9. LONG DAYZZZ

As I have said in other blogs, life on the tennis tour always sounds like a glamorous gig but trust me, I know from experience that it is not! So much time is simply spent hanging around, killing time, waiting for matches to start and finish. The days can be long and if you are lack the ability to fill empty time then simply do not go on the tour or travel with a player!

A typical day will be made up of meals, practice, a match (or two), pre- and post-match stretching/fitness, and of course, some sleep. The rest of the day you are waiting around for courts, transport, stringers, and meals – and if you are really lucky, you might squeeze in a trip to the local laundrette to clean your kit ready for the next day. Then there are of course the inevitable rain delays (at outdoor tournaments) and time to kill whilst courts dry and become re-playable. Tennis players (and their support staff) become experts at playing cards, texting, browsing social media sites, napping, and watching online movies. Sounds like fun? Try doing it week in week out – it’s tough! 

Some of the more intellectual or inquisitive players choose to study online whilst playing the tour and others especially whilst in juniors, may have homework and assignments to complete but for the majority, the days are spent doing very little in between matches as you are tied to the club and your time is dictated to by match and practice schedules. The longest days are the ones where you have no match. You still need to practice so have to go to the club, which leaves little time for any sightseeing or downtime away from the courts. But I guess, the tour isn’t meant to be a holiday. The players are there to work and develop their craft. Each day is a work day – each tournament building and developing the players’ career. But the work day of an elite tennis player is certainly very different from that of an office worker, a teacher, doctor, lawyer, engineer etc. 

Even when not at tournaments, the average day of an elite tennis player is not akin to that of any other kind of worker. Many friends and acquaintances of myself and my player, seem to think that when my player is at home/back at base, she spends her days shopping, drinking coffee and socialising when actually it could not be further from the truth. Even when at home, the days are packed with on and off court training; mental/psychological work; physio appointments and rehab; on top of all the usual activities that fill our everyday lives (paying bills, doing laundry, doctor and dentist appointments etc). 

It is this misunderstanding or lack of appreciation that makes it hard sometimes for athletes to maintain friendships out with their chosen sport. So, it is important as a junior player progresses with her sport that she is aware that friends will come and go depending upon their ability to understand the demands and nature of the player’s atypical life. Many young players will struggle with this and I am sure that tennis loses quite a few promising athletes who cannot resist the pull of a more ‘normal’ life but a player who is committed will happily sacrifice the ‘norm’ and will like the challenge of the tour life. 

So, in terms of advice, do not go on the tour – as a player or a parent – if you are not able to cope with the demands of the tour life. And if you do decide to take this route, take some good books; subscribe to Netflix/Amazon Prime; download some good tunes; and be prepared to spend a lot of your days killing time!  The upside however, is that you get to watch some great matches and upcoming players and of course, if the sun is shining there is always the chance of a spot of sun bathing!

******************************************************

If you have enjoyed this blog, please follow, share and read more at http://www.realitytennis.WordPress.com and subscribe to receive e mail notification of upcoming blogs as they are released. Follow also at:

Twitter: @realitytennis

Instagram: realitytennis

If you have similar stories to share, please feel free to e mail the author at: sallyappleton64@gmail.com