Page 12 - Tennis Magazine April 2019

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Coaching in the Bigs

Knowles, a former top-ranked
doubles player, won 55 career
Understanding, rather than doubles titles, including three
demanding, is essential to a Grand Slams. He has worked with
Mardy Fish, Milos Raonic and is
successful partnership currently coaching Jack Sock.

b y M A R K K N O W L E S

always interesting seeing someone make the transition from player 1. Listen. Understand how each
to coach. Your mindset as a player doesn’t necessarily translate to player operates and how they
IT’S
the next stage, and everyone you coach is different in the way they see things. Only when you’ve
handle instruction. I have some first-hand experience with this. developed that understanding
One of my first coaching assignments was with Mardy Fish. He was a very should you begin to impart your
talented player, but he was encountering some mental issues as far as his knowledge and experience. I’ve
self-belief. It was similar to what I went through my career, especially in never been someone who comes
singles—I let my mind get in the way of my potential. In time, I think I was able to in, full steam ahead, and says,
get him to master that part of the game, and it really helped elevate him. “This is the way it has to be.”
I then worked for a short period of time with Milos Raonic, who was a different 2. Develop long-term goals. All
type of personality. I thought I helped him as well, but our experience illustrated pro tennis players are tremen-
a fascinating thing about coaching to me, especially if you were successful as a dous at what they do. Criticism
player: the challenge of trying to process different personalities, and adapting to isn’t a personal knock, it’s trying
how people take information. Some players want less, others want more. to get the most out of a player so
I started working with Jack Sock in the middle of last year. He’s an immense they can achieve their full
talent; I knew that from watching him play, and also from playing against him potential. Coaching is a process.
during my time on tour. Unfortunately, when I came into the picture, his singles 3. Focus on the physical game,
career was already in a tailspin. When a player is coming back from injury or a too. I’ve helped players with the
period of struggle, you can quickly lose confidence. For Jack, 2018 was mostly mental side of the sport, but
about his mind. He lost a lot of his confidence, and against great players, it there’s more to tennis than just
doesn’t take much of a dip for the rest of the field to gain an advantage. the mind. Jack gained a little of
It really underlies just how difficult it is to be a professional athlete. There his confi dence back at the end
are so many different aspects that come into play—it’s not just the game; it’s of 2018, which set him up for an
handling different situations, and how you deal with pressure. I thought that was off-season where he worked hard
something Jack needed assistance with, and it’s been our main focus. on his physicality. We’ve still got
My coaching philosophy is tailored to each player I work with, but here are work to do to get to where condi-
three things I’ve worked on with everyone. tions don’t come into play.

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