Top prospects guided by ATP coach Coetzee
Namibia’s top tennis prospects recently attended a training camp at the Central Tennis Courts in Windhoek under the guidance of Olympian Jeffrey “Jeff” Coetzee, an acclaimed doubles specialist.
The camp, which ran from Monday to yesterday in Olympia, offered the country’s budding talent one-on-one coaching and group doubles sessions to refine their skills.
Coetzee, a former South African professional who reached a career-high doubles ranking of No. 12 in 2008, won six Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tour doubles titles: three in 2002, two in 2007 and one in 2008.
Since retiring in 2011, he has coached top doubles players, most notably guiding Colombian duo Juan Sebastián Cabal and Robert Farah to two Grand Slam doubles titles (Wimbledon and the US Open) and the world No. 1 ranking in 2019.
He also coached Sania Mirza of India and Bruno Soares of Brazil to the 2014 US Open mixed doubles title.
Namibia has plenty of talent
Speaking to Sport Wrap yesterday, Coetzee highlighted the country’s potential.
“The players are eager to learn, and it’s a pity I can’t stay longer to further develop this talent. If we can run more camps like this, it will greatly benefit them,” he said.
Coetzee added that the camp focused on the fundamentals: footwork, backhands, shot balance and point construction.
“With only three days, it’s difficult to cover everything, but their hunger for knowledge is evident, which I find humbling. I’ve enjoyed every session,” he said.
Asked about areas for improvement, Coetzee emphasised that progress begins with mastering the basics.
“We focused on forehands and backhands because that’s what the players wanted to work on most,” he said.
Holiday side-quest
Coetzee had intended to be on a break from coaching Kazakhstani Anna Danilina and Serbian Olympian Aleksandra Krunić.
Danilina and Krunić reached the Australian Open women’s doubles final last month, won their first Women's Tennis Association (WTA) 1000 title in Doha, and then reached the semi-finals in Dubai.
These results propelled them to career-high doubles rankings of No. 6 and No. 8 as of 23 February.
Other players he currently coaches include Belgian Joran Vliegen and Ecuadorian Diego Hidalgo. Coetzee said he chose Namibia for his holiday to stay closer to home while imparting his knowledge to local prospects.
The camp was made possible by Namibian local coach Jandre Bezuidenhout and Davis Cup captain Gerrie Dippenaar (Coetzee’s former coach), who recommended him for the programme.
Coetzee encouraged the players to be disciplined and to draw inspiration from his own journey, growing up in the small town of O’Kiep and achieving international success despite humble beginnings.
Bezuidenhout heads to Dubai
Among the participants was Namibia’s Senior Women’s Masters champion Joanivia Bezuidenhout, fresh from the International Tennis Federation (ITF) U18 Junior World Tour in Mozambique.
Bezuidenhout also trained with Mozambique’s Davis Cup captain Bruno Figueiredo and will attend another camp next week in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under former Argentina Davis Cup captain Leonardo Alonzo.
“I think it’ll be a great opportunity to take my tennis to another level beyond the Southern African circuit. I want to experience a different region, understand their level, playing style and intensity,” she said.
Seeking sponsors
TSM International Sports sponsored Bezuidenhout’s accommodation and flight to the UAE. She is now seeking sponsors to cover her visa and flight from Windhoek to Johannesburg, which will cost about N$10 000.
Other standout players coached by Coetzee included Joshua Diergaardt, Zéphan van der Westhuizen, Leandre Louw, Secilia Nghitewapo, Janice and Breyton Bezuidenhout, Lazarus Kanelombe, Shafiishuna Shimali, Pameni Paulus, and more.
