I really only had one young student who I thought had pro potential. But, regardless, I've always given students and parents more reasonable expectations when their expectations significantly exceeded talent.
You should know that ever since Kournikova became a model, it's unfashionable to accept that she was a good tennis player. I bet it will be the same with Bouchard. And the fact that she made RG semis and Wimbledon final will be completely forgotten. If somebody beat Halep and Kerber in the same tournament, you can't argue she was NEVER good.
Wow, that's some thick snake-oil from Macci: "Behind every kid that goes onto greatness, there has to be parental involvement". I heard that Sampras' father didn't particularly care when he told him he had won the US Open? And all Raducanu got was a hug and homemade dumplings.Here is the original 2012 video of this prodigy.
Gabriella Price: The Next Great Tennis Star
Venus, Serena, Maria—and in the near future, Gabriella. Thirteen-year-old Gabriella Price has an opportunity to be the next tennis sensation...bleacherreport.com
That's entirely different from what you see in the video with Price's father. He is saying there that he wants her success as much as the kid herself, overruling his wife's warnings not to live his dreams vicariously through her. That's where I am comparing them with Sampras or Raducanu's parents.
No, I don't have to trust you and I don't think tennis parents or parents of prodigies are all alike. Seles' father was nothing like Graf's. There is a difference between encouraging and nurturing the talented child and doing backseat driving. Price's father was doing that and Macci appeared to be endorsing that.
No, that's just believing in the possibility that your child may with your support become a star in tennis. Even if it's crazy in terms of betting the house on very long odds, it's not harmful to the child in and of itself. Carping non stop as Gabby Price plays another junior on video is. I have a tennis mom in extended family and I believe she is part of the reason her child sees tennis as a chore and a bore now.
That's neither here nor there. Firstly, you weren't at their dinner table either. You are just making a supposition that all tennis parents are the same. Secondly, even if he did yell once or twice at Sampras, it wouldn't by itself make him as obsessive as Father Price. Wait, are you the girl's father and does that explain your keenness to argue this in his favour?
As I said in an earlier moment, I am not implying that a kid can make it without parental support but that parental support doesn't have to involve bearing down on the kid and living with his/her practice every moment. That's what Price's father was doing and Macci was endorsing that (probably because it was good publicity for his academy).
That comment of mine too was in response to the video and not a general comment on parental involvement. If Mr Macci doesn't issue any critique of Price's behaviour, I am inclined to take his statement to mean he thinks this is how tennis parents should be.
It is conjecture at the end of the day but what I saw in the video and read in the NPR interview suggests somebody who was going over the tipping point.
This one which was already posted in this thread:
www.npr.org
This one which was already posted in this thread:
Parents Of Child Prodigies Face Difficult Choices
On Morning Edition this week, David Greene has been reporting on child prodigies. He now talks to two parents, the mother of a teenage computer wonder and the father of a pint-sized tennis phenom.
Read here. To me (put together with the video), it sounds a lot like he is telling himself that he is not pushing her hard. And it sounds like his wife tried before to tell him to take it easy and found he wouldn't listen.
" Well, listen, I was never on Gabriella at four and five years - I mean, I used to train her at four and five, but it didn't get - it wasn't a crazy environment. It was a very easygoing environment, and let's just be disciplined and let's do the right thing on the court. And even though she was really good at seven, her footwork needed work. Her forehand needed work. Her backhand needed work. Her serve needed work. But, you know, she embraced it. She enjoyed it. She enjoys tennis. "
It's like Gabby is too young to know she needs all this training but she is certainly not too young to know she enjoys all the pressure. Yeah, somehow that's supposed to work.
I regret many things I tried particularly in my youth and quitting a job for a reason that looked good at that time is one of them.
Dominika Cibulkova is former #4, earned so far 13 millions and is pretty happy with her 5"3.
She's be way happier if she was three inches taller.
Not easy for women 5'6" and shorter to succeed in the WTA. But it is possible. Justine Henin, Simona Halep, Chris Evert & BJK all about that height or shorter. Leylah Fernandez is also 5'6"
Ashley Barty is less than 2 inches taller than Price.
She is no Barty.
Michael Chang was the same height. Won RG & reached #2. Olivier Rochus at 5’5” made the top 25 in 2005. David Ferrer at 5’9” was #3 in 2013. Kei Nishikori, only 1” taller, reached 4 in 2015.
Yeah, I'd love to see this kid do well, Schwartzman is only 5'7" and has been in the top ten, it's just tough, was watching Mackie McDonald play against Zverev today and I feel like if Mackie was 6 foot he'd be ranked higher.
I hear this diagologue from a lot of parents pushing their kids in primarily individual sports. Track and field is another example and when you bring up another sport that the kid might be interested in. You get this same cadre of words. We let Johnny decide we don’t decide for him. Meanwhile they push him into training everyday because they compete weekends, even traveling across the country. It’s a long grind for the kid and the parents think they are just being good parents.
And she looks like a super model.
@navigator
Anyone recall 5-year old tennis phenom, Jan Silva back in 2007/08? Everyone had assumed he would be playing ATP level tennis in his late teens. His family even moved for to France for a while to train with Patrick Mouratoglou.
But it appears that he that he peaked quite young. He was only a three-star recruit for college. He ended up playing for Sac State, a D1 school.
Whatever happened to … Jan Silva? – Open Court
opencourt.ca
www.today.com
I remember reading about this girl about 5 years ago (this article, in fact) and thinking, Her Dad is completely insane (possibly Mom, too, it's hard to tell).
9-Year-Old Tennis Sensation Gabby Price Is Already Being Compared To Jennifer Capriati
The first time Gabby Price had a tennis ball lobbed in her direction, she mustered all the strength a 4-year-old possibly could and sent the ball screfeeds.thepostgame.com
Fast forward to the present day and she's 18 years old and ranked ~700 WTA. She's 5'3", wears a knee brace and has had pretty serious injuries to her back and ankles. She's getting shellacked routinely at the equivalent of Challengers-level events. Now, don't get me wrong, 700 WTA at 18 years of age is still pretty impressive (and she'll likely improve). But clearly this whole adventure has been a disappointment relative to years-ago expectations. She'll probably be an excellent college player if she goes that route (there's still time). But undersized and injury-prone at 18 does not bode well for a professional tennis career regardless of Dad's inflated desires.
Interestingly, the hagiographic articles about her stopped appearing around three years ago, likely around the time she stopped growing and started getting injured. Regardless, good luck, kiddo!
I'd be curious to know how much money the parents have put into this project... hopefully a college scholarship will make it worthwhile.
Uummm... $4 million from tennis and $60 million total (rest from endorsements).