There are few feats more difficult than making it as a professional tennis player. Reaching the highest level of play within the sport is an accomplishment that most can only dream of. Among those who do make these dreams a reality, there are certainly common denominators that separate these athletes from the rest of the pack. According to WTA Tour coach Tom Downs, the unquestionable factor is an unparalleled work ethic.
From the moment Downs stepped foot on the court, he was hooked. He began taking tennis lessons from esteemed player and coach David Carswell, but Downs did not revere Carswell for his accomplishments, rather for his ability to relate to his athletes. “David Carswell was a great player and coach, but more importantly, he made me feel like a champion every time I stepped on court. He brought that Aussie spirit to every lesson,” Downs recalled.
Downs eventually went on to compete at the collegiate level, but came to the realization that he did not have the ability to play tennis professionally. Throughout his sophomore and junior years of college, he completed summer internships at Saddlebrook, home of the Harry Hopman Tennis Academy, and discovered he had a love and passion for coaching. “I’ve always been a competitor and I’m a giver by nature, so coaching and I got along just fine,” he said.
Through the years, Downs has seen major success as a coach. He has worked as a WTA Tour coach, the Head Pro and Director of Coaching at the Harold Solomon Tennis Institute and has been instrumental in the progression of many highly successful junior players.
Perhaps the greatest skillset Downs possesses in terms of his coaching style is his ability to develop junior players into high-performing athletes. What are the keys to Downs’ success? The answer is simple: Get to know your player.
“It’s about getting to know the player and understanding the dynamics that go with that particular player and situation,” Downs said. “Each female student is very different. It’s my job to find what works for them. I never have had the attitude, ‘Well I’ve coached Grand Slam champions, so everyone should listen to me.’”
“From a coaching standpoint, I look at what needs to be done and do it. I don’t believe everyone should hit the same forehand, and I understand the importance of getting the balance right between technique, tactics and mental,” Downs explained. “The 360 approach to coaching is something I believe I’ve always brought to each player. What I know I do a very good job at is getting each player to hit the ball very well and play their points the right way, and with the discipline that goes into every shot.”
Nonetheless, not every player will go on to play at the professional level. Downs believes there are certain innate qualities that the best athletes all possess. “I look for traits such as the ability to win close matches, having the willingness, desire and commitment to hit every shot exactly right in practice, not perfectly but exactly right. I also look at a player’s work ethic and how they rebound from losses or losing streaks,” he explained.
Downs also believes that the most successful players are never truly satisfied and are always striving to improve all aspects of their game. “I think all champions need a degree of stubbornness in them. With the great pros and juniors I’ve been lucky enough to work with, the main trait is the discipline that goes into each shot. They really do hit each shot as though it’s the last ball they hit,” he said.
Despite the success Downs has had in developing top juniors into professionals, the triumphs have not come without struggle. “Mental is the biggest hurdle for me. Getting young players to think like champions and understand how successful people think is key,” he said.
“As a coach, the most important trait I try to instill in a player is self-belief,” explained Downs. “It’s important that I give them enough confidence that they can run through walls if needed. It is important for the coach to act confident. It rubs off on the other team members when the leader is confident.”
Once Downs coaches his players to think like champions, he relies on his coaching philosophy of working players both hard and smart and convincing them to play the right way.
“My job is to get the most out of each player,” explained Downs. “My cornerstone is hard work. I like a lot of two-on-ones and intense-pressure competitive drills. I always bring the energy to the court because tennis is a great job. There’s a lot worse jobs out there and I feel lucky to coach tennis for a living.”
Downs has dedicated countless hours of his time coaching to preparing his junior athletes for the challenges of playing at the professional level, both technical and physically as well as mentally.
“I put a lot of focus on the serves of juniors. I focus purely on the development of the player. I’m all about building the weapons,” said Downs. “I believe the serve is the most improved shot in the women’s game. I believe that the girls who can transition from juniors to pros the fastest have the weapons, whether it be a big serve or a big forehand, they have something. It might even be the X factor (knowing and finding ways to win and having the ability to win close sets).”
Mentally, Downs strives to prepare his junior athletes for the overall journey of professional tennis. After all, there is only one player in the entire tournament that can win on any given week. This can be a tough pill to swallow for juniors who have become accustomed to winning.
“They need to understand the overall process and the ups and downs of the pro tour,” explained Downs. “I find that the juniors tend to be more picky about things like having the perfect warm up with only two people on a court, little things like that. The pros, for the most part, rise above that and just get out there and do the work they need to do.”
Whether Downs is preparing a junior athlete for the Tour or for a collegiate career, he adopts the same coaching techniques. “We have a clear plan, we execute the right patterns of play in practice for that player. We hit thousands of balls per day the right way and we hit lots of serves, returns and first balls. We build all parts of the player’s game. At the end of the day, the goal for each player is to the best they can be,” he said.
For all aspiring coaches, Downs offers a simple piece of advice. “Always stay ahead of the game. Never become a complacent coach. You’re either getting better or getting worse as a coach,” he urged.
“At the end of the day, it is all about results. As far as a player and coach go, it is all about trust. The only true way to earn that is to do the work and then see the work pay off in tournaments with great results.”