SETTING UP PRACTICE MATCHES
by Clement Darko, Associate Professional

A majority of our academy kids are content at attending academy sessions twice weekly, taking private lessons once a week, and participating in tournaments on weekends. While admirable, they lack the responsibility, self discipline, maturity and motivation to take the initiative to set up practice matches without a coach organizing them.

Practice matches are the cornerstone in building your game by developing the confidence to execute a variety of shot selections. In practice matches you can be fully relaxed because you don’t worry about results but on executing tactics and strategies. When playing matches with a purpose, you'll find it has significant impact on your ability to raise the level of your game when it counts; i.e. in a real match.

When setting up practice matches, try to find a variety of players to hit against. Each individual has a different style of play and you need to adapt efficiently against all game styles. Try to play half of your practice matches against people of equal abilities. The rest of your matches should be split half against players worse than you and half better than you. This way, you get a variety of matches and playing styles to help you improve your game.

Our students that desire and inspire to play college tennis need to adequately practice four maybe five times a week. Our academy structure is not designed for any groups to meet four or five times a week. So kids need to take the initiative to call friends to set up practice matches which also instill in them discipline, self motivation and goal achievement.

Parents play a vital role in their kid’s development and have to push to encourage their kids to practice with others without it being organized by pros. Such encouragement instills self discipline in your child at a younger age, which stays with them as they get older. Plus it is cost effective on parents when kids practice with each other.

Our elite kids demonstrate their self motivation by practicing with each other regularly. This should be emulated by our younger lower level academy students as well.