ITF CENTRAL ASIAN TRAINING CAMP, UZBEKISTAN
15th July 2010

Following the success of the Central Asian Training camp held in Uzbekistan for the two consecutive years, a training camp for the Central Asian region was once again organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) in partnership with the Asian Tennis Federation and the Uzbekistan Tennis Federation from 24 June – 3 July 2010.

The training camp was held at the Namangan Tennis Center in an 8court facility which also has a swimming pool and a gym. Approximately 32 participants from the Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and host nation Uzbekistan took part in the training camp. Suresh Menon, ITF Development Officer for Asia and ITF expert, Kawaljeet Singh conducted the training camp which was divided into five days of intensive training followed by three days of competition.

The training camp focused on both technical and tactical training including the five game situations in tennis. The camps daily program began with an initial warmup which included dynamic stretching and various games/exercises to improve motor skills. Each evening the participants were subjected to intensive physical condition which included speed, strength, flexibility and endurance. The players were then put into groups according to their playing level in order to ensure that the sessions were effective and challenging. The coaches
from the participating nations were also each assigned to a court and were then responsible for keeping the players active throughout the sessions by showing them different drills. If a player showed improvement and determination they were then moved up to a higher group or vice versa.

Unlike two years ago, the temperature was more moderate and the players had no difficulty coping with the heat. The sessions in the morning began at 8am and ended between 111130 whist in the afternoon training began either at 4 or 430 and ended between 7.30 or 8. The afternoon sessions focused more on tactical training and match play situations.

The camp proved to be very successful and there were positive comments from many of the coaches who attended the camp. A.Bayaramov, from Turkmenistan said: “This is my first experience being involved in a training camp and I gained tremendous amount of information. I hope to repeat these training practices when I return home.

The 2 girls from Kazakhstan, Yekaterina and Anastasiya said: “We had so much fun at this training camp that we looked forward to each training session. So many different exercises and fun games that it made training so enjoyable. We feel that we have improved a lot in such a short time. We just wish that the training can be done in a similar fashion we are back training in our country.Igor Shelyakin who had recently attended the Level 1 course and had successfully competed it commented, “I feel I am a much better coach after undergoing the Level 1 course. My players are performing better and now with the information I have attained at this camp, it can only further help to be a more complete coach. It’s been a fantastic experience and I would love to participate in more such ITF training camps”.

During the last three days of the camp a team competition similar to the Davis Cup format was organized. The participants were separated into 2 Groups. Group A consisted of the stronger players. Each group consisted of 4 teams with 4 team members. A tie between teams consisted of 4 singles matches and 1 doubles match. A round robin format was introduced and each team played a total of 3 ties over the 3 days. This format was done in order to instil a develop team spirit,camaraderie and a send of identity. The players seemed to enjoy this form of competition. The participants were seen to vigorously support their teammates.

Marat Khabbulin, Director of the Namagan tennis centre was full of praise for the training camp: “The coaches were given the opportunity to be more creative in their coaching. They were able to use equipment such as thrown down lines and air zone nets, which are not available in Central Asia, to make the training sessions more enriching. It was a wonderful and unique opportunity for both the players and coaches to be exposed to modern methods of training. The best part of it is that despite the intensive sessions which could be quite exhausting; the participants remained enthusiastic and motivated and kept up the energy for the duration of the camp. I also liked the format of the team tournament.

Commenting on the success of the training camp, ITF Expert, Kawaljeet Singh said: “Despite the rigorous training that the kids were put through, they seem to enjoy every moment of it and were all smiles at the end of the day. More importantly they seemed to appreciate the training and kept saying that they were looking forward to the next session which is very rewarding for the ITF experts”.Uzbekistan being one of the most developed tennis nations in Central Asia plays a pivotal role in tennis development in the region. Igor Shepelev, General Secretary of the Uzbekistan Tennis Federation was grateful to the ITF for organizing this project in Uzbekistan. “Such a camp allows the coaches and players to be exposed to better training techniques and to identify talented players. Uzbekistan is always ready to be a partner with the ITF to help develop tennis in the Central Asian Region”.

Paes-Black win Wimbledon mixed doubles title
5 Jul 2010

LONDON: Leander Paes notched up his 12th Grand Slam title after he and his Zimbabwean partner Cara Black clinched the Wimbledon mixed doubles championship with a straight set victory on Sunday.

Last year's runners-up and second seeds Paes and Black beat 11th seeds South African-American pair of Wesley Moodie and Lisa Raymond 6-4, 7-6 (5) in the finals.

With this win, Paes now have 12 Grand Slam titles -- six men's doubles and six mixed doubles Grand Slam crowns -- one more than his estranged men's doubles partner and fellow Indian Mahesh Bhupathi.

Paes and Black, who put up an impressive performance coming into the final, broke their rivals thrice and pocketed the first set 6-4 in just 37 minutes.

The first set featured as many as five breaks of serve, including one for every player in the first five games.

The second set, which turned out to be a grueling affair, saw both the parties held their serves, although both Black and Raymond each struggled in one game.

The Indo-Zimbabwean pair had earned a break point in the seventh game but couldn't convert it. In the next game, Wesley and Lisa also failed to covert a break point as the set went into a tie-breaker after a 6-6 stalemate.

In the thrilling tie-breaker, the South African-American pair moved into the 4-2 lead but Paes and Black made a successful comeback with some sharp returns and surged ahead 6-5 before the Indian sealed the resounding victory with a volley at the net.

Paes and Black had each won the title before with different partners.

Paes has lifted the trophy twice previously - with Martina Navratilova in 2003 and Lisa Raymond in 1999 - while Black won it with brother Wayne in 2004

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