Coco Gauff hits big forehand at Wimbledon.
Coco Gauff caught the tennis world’s imagination at Wimbledon this year when she went four rounds, taking out Venus Williams in the first round and finally falling to the eventual winner, Simona Halep, in the 4th round. Not a bad tournament for a 15 year old!
Why do I mention this? What does it have to do with tennis video? Here’s what her father said about the road ahead, what with all the media attention and (I suppose), the marketing opportunities:
“It’s easy for me to stay grounded: You’ve got to go back to looking at film, you’ve got to go back on the things you need to work on to continue to improve,” he said.
Why is it that filming is rarely mentioned for “club” players, but pros use it extensively? Here’s the real reason, in my mind. People feel self-conscious about putting up a camera. It’s as simple as that!
I put up a camera in almost every tournament or league match I play, and I have to admit, even I feel a little self-conscious sometimes. Usually though, I just ask my opponent if they mind if I film the match, and show them how I mount the camera. In eight years, I’ve only had two people say they preferred I didn’t. Most just don’t care, or make jokes. And then 90% of the time, they ask for a copy of the video, which I gladly upload to my Google Drive and share the link. Pretty painless, and most people haven’t ever seen themselves play, and they love it!
Other sports use video all the time to analyze their games and technique. And while tennis is catching on, it’s still a slow go at the club level.
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