Parents can get a little crazy at tennis tournaments, and there is a good chance that you will see parents get visibly frustrated at just about every tournament match. However, it is essential that you keep your cool while your child is on the tennis court. If you don’t, it can be a HUGE distraction to your child. Causing them to lose focus, and possibly lose the match.
Parents Just Care
All parents just care about their children. Caring a lot can make it difficult to stay calm while your child is battling it out on the court. Tennis is a very rollercoaster sport with a lot of ups and downs, making the ride tough for any invested viewer. Not only that but since you have no control over the outcome, it only makes the match more nerve-racking.
Make sure you take note of how you and other parents are acting. In doing so, you can start to take action to become the kind of spectator you want to be and the one your child deserves. After reading this post, I highly suggest you check out this article posted by USTA Florida. It’s a story about an above-average high school athlete, her super involved-competitive dad and the consequences in high school sports.
Nerves
Just like how your child has to play tournaments to get more comfortable competing in them, YOU have to go to tournaments to get more comfortable watching them. Even so, your child will probably settle into a match quicker then you will settle into watching it. Here are a few tips to help get you over your nerves.
Watch T.V., Read a Book, or Do Some Work
Most clubs have a television in the area you will be spectating. Watching T.V can be a great way to take some of your attention off the match and allow you to calm down if you’re getting too nervous. If the tennis facility doesn’t have a T.V. (Most outdoor tournaments), then bring a book. It is much less nerve-racking to keep track of just the set score then it is to watch every point of the match.
A lot of tennis clubs now have wifi making it easy for you to bring your laptop or tablet to get some extra work done. Matches can take a while to complete, and if your child plays more than one, it can be a solid chunk of time to catch up on some work. Again, it is much easier on the nerves to just watch the set scores then watch the entire match.
You should work towards watching more and more of the matches as you get more comfortable at tournaments. But don’t think you have to be fully invested in every point of every match.
Charting
Charting is when you take statistics of a match. Many parents have told me that charting helps detach them from the outcome of the points making watching a game much more relaxed. It also allows you to stay objective and come away with some feedback to give your kid and their coach afterward. If you’re interested in charting, you can check out our post on it here. In the article, we break down charting step by step and give you a couple of beginner charts that are easy to use.
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