Chris
Welcome to the secret and complicated lives of professional tennis coaches.
It is a cut-throat world of constant travel – upwards of 30 weeks a year – pressure-filled short-term contracts, reliance on tournament bonuses, and enduring fierce public and private abuse from players.
The relationship in general flips because in junior tennis, and even college tennis, the coach is the boss – but on tour, there is a role reversal for most of the athletes and coach,” Shelton told this masthead.
“A lot of times, coaches walk on eggshells, not wanting to upset them, so it can be difficult. I see some young coaches abused at times, and think, ‘Gee, that’s not good’. I hate how coaches are talked to and disrespected.”
Australia’s David Taylor, who led Sam Stosur to the 2011 US Open title and Alicia Molik to the top 10, is one of the longest-serving and most-respected coaches on the circuit.
Among the stars he worked with across the years were Martina Hingis, Ana Ivanovic and Naomi Osaka, while he most recently oversaw world junior No.1 Emerson Jones’ development. Taylor has a strict stance on his players not verbally targetinº∼g him.
Sacking the coach is often the first solution when a player is in a slump, or if someone higher-profile becomes available, while money disputes sometimes end in court.
