis,go to tournaments seek extra coaching to make their regional team to play at Nationals its a great goal for most junior players wanting to take their tennis to the next level.

For an isolated region such as the Southern Region ,Juniors making teams for Nationals are inspired by this event to keep playing tennis , take events such as this out of the pathway then you will lose juniors to other sports.

This year Tennis Northern one of the 6 regions has indicated they are not sending any Junior teams to this event in any age groups. Waikato another one of the 6 regions are not sending a 16 girls team to this event in April.

First of all I have read the excuses and all I can say is SHAME!  your feeble excuses do not add up. I can remember when they condensed the regions from 8 to 6 for the better of the game, a move that has not worked especially when two main players cannot field teams.

What Tennis New Zealand fail to realize  this event encompasses all players the elite (nationally ranked) and the juniors not so high on National rankings and rest assure that the Local Tennis communities will be benefiting from the later as Parents and Juniors of ranked players chase unrealistic dreams.The 3 4s and 5s of a regional team are the heart and sole of tennis.. the players that do not want to travel on the pro circuit and are  vital to clubs and associations for local competitions and local events and local tournaments.

OK! I was critical of the regions earlier in my article but it is Tennis New Zealand that needs the biggest serve in devaluing this event.A few years ago they stopped funding regions to help cover costs to send teams. The powers then decided to change the event from January to April ...the reason because all the top ranked Juniors would be available every one knows this has not been the case and just added costs to families to play this event in April.

It always followed a National tournament in January it made sense..more players play the national title event and then follow up by the teams events.Common SENSE for most.

Take a look on the TNZ website and their new Strategy papers that has just as many spelling mistakes as I have on my blog.NOT ONE MENTION IN THEIR PLANS OF THE NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAMS EVENT!. Below is areas of their tennis competitions focus.

The national secondary school Competition is for 

boys, girls and mixed teams across the country. The 

competition gives players the chance to compete 

against some of the best players in the country. 

Teams first play in a Region-wide competition with 

the top two teams in each Region progressing 

through to the national finals. The finals are held 

in different location each year but are always run 

during Easter weekend. The national competition 

and local Inter school competitions will be reviewed 

and revamped if necessary with the singular goal of 

getting more teenagers playing tennis. 

Yes to some extent however Schools competition are just that School competitions you need the next level which are National Teams events built by you regions clubs and associations.

The current state of tennis participation and 

competition in tertiary institutions will be reviewed 

with a view to building a stronger tennis presence 

at universities and polytechnics. The establishment 

of tennis clubs and creating more opportunities 

for regular casual play at both universities and 

polytechnics will be explored to better engage with 

the 450,000 people enrolled in tertiary institutions 

throughout new Zealand.

Good luck with this one! New Zealand Culture shows that this age group has other things on their mind than tennis! You will not break this culture!

The possibility of reviving the once fiercely 

competitive national Tennis League will be 

explored. This national competition once served 

to keep the more competitive adult players in the 

game and inspired people to represent their area. 

A national adult competition will inspire people to 

start or continue playing to compete against each 

other in a bid to become national champions in a 

similar way to the national competitions of other 

sporting codes.

Yep propping up old players and paying them ridiculous amounts to represent a region.I have highlighted a ridiculous statement , get your head out of the sand TNZ you have this with the Junior Teams event and you are instilling what you say at this junior event!.Get rid of the National Junior Teams event! continue not to fund these event !, continue to overlook them in your Junior pathways! then WHY on earth would you have players to play at Adult level!

When I first arrived in New Zealand I was very impressed with the National Junior Teams event, I went on to Win Gold, Silver and Bronze as coach with junior Southern Teams over a 10 year period.I urge the tennis community to value  this event and place more emphasis and create more funding to what is a great event and a highlight of most Junior tennis players sporting goals!

*The Junior National Teams events bring all of New Zealand's regional juniors together playing in 12s 14s 16s boys and girls age group. This year Auckland ,Hamilton and Christchurch are hosting age groups.

For those that Care - Bernard Tomic Update!

'For having had bilateral hip surgery, he's doing very well, a little bit better than I thought he would at this time,'' said Gutierrez, the Australian Open's head physio, who also has extensive AFL experience.

''All the time that we've been working together he's been committed to the treatment, and he knows the importance of it because all his career is just going to hinge on that, and hopefully he will be back soon and be able to play without pain, and regain more flexibility than he used to have.

''He's been very restricted, because tennis being a flexion, or bent-over type of a sport, and him being so tall, his limitations were significant, especially playing on grass and hard courts. It forced him to bend a little bit more than he had to, hence irritating the hip joints a little bit more than you normally would.

''Now he has much more rotation both ways - internal and external - so he'll be able to displace and change direction a little bit better, so I think he'll be much more comfortable with his movement on court … I'm expecting between 20 to 30 per cent on what he had. We're hoping for 30, but 20 would be great.''

Tomic has been swimming and cycling, and recently resumed hitting balls from a largely stationary position. A Monte Carlo comeback suits the time frame, 12 weeks post-operative, and clay the most suitably benign surface.''

Clay is Tomic's worst surface GOOD LUCK

Hope it improves his below form!

Check out the Tennis PODCAST

http://thetennisdribble.podomatic.com

Exclusive Tennis Podcast with Fred Itsnotovatilitsova

Always looking for new blog Items and thanks to Fred for giving me exclusive rights to his Tennis Podcast.

Nadal still the best mover in the game.

Aussie Open the Final Match Wawrinka defeats Nadal for Title

Congratulations Stan you deserved your win, to Rafa a gallant display under duress.As I said yesterday once you try to predict a tennis match it can bite you on your ass.I think if possible Stan will need to add another tattoo.

You know true champions even in defeat can turn around this to make them stronger for the next event.Juniors often treat defeat as a major life threatening event. Take some positives from defeat after reflection and I am sure Nadal will be doing this.Sometimes a Loss will tell you what you need to work on to be better , sometimes you have to be able to change attitude and stop looking for excuses as you alone are your master of destiny.I think Wawrinka has for sure looked a lot deeper and has changed his thinking and ways to some extent to succeed.

Aussie Open Day 14

Congratulations to Li Na winning her first Australian Open .Cibulkova had a great tournament but Li Na showed how a 4th seed should dispatch the 20th seed.Controlling the court and attacking the second serve of Cibulkova Li Na was never going to be beaten.A few other noted players could do as well to play with a game plan and use it to exploit the opponents shortcomings .

Nadal to equal Pete Sampras wins at Grandslam's and defeat Stan the Man, would love to see an exciting match and if Stan can serve well ..tennis is a funny game and just when you think it can be predictable it can bite you on your ass.

Finally what does Stan'S Tattoo say?
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail Better.”

If he wins tonight I would not class this as a fail and he may need to add another line.

Aussie Open Day 13

Do Fairy tales come true? I have been impressed with Cibulkova all tournament, Li Na has had her battles and is a little lucky to be here.The facts are Li Na has never lost to Cibulkova head to head it is 4-0. My Heart says Cibulkova my head says Li Na.

Well just a few comments re Fed vs Rafa, this picture says it all. Head to head Rafa leads 23 matches to 10 which is very convincing.Last night Rafa played the best he has played all tournament , he was faster, hit the ball harder with great depth and his passing shots and defense was spot on.His serving not spectacular were placed strategically so Rafa had the best opportunity to control the Rally.

I don't think Federer played badly he had to attack and keep the points shorter. Rafa has always had Feds measure and another win just adds to this. In saying this its because of Federer that Nadal, Djokovic and Murray have lifted men's tennis and worked their but off to be able to compete with Rodger.!!!

Aussie Open Day 12

Its been an incredible rivalry that has produced incredible matches , I hope today this is another for the tennis fans. Wawrinka summed it up the other night "when Federer plays his best tennis , he is unbeatable" I have to ask is Federer past his best ? Nadal has beaten Rodger more times and has a substantial lead in Head to Head but a lot of those victories have been on clay.This is going to be tight the stylist vs the scrapper.Fed will try and take control he has to to have any chance! A lot will depend on how each other serve and Nadal has to serve better than his last match.I eagerly await this clash! Well done to Stan Wawrinka on his win and first grandslam final!

Matches of Interest for me today.

Gajdosova/Ebden Vs Mirza/Tecau -Mixed doubles semi finals featuring Aussies!!

Zverev vs Mousley- Semi final Boys singles the Aussie Mousley up against the top seeded German.

Fett vs Birrell - Semi Final Girls singles. Very interested in the Australian Kimberly Birrell who is the daughter of Roslyn formerly Toynton who was a reasonable tennis player herself and Hailed from my local area the Central west of NSW Australia.Roslyn actually came on one of my first Junior tours to New Zealand before I moved here many many years ago!Good luck!

Nadal vs Federer - My Pick is Nadal he has again set himself for a win at a Grand Slam tournament. This match i will not be dissapointed if the Fed gets the result.

Aussie Open Day 11

Just when you thought he was on his last legs "Bang" another Australian Open Semi Final! Federer has recaptured his dominance over players, his raquet skills are second to none and so are the variety of shots he possesses.Am i seeing a more aggressive Federer looking to finish more at the net?He is one of the few players that can do this playing the modern game and its great to see he has been looking for opportunities .If Federer remains positive AND can get control of the court to finish at net he will be very hard to beat.What a great semi final looming against his old nemesis Rafa Nadal.

Tip for Juniors-Finish at the Net

This is a lost art of the modern game many rely on belting winners from the baseline.Watching tennis its frustrating to see a player bury a groundstroke into the corner and watching the opponent try to get it back ..two hander's will release and slice the ball back...off balanced and stretching with one hand and if on the forehand side same thing stretching wide off balanced they will float it back the best way they can.Now you know if you have hit a very good shot !...and you can see the other player struggling to get to the ball..OK GET TO THE NET AND FINISH IT OFF! Yesterday Federer won 49 points out of 66 net approaches.Just as a matter of interest Murray approached the net 27 times winning 17 points.For me this is a standout stat .Juniors if you see the player struggling put the floater away at the net ..be aggressive!

You have to laugh at players antics and its always fun to watch in a highlight package like the one below.

Matches Of Interest for me today

Bouchard vs N.LI - Age and experience to Li Na , Bouchard has had a great run ..surely it must end here!

Cibulkova VS Radwanska - I am tipping the winner of this match to take out the tournament. Radwanska you are a pleasure to watch as you search the court looking for a way to win,,using the head over muscle. The modern player sometimes cannot change their game ..look at Sharapova for example its slam bang and hit it harder! and if that does not work then like this week on the first available flight outta here!

Wawrinka Vs Berdych- I am going for Stan! he has the game it will be tough but lets hope he sets the arena on Fire like last match against Djokovic. I always worry about Stan's fitness level and I hope after a days rest the Djoker match did not take a lot out of him!.Will be close could go either way for sure.

Aussie Open Day 10

What a match Stan sent Novak packing with an outstanding display of power and aggression.It was the best match so far and I hope Stan can keep this form all the way to the final!

Anna Faltered as I feared she might to the young Bouchard and Li Na and Thomas Berdych had wins.

Put together a few pictures to capture some of the scenes so far.

This tweet sums up a tennis player and what it takes! Legend Jimmy Connors had this to say.

How true this is. 80% of juniors and parents treat tennis as a social outlet!Very few are prepared to have their life fit into tennis,even if they think they do!Sacrifice is the key Jimmy and that is where the buck stops with many pretend players.

Matches of Interest for me today

Radwanska Vs Azarenka - I am expecting Azarenka to win the match especially with Redfool in her corner.

Nadal vs Dimitrov -Grigor has the game to worry Nadal , does he have enough between his ears is what may sway the match to Rafa.

Federer Vs Murray -What a match up ..Please Rodger summon up all the skills you have to send the Scot/Brit on his way.

Some interesting Junior Matches today the Top seed in the girls has gone out and the boys seeds have all been tested.

Comment gets me thinking

I received this comment via the blog article The Targeted Elite Junior Tennis Player. I am going to highlight it in this post , certainly makes a lot of sense ,it did come via an Anonymous ID but after rereading it does makes one think why and how the High Performance Program was constructed.

"Steve, the TNZ strategy was designed by a few people who now have the jobs involved within the TNZ plan. This system is for them alone, rather than for the community of players and coaches. We all know the timeline doesn't add up, especially considering the average age of a top 100 player is 27. The reason these coaches are going young is for two reasons.
1) One of the National coaches is running out of options - he started at Fed Cup, then went with Davis Cup, then with our top 18 year olds and hes now with U/15's. Simply no results at any level.
2) Going young secures their National jobs for at least 3 years.

Rather than easily providing a system that brings people together, this system WILL fail because its designed to segregate everyone apart from the 4 players involved and the National coaches getting the wage..... it's diabolical
The truth is that many of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup players were outspoken and the previous TNZ structure had results proven coaches who attempted to really change things....they even got together to write a letter against leading the system into further decline. Steve Johns decided everyone else was wrong and that him and these current National coaches are right........
Players and parents of talented juniors need to ask themselves a very important question with regards to our National coaches - "what National reps have they actually produced themselves for NZ?"..... you will only need one hand to count them all. "

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Aussie Open Day 9

Great to see Federer give Joe Wilfred Tsonga a master class yesterday! Sharapova had butt problems a strain!And the number 3 seed went out to Cibulkova who would not be out of place in any Hobbit movie.Better going for BF Grigor!

Matches of Interest for me today

Ivanovic vs Bouchard- I'm not convinced with Anna yet and this is a match she could lose Bouchard is a very tough opponent.

Berdych vs Ferrer -Good big man vs Good little man..will be very interesting maybe a Berdych win here.

Warinka Vs Djokovic-Can Stan the Man give Djoker a run for his money..I think he can

Will be keeping an eye on the Juniors also today.

Why are the powers that be not addressing the In-balance that players earn on the ATP tour.Only the top 100 can make a living

If you are ranked 200 in the world as a tennis player you are indeed a very good tennis player, the same can be said with the 300 ranked player and even the 400 hundred ranked player.But compared to what Nadal and Co are earning its a paupers life for most! I have been advocating a fairer payment structure for futures and challengers and also how the circuit is structured so that players do not have to chase tournaments to the ends of the earth.This recent chart of the ten most top earners in tennis shows you a lucrative career and this is just tournaments not sponsorship, appearance money etc taken into account.

A South African player Keith Patrick Crowley has started a Face Book page to make more people aware of how hard it is to make ends meat for most players on the tour.I found this on an Italian Web site but it is in Italian so with the help of translation apps i have copied and pasted what Patrick had to say and the reason he started the group.Credit to the Live tennis it for having this story.LINK

"I created the Facebook group for a couple of reasons. I've been playing for almost 2 years, I have traveled to more than 10 different states and it was a real battle to fund this. I was lucky enough to have the help of my parents, sisters and brother also my in-laws. Last year I was able to get to number 770 in singles and 440 in doubles ranking while traveling and I noticed that it did not matter if the players were placed in position 200 or 2000, all the players had economic problems due to the lack of prize and had a travel program that required a big budget. "

"Everybody talks about the lack of prize money in futures and challengers but nobody really tries to do something. I know there are some associations that are driven by people who have tried to ask for ATP and to 'ITF to review and change the system. I know one of them personally, the former CEO of the South African courts, Ian Smith, who resigned last November. After reading a couple of articles on a tennis English and one Irish and watching my economic situation, I decided to create the group to get the word out to more potential players. Social media have their advantages. Ian Smith saw the post and made a comment, scoring some very valid points.We discussed a few things and he told me how the ATP and the ITF does not want to give him a chance to change things in a positive for many players in the ATP circuit. They are focused on money and leave the top players happy. In fact, over the past 15 years, the prize of the Grand Slam has been increased by 480%, while those of the challengers and futures of 0%. "

"The ATP has forgotten that without the 90% of players in the world, this game would not exist. The young players have little or no reason to try to break through the ATP. Take a player who went from being one of the "top" at the junior level and comes to be number 250 in the rankings pro in his first professional year. This player should earn money but in reality it is not. Most of the players who quit are the ones who spend all their money, the money of the family, and more, to get to number 250 in the world and when they come here, they find themselves still without money and decide to quit. The ATP should start helping the players with a lower ranking. The ATP should also encourage them, give them any kind of incentive to keep playing tennis and show that they can change things. Usually in tennis, a player positioned at number 200 is considered a lower level player, but we must remember that he is number 200 in the world, absolutely brilliant result. My question is how can the ATP and the ITF sit back knowing that they are able to pay only 5% of the tennis players? We all know that they are paid millions to sit and drive the ATP, but right now what should move in and start work. Make a change for this sport! "

"Even the ITF must intervene, must work together to make such a change. I've had some really good feedback from hundreds of players by email and on Facebook. Players placed in the top 30 ranking in doubles or singles ranking of the top 200. The goal is to take some of the "top players" to say something, because in the end it is they who "govern" the ATP. I would like to have answers to the most players possible. I'm going to take all of the suggestions received from players who have contacted me to create a letter to the ATP and the ITF. I will send an email to all the players who have contacted me to sign it. At this point I will send a letter with the signatures of the ATP, I hope, more than 500 players and after waiting for their reply. I think that if all the players are together and with the help of former players and coaches can get a real change for the good. The players outside the top 200 have nothing to lose, the only thing they have is a good credential to their resume but are left with $ 0 and this is wrong. "

The Facebook page is called ATP AND ITF-TIME FOR CHANGE.Give it a like and increase awareness of payment for the up and coming tennis players from all nations.

Ever heard of Michael Russell hes the worlds 92nd best tennis player.He said he is making a comfortable living but this guy is a real journey man and clears about 200,00 a year after expenses. Its a very good overview of what it costs per year on tour.LINK

So just to give you some idea on what you can earn depending on your ranking they are listed below.

Click on the charts to make them bigger. This one applies and the one following to players ranked 1000-400 even lower.

* Sadly New Zealand have chose not to apply for future events! Its a must to have and again the high performance program falling short!