Tennis lovers can now hope for int’l level coaching in city
Eminent coach and founder of World Class Tennis Ltd Aubrey Barret wants to set up a coaching centre in Lucknow.
LUCKNOW: Good news for tennis lovers! Eminent tennis coach and founder and CEO of World Class Tennis Ltd Aubrey Barret who has coached tennis stars like Andy Murray and Alex Bogdanovic at some point in their career, wants to set up a tennis coaching centre in Lucknow. Barrett was born in Bareily and brought up in Lucknow. He has come here to look for an opportunity to take sports in the city to a new level, as he has done in the UK and the US for past 50 years.
LUCKNOW: Good news for tennis lovers! Eminent tennis coach and founder and CEO of World Class Tennis Ltd Aubrey Barret who has coached tennis stars like Andy Murray and Alex Bogdanovic at some point in their career, wants to set up a tennis coaching centre in Lucknow.
Barrett was born in Bareily and brought up in Lucknow. He has come here to look for an opportunity to take sports in the city to a new level, as he has done in the UK and the US for the past 50 years.
Presently, he is also helping Indian tennis star Rohan Bopanna in his tennis academy in Bengaluru, where he is training 60 players who can break into the professional circuit anytime.
Barret is said to be the man who has put a system for tennis development in place in the US and Britain.
He set up the first local authority community tennis programme in the UK, in Hammersmith and Fulham. There, his system helped the authorities to produce some good tennis players, something that became a blueprint for other local authorities.
Talking to Hindustan Times Barret said, “India has a tremendous talent pool but in the absence of a system it is losing 99.99 % of it. Only some individuals who can be counted on fingertips break the barrier to enter the world arena. I was born in India and spent the first 8 years of my life in Lucknow. My father was a superintendent of police and mother was principal of a college. Now I want to give back something to the place where I was brought up as a kid. I want to set up a system here in schools and colleges and start a league for youths to take tennis to the international level.”
He said Indian kids were very talented but lacked proper coaching, fitness, psychology, metal ability and tactical approach to win matches.
“I have started talks with a private university where I can help students in sports. Students who cannot play can study sports medicine, sports physiotherapy, sports psychology, sports media, sports journalism, sports management etc,” he said.
“As an ATP coach I have worked with players as part of a team and individually with the top five in the world. Helping Warren Jacques, ex- British Davis Cup coach, with players like Greg Rusedski, Alex Bogdanovic, Alan Mackin, Jamie Delgado, Connor Niland and Marlene Weingartner was a great experience. I was Davis Cup coach for Ireland- with a 100% record. As a coach on the circuit my players have trained with the best players in the world, such as Novak Djokovic , Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafa Nadal. I want to set up a system in Lucknow so that local players get an opportunity to play and train with the best players in the world,” said Barret.
Remembering his initial years, Barrett said his mother was born in Agra, his father in Dehradun.
“I have memories of a wonderful childhood in Lucknow, riding rickshaws and going for drives in the police jeep with Dad. However, today everything has changed. The city has expanded and life has become so fast. Still Lucknow is much better than an overcrowded Bengaluru.”
“I want an association with La Martiniere College which has a good tennis court. Similarly, all the colleges which want my guidance can approach me,” he said.
Barret also said he wanted to meet sports minister Rajyawardhan Rathore to help India win medals in the Olympics.
› I want to set up a system in Lucknow so that local players get an opportunity to play and train with the best players in the world AUBREY BARRET, renowned tennis coach