Right on ., Michael H

Mike H

Youth Tennis Coach for More Than 35 Years

RelatedWhy is professional tennis dominated by players from European countries?

As a US tennis coach at top training programs for more than 35 years I can answer this decisively, as I’ve personally witnessed this dispiriting fall from the United States ruling the tennis world to becoming an also-ran since 2003—and it has little to do with “training on clay”, “the everybody wins culture”, “new string technology” or the usual excuses, the reasons are much broader and deeper problems in American society and sports preparation.

1. The American “class bias” in tennis and the general collapse in America’s youth investment and social mobility. Tennis classes and equipment can be expensive, costing thousands of dollars a year, but in America, if you don’t already come from a rich family, you’ll get squat as far as help or assistance for your career, or you’ll be forced into debt. The USA has basically rejected the idea of community youth investment, for sports and in general, the same reason our college grads have $1.4 trillion in student loans for essential education. This is a dramatic change from when I started tennis coaching and it’s part of the general shift of America away from a socially mobile society to a practically feudal aristocratic one, that has pulled up the ladders for its lower, middle and even many of its “less than rich” upper classes. The short version: if you don’t start out with a trust fund, you’re stuck, especially for a sport like tennis that requires years of youth investment. This is a major, fatal disadvantage for American tennis. In Europe, South America and lately in Asia, kids from all social classes have a shot at a tennis career. If they show sufficient talent and motivation, there are numerous community organizations, government programs and general social assistance systems to help build up their careers, in part because these other societies strongly support investment in their youth. Even those who don’t show initial tennis promise are encouraged to keep at it, and many go on to develop that talent later on. Thus the other countries have a much greater talent pool and motivated, mentally tough kids from the lower and middle classes who see tennis as a shot to a solid career as a professional athlete and a tool for social mobility. Myself and a number of other coaches do what we can to provide free or reduced-cost tennis lessons to kids without major means, but every year we realize how much we’re swimming against the tide in the US, compared to our European and South American counterparts for whom there’s much more community support to assisting kids from all social classes.
2. The US healthcare and general health insurance mess. Anyone who’s followed the careers of tennis athletes from the Top 100 through the Challenger Tour and Futures Tournaments knows that injuries happen in tennis. A lot. So good general health care and medical assistance are a must. For Europeans, South Americans, Asians and Aussies this isn’t a problem, when you get injured, you simply go to a physician and get the problem fixed, and you’re back on the court with no financial hardships. In the USA? If you get sometimes even a minor injury on the court, let alone one that requires surgery, you can be set back tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket, even if you are insured! I can’t describe the frustration of seeing great tennis prospects going bankrupt or losing their savings due to medical bills from the lunatic American medical system. Again, the breakdown in American tennis is due to a much more fundamental breakdown in American society and policy, and until this is fixed, America will not have a tennis resurgence.
3. Parental involvement and family leave. Again this is a broader societal problem that has trickled down to throttle America’s tennis competitiveness. in Europe, Asia and parts of South America, parents are able to take advantage of a variety of family leave policies that allow them to take off time from work without a major career penalty, and focus attention on their kids, including taking them to tennis practices and academies and generally just being with them as they improve. America has Third World parental leave policies as well as skyrocketing costs of living that force both parents to constantly work or search for jobs when the economy is down, which then makes it impossible to help nurture kids’ budding tennis talent. The result? Very depressing and I see it all the time. A budding talent simply doesn’t have the family support network to do the little things that help their talent develop, causing them to get frustrated and quit.
4. General lack of motivation and mental toughness, maybe associated with all the social media obsessiveness today, from my observations much more in the US than in other countries. I was coaching US kids intensively back when Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Jim Courier, Andy Roddick, Todd Martin, MaliVai Washington and Michael Chang were rising through the Juniors Circuit, and worked directly with a number of kids out of the Bollettieri and other top academies. Those guys and girls were motivated to get better and better, building up confidence and not being rattled by setbacks. Today, there just seems to be much less patience for that sort of thing and a lack of the sustained attention that’s needed to become great at the sport. This applies to both the men’s and the women’s game—once Venus and Serena Williams retire, we just don’t really have anyone else of their sustained discipline and drive. On the men’s side, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, Donald Young, Sam Querrey and John Isner— and potentially Frances Tiafoe, Noah Rubin, Ryan Harrison, Stefan Kozlov, Tommy Paul and Taylor Fritz— certainly have a lot of the right stuff, but the difference compared to 20 or 30 years ago is that we’d have dozens of prospects like that in contention, and the sheer number of talented Americans would help to ensure that at least one or two of them would break through into the top ranks. Our talent pool is much thinner now in part because the persistence to develop that talent just isn’t there as much as before.
5. Plummeting birth rate in the US. This is a more subtle factor but ever since 2007 it’s been picking up steam and it’s hitting the USA especially hard. The costs of living, healthcare, student loans and other factors in the USA are much more of a financial burden in the United States than in any other country, combining to push the US fertility rates down to their lowest levels in our history, and those of us involved in youth sports coaching have been seeing the effects over the past 3 years especially with a steep and worsening decline in the number of young prospects we even have a chance to recruit and train. My team and I are involved in multi-city coaching clubs, and the talent pool among young kids has dried up in part because the births themselves, the country’s general TFR, have dried up. While it’s true that this is happening to varying extents in other countries too, it’s hitting the United States much harder since it compounds all the other factors above, and makes it that much harder for American youth tennis to make a recovery.
6. American kids opting for other sports. Yes, this is a factor but not nearly as much of one as is often made out. It is true that tennis is America has to compete with football, basketball, baseball, hockey, track-and-field, soccer, swimming, volleyball and wrestling for popularity, and this does reduce the potential talent pool. But here’s the thing, the same challenge was facing American tennis 20 and 30 years ago back when Agassi, Sampras, Courier and the other American top champions were working their way through, and if anything the basketball craze was even more intense than it is now. Yet we still had a massive talent pool for tennis, unsurprising given our overall population size. Not to mention that other countries also have similar competition for recruits into these other sports except for American football, and soccer is much more of a craze abroad. Yet they’re able to field and recruit top talent. So it’s really the other actors above that explain the sharp decline in American tennis, and the factors we’ll need to address if we hope to turn it around even slightly.

ReplyForward

Recently I saw the Will Smith portrayal of Mr. Williams and family.  Below are articles iI have written, the first in 2007:

KING RICHARD 2007 (from PLAY IS WHERE LIFE IS)

Another factor in American tennis can’t be overlooked. The role of parents. Connors (mother ), McEnroe (father), Evert (father), Aggassi (father, brother), and the Williams’ sisters, are ample proof that the tremendous role of parents in the development of Championship level American players. 

Mr. Williams certainly gets the award for “out of the box” results. To train one child to be #1 in the world is amazing, but #1 and #2 at the same time is un- precedented. And done without normal routes of American Junior play and USTA super-support says a lot. I have to say I was disappointed by the way the Williams sisters were often treated by many in American tennis. 

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FEB. 2022

Being a tennis teacher/coach,  the film’s depiction of how this happened was both interesting and historical.    Much theory about tennis has evolved in the last fifty years.  Mr. Williams taught himself from this explosion.   Pronation of the wrist when serving,  open stance forehands,  maximum number of hits and drilling, throwing the racket in service motion, ball can serve targets, etc.

The names of Braden, Macci. many players, country clubs to ghetto,  spot on.

Many have noted tennis at high level is like fighting with rackets  rather than gloves.  How the trainers brought along young boxers was a common part of understanding that losing (particularly singularly ) is tough.  The choice to skip junior tournaments was maybe the most important and unique choice made.  

There was a more important lesson made in the film and in reality.  A bigger lesson.  Richard Williams showed the route to success in American tennis.  Families are our best teachers and coaches and academies.  No one cares like good parents.

Whatever sport , or whether sports, parental leadership works best.

 The Williams family taught a big lesson.  Richards’ father ran from danger.  When Venus was in her darkest moment he ran to her (‘ I have never been more proud of you”).

He risked his life.  He gave his life.  Give him credit.

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Patrick Mouratoglon,  Serena Williams’ tennis coach, said it.  The commentators missed a great chance.  Was the USTA listening closely?  His point about Co Co Gault’s win over Venus Williams was, here is another example of where great American tennis players have come from, then and now.  What better example could you want:  From Richard Williams and Venus and Serena, to 2019 Wimbledon and Co Co and her parents.   The Bryan brothers and their dad,  Isner and his mom, all the  way back to Chris Evert and her father.  Connors and mom.  McEnroe/Father.  No one gives their attention to a child like  parents.   There were five American men entered in the 2019 French Open.  Tiafoe, at #32, was the only seeded American male.  Taylor  Fritz won a first round match.  The rest lost.

For the umpteenth time,  all entities sincerely interested in developing quality American tennis players, should demand a reasonable slice of college tennis scholarships for American students.  Parents need help, a carrot at the end.

Former college tennis players
Jack Kramer, Arthur Ashe, Stan Smith, John McEnroe, Bob and Mike Bryant, Jim Courier, Brad Gilbert, Bill Tilden, Roscoe Tanner, Jimmy Connors, Dennis Ralston, Dick Stockton, Vitas Gerulaitis, Michael Chang, Malavai Washington, Todd Martin, Bob Lutz, Bill Talbert, Tony Trabert,, Vince Spadea, John Isner, Steve Johnson, MANY MORE.