A restful night's sleep, a delicious breakfast at the hotel, and then it was off again to the Kempinski Hotel for the first training session at the Junior Tennis Camp at the Alexander Waske Tennis University at 9 a.m. The two young tennis players were a bit tired, but after a 30-minute warm-up, they were back in action.
After a relaxed warm-up, during which coach Ivana consistently emphasized slowing the pace and playing with more spin and consistency, the session moved on to various drills focusing on "getting in and out of the court" with both the forehand and backhand. The overarching principle was "consistency" – maintaining consistency in everything you do. Short, quick steps, body stability, and sufficient spin on the shots – that was the recipe for success! The session concluded with another drill where the players practiced the techniques they had learned, competing against each other for points with specific targets.
What was interesting was that the hall was suddenly filled with 10 Indian tennis coaches receiving training from a coaching team from the Tennis University. The coaches are here for a total of two months for their training. They will then teach at the Indian branch of the Alexander Waske Tennis University near Mumbai, using the Tennis University's principles. A fascinating experience and very fun colleagues!
We spent our lunch break from 11 am to 1 pm in the gallery assigned to us in the hotel. Well, it wasn't exactly cozy, but we already realized yesterday that as tennis players, we should only stay in "certain areas and on certain paths".
In the afternoon, tennis training continued with Kenta from New Zealand . The focus was again on consistency – consistency in length, direction, and pace. Various drills were used to systematically work on these factors. The intensity on the court was high. During the breaks, Kenta provided plenty of tactical and strategic explanations. The kids were incredibly attentive! Unfortunately, I couldn't interview Kenta today, as he had another training session immediately afterward – but I'll do it again soon!
Also of interest: on the adjacent court, 15-year-old Paul was training again today. He has been training regularly at the Tennis University since the beginning of the year and lives near the Offenbach base. He also attends the Kurpfalz-Gymnasium in Mannheim once a week and prioritizes tennis – a model that is currently very common.
The fitness session isn't until 6 pm this evening – so we've gone back to the hotel. It's time to chill and relax for now, before things get intense again this evening.
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