Dear Member,
Hope you’ve had a great week. Here’s all the latest news from Rackets Academy. Find out who our Player of the Week is and how our ladies got on in week 8 of the league! We have results from the Red Ball Tournament that took place last weekend and a Tip of the Week & Rule of the Week from Coach Jordan. Find out ‘What’s New’ at the club and don’t forget to sign up for the Mixed Doubles Tournament that’s coming up this weekend. And finally we bid farewell to one of our lovely ladies league members…Read on!
Player of the week
Congratulations to our Player of the Week Meline Spiggen. Meline receives this award for putting up a really good fight in what was a tough match against Andrea Serbu last week. Well done Meline on a great game!
Ladies League results
Well done to all our ladies who played in Week 8 of the Rackets Academy doubles league. Unfortunately Full Metal Rackets suffered a setback in their match when Jacqueline suffered an injury to her shoulder and elbow after a nasty fall. We wish you a speedy recovery Jacqueline and look forward to seeing you back on court in a few weeks. Congratulations to Drop Shots, Venus Angels, Victorious and L&W who won their matches.
A LEAGUE
Full Metal Rackets vs Drop Shots
Line 6-2 1-4 FMR retired (winner: Drop Shots)
Line 2: 2-6 4-6 (winner: Drop Shots)
Overall Winner: Drop Shots
Rackettes vs Venus Angels
Line 1: 5-7 7-5 10-8 (winner: Rackettes)
Line 2: 4-6 2-6 (winner: Venus Angels)
Overall winner: Venus Angels
B LEAGUE
Slice Girls vs Victorious
Line 1: 3-6 4-6 (winner: Victorious)
Line 2: 0-6 0-6 (winner: Victorious)
Overall Winner: Victorious
Baseliners vs L&W
Line 1: 3-6 0-6 (winner: L&W)
Overall Winner: L&W
Results from Red Ball Tournament
Thanks to all the kids who took part in the Red Ball Tournament last weekend; a great afternoon was had by all. Congratulations to our champion Samuel Consunni who beat Rafael Aldemita 10-6 in the final.
Goodbye to Emma Nicholl
This week we bid farewell to Emma Nicholl who is relocating back to the UK at the weekend. The ladies from Emma’s doubles league team, Baseliners, bought her one of our personalised hoodies to keep her warm on court back in the UK. Wishing you all the best Emma, we will miss you but please promise to come back and visit us!!
Upcoming Tournaments
Check out our tournaments that are taking place over the next few weeks. To sign up, call 052 992 8595 TODAY or email register@racketsacademy.ae:
Friday 15th March, 4pm – Mixed Doubles Tournament – Rackets Academy, Motor City
Friday 22nd March, 4pm – Green Ball Tournament – Rackets Academy, Motor City
What’s New?
We are delighted to introduce you to Coach Fuad who joined Rackets Academy this month. From Nigeria with a killer forehand, Fuad has been passionate about tennis since he began playing at the age of 7. Fuad played junior tournaments in Lagos, Abuja, India and Cameroon. Fuad was among his home country, Nigeria’s top junior tennis players by the age of 10, representing Nigeria in the tennis championships. Fuad started coaching 10 years ago in Goa, India part time when he was in college then continued in Lagos, Nigeria and now Dubai. A PTR certified teaching professional, Fuad has served and continues to serve in a variety of roles in the tennis community at both local and state levels. Fuad is knowledgeable, dedicated and passionate about coaching people of all ages, but he particularly takes pride in coaching entry-level players and introducing kids to the game. He brings a unique mix of the highest level of tennis coaching and tennis playing experience to the table.
Easter Tennis & Multi-Sports Kids Camp
Wondering how to keep your kids enteratined over the Easter break? Well we have just the answer! Sign them up to our Easter Tennis & Multi-Sports Camp where they can have fun, burn off some energy and hang out with the other kids.
We’ll be running the camps across 3 locations between 31st March and 11th April:
- Rackets Academy, Motor City
- Fitness First, The Lakes
- Fitness First, Town Centre
Week 1: Sunday 31st March – Thursday 4th April
Week 2: Sunday 7th April – Thursday 11th April
Price: AED 599 per week or AED 130 per day
For more information or to sign up, email register@racketsacademy.ae or call/WhatsApp on 052 992 8595 TODAY. Places are limited.
Rule of the Week: Returning from the wrong side after the point is played
In doubles, if the receiver returns from the wrong side and it is discovered after at least one point is played, the returning team stays at those sides for the remainder of the game and can then switch back to their original sides for all remaining return games in that set.
Coach Jordan’s Tip of the Week: The Split Step
“Tennis players use the split step to establish balance before reacting to the opponent’s shot. Both feet come off the ground and then hit the ground simultaneously. In the past, I have taught my students to do this right as the player is hitting the ball. However, the game has become faster and faster, with very little time in between hits. This means that the split step must occur prior to the opponent’s strike of the ball. If you are at the baseline and have hit a good shot, it is possible to wait until just before your opponent’s contact point to split step. If you are inside the baseline or at the net, the split step should occur right as your opponent starts moving the racket forward.
Keep in mind that if you hit it to the opponent at the net, you need to split step even sooner—I would recommend doing this as your shot is approaching the net. This sounds a little crazy, but you’d rather be stopped and balanced, than moving towards where you think the ball is going to end up. The exception to this split step timing might be when your shot is not hit well and you have to guess where that next shot is going. Hopefully, this will not happen too often.
Trust your reaction time and your ability to prepare quickly and you will reap the benefits of the perfectly timed split step. Good luck!”
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Have a great week!
Rackets Academy