HKITA Progressive Development System
Stage 3: WORLD-CLASS PERFORMANCE PHASE
Age of Players: 15 - 30+
Years in Phase: 4 - 10+
Learning Theme: Personal Excellence
What We Teach:
Physical Skills
Training should allow for early and late maturing players, but to start with we'll look at an average 15 - 16 (Girl), 17 - 18 (Boy) year old. In general players must work on high intensity individual programs for focusing on explosiveness, endurance, power, strength, flexibility and core stability. All of this is possible once the player is physically mature. At this stage, physical program is one of the most important aspects of a tennis player.
Technical and Tactical
Tactical and technical skills should be developed in the game situation. At this stage all shots should be hit with the appropriate amount of power and spin. A player would be expected to use a variation of different stokes and should be able to adjust their tactics to control points.
Individualized match play
Players will be competing at club, league, county, national and international level. A maximum of 90 individual matches should be played per year.
Mental
The mental game is very important at all ages but vital from here on. Players must want to play and want to win. There's a lot to think about.
Players should:
- Be critically objective about their game
- Be able to control their emotions before, during and after practice and matches
- Arrange practice and contribute to their competitive schedule
- Set quality goals, work to them and evaluate them
- Be independent and responsible
- Self disciplined
- Have positive self talk, confidence, thinking and body language
- Prepared for matches
- Focus on attention control
- Have a natural fighting spirit
- Be courageous
- Have the desire to win well
- Use of rituals, relaxation and visualization techniques
- Be fair
- Have respect for other players, coaches and officials
- Have good behavior on court and in practice
- Have pride in performance
- Pleasant to opponents and officials
- Be able to accept results and move on
Recommended Training Hours - 25 to 35 hours / week.
Other Sports
These would include hockey, basketball, netball, and soccer which help develop co-ordination, speed and endurance. Swimming, dancing, cycling, cross-country will help endurance, balance and co-ordination.
Tournaments and Matches
By 15 - 16 (Girls), 17 - 18 (Boy) a player who wants to reach the top of the game should be involved in setting a tournament schedule. There will be a balance between winning matches which develop confidence and win ranking points, and extending beyond a players comfort zone to gain experience with older and better competitors. About 75% of time is spent playing tournaments.
Type of Instruction & Coaching - High performance coach, Physical and strength conditioning coach, Network of Sports Science specialists.
Type of Competition - ITF Grade A, Future & Challengers, ATP/WTA Tour tournaments, Davis Cup/Fed Cup, Grand Slams, Asian Championship, Asian Games.
Other Stages: