Last week we had the pleasure of training with a group of players from Wadebridge Tennis Club ‘Just Tennis’ in Cornwall, in England. They joined our academy for a full-time group programme. It consisted of two hours, one hour of fitness and one hour of mental training in the morning and two hours of tennis followed by a cool-down in the afternoon.

Playing on clay is a completely different type of experience when compared to a hard-court or grass court game. For players, who are not used to this type of surface, it is both challenging and exciting. Importantly, it helps them work on and develop different types of on-court skills, such footwork and movement, physical resistance, tactics as well as a variety of mental attributes.

Clay brings out players’ tough side. During long rallies they need to stay strong, remain patient and rely heavily on their physical conditioning. Stamina and resistance are key to sustaining these long exchanges, which differs significantly from faster surfaces. Finally, clay requires a distinct type of approach in terms of tactics and as such pushes players to develop new ideas on how to work their way through long and physically demanding matches.

It was truly great to have Wadebridge TC players and coaches here and we hope they will be able to join us again for training!