Control the Controllables

John Cavill is an inspiration to us all, as he creates opportunities for coaches and clubs across the UK through bringing remote ‘tennis’ classes to thousands and thousands of school kids in the UK. This is where it all starts in our sport. Not only has the initiative created lots of local media attention but John has recently featured on BBC Breakfast, BBC Look East and ITV Anglia. Tennis Works is now involved in raising funds for Comic Relief through the Red Nose Tennis Challenge and hope that children and adults across the country will get involved.Listen to how John is now working with over 2000 schools a week through lockdown and get involved in his Red Nose Day challenge!Email John to get involved in the Red Nose Day Challenge: [email protected] can donate to the Red Nose Day Challenge here:https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/tennisu-rednoseday21Facebook: www.facebook.com/TennisUnlockedTwitter: @tennisunlockedInstagram: @tennis.unlocked

The Godfather of tennis comes to help us celebrate our 100th episode of the podcast. The coach to many, namely, Agassi, Seles, Rios, Courier, Arias, Sharapova, Becker..The list goes on. The man who changed the landscape of Tennis Academies globally. This is not a one to miss.. Enjoy 😊Twitter: @nickbollettieriInstagram: @officialnickbollettieriFacebook: @nickbollettieriIMG Academy: www.imgacademy.comBollettieri Tennis and Learning, the inner city program that Nick founded: www.officialbtl.com

Borna Coric is coming to the peak of his career on the ATP Tour with a current ranking of 24 in the world and a career high of 12. He gives us insights that we rarely get into a player ‘in’ their career. Insights into his development and continued growth to his opinions on who is really the GOAT! This is a brilliant listen. Enjoy 😊

Craig Veal is the current coach to WTA Doubles 15 in the world Alexa Guarachi. Alexa just last week won the WTA 1000 in Dubai with her partner Darija Jurak.Craig is 30 and has already worked at all levels of the sport. He tells us his story and many great insights and learnings along his coaching journey to date. Enjoy 😊Twitter: @craigveal90Linkedin: linkedin/in/craig-veal

In 2016, British tennis player Marcus Willis rose to fame with one of the most memorable runs to the 2nd round of Wimbledon in the tournament´s history.In just a few weeks the 25-year-old went from giving up tennis and coaching part-time to ´chancing his arm´ at Wimbledon Pre Qualifying. He was the last man to get into the event at a ranking of 772 ATP. 7 matches later he had won through pre-qualifying, qualifying and his first round Main Draw before finding himself up against Roger Federer on Centre Court.Now 30, Marcus has this week announced his retirement from tennis. Listen to him discuss the reasons for his decision, his reflections on his career, and the complexities of the sport before and after that euphoric moment at Wimbledon. This episode has so many great learnings for us all. Enjoy 😊Twitter: @Willbomb90Apple Podcast: What you talking about Willis?Check out the online courses and programmes available for players and coaches at SotoTennis Academy Online 

Britain´s Dom Inglot has been as high as 18 ATP Doubles, is a Davis Cup Winner, and Grand Slam Semi-Finalist, but he is much more. He is a smart, articulate man who discusses many topics with Dan including self awareness, US College, dumping partners and so much more. This episode was recorded live from SotoTennis Academy in Spain where Dom is training as he prepares for the Andalucia Open ATP event in Marbella. A great listen for aspiring players, parents and coaches. Enjoy!Twitter: @dominglotInstagram: @dominglot

Eleanor Preston is the Director of The Emilia Group which is a PR and Media company in sport, but mainly in tennis. She has years of experience which includes Journalism, Broadcasting, Agent to the late Elena Baltacha, and multiple years at the Olympics and all the Grand Slams making sure all is working well behind the scenes. In this episode, Eleanor shares her stories and insights from it all. Enjoy 😊Twitter: @eleanorpresThe Emilia Group:Website: www.theemiliagroup.comTwitter: @TheEmiliaGroup

Tom Hill aged 25 from the UK is the coach to WTA 22nd in the world Maria Sakarri. How you may ask? We unlock this and so much more with stories from his hitting partner days, his IMG Academy days, his time coaching Danielle Collins and much more. You get out what you put in. EnjoyTwitter: @Hill_Thomas

The Skupski brothers are back playing together on the ATP Tour 2021 after a couple of years where Neal player with Jamie Murray. We here all about the split, the realities at the top level of the doubles tour and why the boys are back together.. Oh and their opinions and facts shared on the quarantine in Australia right now the Aus Open 2021. Are the players or Aus Open negligent to the Quarantine challenges?

Mark Petchey is a former top 100 ATP player, former British Number 1. He went on the be the Head of Men’s Tennis at the LTA before coaching Andy Murray as he transitioned from 350 to top 50 ATP. His last 15 years have been spent mainly on our screens as a SKY, BBC, Amazon Prime Commentator and pundit with a small stint coaching Maria Sakarri. His daughters both have US College scholarships, so he truly has seen tennis from all sides. A great listen

Dasha Kasatkina has been talked about as one of the biggest up and coming stars on the WTA Tour with a final in Indian Wells and back to back Quarter Finals at French Open and Wimbledon moving her to top 10 aged 21. Then expectation hit and the last 2 years haven’t been quite the same due to not being ready to handle that pressure, but the comeback to the top of the game is on! She discusses it all. Enjoy ☺️

David Walsh is the Chief Sports Writer at the Sunday Times. He is famously known for his successful pursuit of justice with cyclist Lance Armstrong and his doping charges. David continued to track the truth down despite Armstrong throwing all of his power at him and the Sunday Times. His work outside of this continues to be commendable including ghost writing for Kevin Pietersen´s autobiography and to come soon, research into the great Tom Brady. This is a must listen, enjoy 😊Twitter: @DavidWalshSTBook: Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance ArmstrongMovie: The Program (Available on Netflix)

We have a panel of Anne Keothavong, Naomi Broady, Xavier Malisse and Freddie Nielsen to preview the Australian Open. From current news in Melbourne, to their favourite Aussie Open stories. We then dig into their picks for this years event and also their ‘watch out’ outsiders for both the Women’s and Men’s events. The episode is full of fun, insight and knowledge. Enjoy 😊

This podcast is a review of Control the Controllables in 2020. We discuss our favourites pods, our learnings and what you can expect for 2021 from the podcast. Can we also take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy new year and a year of health and happiness.

Oli Golding is a US Open Junior Singles Champion. He was a childhood star on the stage, including the West End and he now works at Santander Bank. We discuss the challenges of the journey, and his reflections on why he didn’t succeed to the dizzy heights that all had planned for him in the tennis world, but was it all a waste of time? Fanatic honest reflections that will resonate with many.

Xavier Malisse is a former top 20 ATP player who made the semi-finals of Wimbledon in 2002. He had wins over Roger Federer,Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in his career. Xavier discusses his journey into tennis, his regrets, his honest reflections on whether his talent level was lived up too. Great stories and insights from a brilliant tennis player and an even better person. Enjoy 😊

John Morris is a sports agent who currently works at the LJ Sports Group with Ivan Ljubicic. He was Nick Kygrios’s agent for 10 years and shares many stories from the tour, as well as valuable insights and dos and donts for young players. A great listen!Read full show notes here.Links & ResourcesControl the Controllables: Website | Instagram | EmailLJ Sports Group websiteFollow John Morris on TwitterSotoTennis Academy website

Young British player Jodie Burrage is already 250 WTA. She has been through 3 major surgeries, but has developed a maturity and resilience from this that puts her in a great place. She discusses how that mindset changed and how her love for the sport developed in a humble yet insightful way. Enjoy

Jez Green has been working as a top physical conditioning specialist for more than 20 years on the ATP & WTA Tour.During this time he´s worked with Tomas Berdych, the USTA, and Harvard University, but he´s best known for his work with Andy Murray, helping him to 2 Grand Slam wins and an Olympic Gold medal.Jez has been working with Alexander Zverev since 2015.In this episode Jez looks back at all this and more. He goes into amazing detail around philosophy, preparation around Murray and Zverev and so much more. A real treat!Read full shownotes here.Connect with Control the Controllables: Website | Instagram | Email

A former World Number 6 in singles and 9 in doubles. A quite incredible record which includes wins over Bjorn Borg and Roger Federer with so many in between. He discusses it all. The Olympic highs and lows and we get to see into a mind of a champion as a player and now as a coach to Frances Tiafoe. An amazing listen

Lloyd Glasspool is a former NCAA champion and is currently 150 ATP Doubles. He has partnered Dan Evans, Jamie Murray and Andy Murray in recent months. his journey from quiet teen to pro player who is also studying his MBA is full of great lessons and stories

Steve and Matt are the Directors of Active Away. Both had strong tennis coaching careers at clubs, with the LTA and made the decision to set up their own Business running Tennis Holidays. Business as slow, so they decided to apply to the BBC show, Dragons Den. See what happens and much more during the podcast. A great story

Allistair McCaw has dedicated his life to high performance through working with world class athletes including Xavier Malisse and Kevin Anderson on the fitness side of their game. This has evolved into mindset training and now an author to 3 books. In this episode Allistair talks through his story which may surprise many and how those lessons have been transferred into his philosophy. Life lessons, emotion and so much more.Website: www.allistairmccaw.comInstagram: @bechampionmindedBooks: www.allistairmccaw.com/booksDonate to the STA Christmas Dinner Challenge here.

Nick Weal has spent the last 35 years as a Grand Slam Player, Grand Slam Coach and GB Davis Cup Coach and is now in charge of the LTA Coach Education. He shares his experiences, his vision, his opinions and more in an educational and entertaining podcast.

James Auckland is a former British Number 1 Doubles Player with a highest ATP Ranking of 57. We discuss his journey and how the key failures led to the passion and fire to drive and ‘prove people wrong’. This led him to playing doubles with his good friend Andy Murray and a win over the great Rafael Nadal. He now spends his days increasing participation in the sport and throwing that same passion at the grass roots level. As per mentioned in this Episode, here’s the LINK to have a preview and sign up option to STA’s Online Courses ➡️ https://sototennis-academy.teachable.com/courses

Anne Keothavong is the GB Billie Jean King Cup Captain, and former British number 1. She reached a high of 48 in the world WTA during her career. Anne shares her story, from the big impact of her parents and upbringing, to the trials and tribulations of pro tennis. She has gone onto commentate for BT Sport and is now driving the culture for the national team. She shares openly and with great humility and we know you will love the show. Enjoy 😊 Follow Anne on Twitter: @annekeothavong As mentioned in this episode, here’s the link to preview and sign up option to SotoTennis Academy´s Online Courses.

Iain Bates has gone from promising junior to University lecturer to Team GB Manager in the Olympics and is now LTA Head of Women’s Tennis. A great journey and by his own admission he is a ‘thinker’ and gives us his thoughts on many topics within tennis. A great listen. As per mentioned in this Episode, here’s the LINK to have a preview and sign up option to STA’s Online Courses ➡️ https://sototennis-academy.teachable.com/courses

Dave Sammel was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa. He has spent his 30 years as a coach in the UK working with some of the best players in GB. He is currently Liam Broady´s coach.  Dave has strong views, and clear philosophies which have proven to work and they will also provoke thought. Enjoy a great listen.  Twitter: @davesammel As mentioned in this Episode, here’s the LINK to have a preview and sign up option to STA’s Online Courses ➡️ https://sototennis-academy.teachable.com/courses

Fabio Mole set up Functional Tennis 4.5 years ago and it’s now one of the biggest online tennis platforms out there. Fabio talks through his journey from the Astro courts in Ireland to his fast food business, to Christmas jumpers before heading back to tennis where his true love is. How do you make a living through social media? Is it sustainable? Find out more... enjoy 😊 As per mentioned in this Episode, here’s the LINK to have a preview and sign up option to STA’s Online Courses ➡️ https://sototennis-academy.teachable.com/courses

A special guest for a special 75th episode. Colin Beecher have lived and breathed British Tennis for 40 years as a player and then a coach to pretty much every British Player Men and Women over the years. He is the current coach to Kyle Edmund. Look at for Ivan Lendl stories that will make you laugh and his Davis Cup experience as the Davis Cup coach over the last 10 years. A great listen

Stephen Huss partnered Wesley Moodie to win the Men’s Doubles Championship at Wimbledon in 2005. The pair came through qualifying, beating the 1st 2nd and 3rd seeds en route. Stephen reached a career high of 21 in the world in doubles before retiring from professional tennis in 2011. He is currently a USTA National team coach, working with top female players. In this episode, Stephen shares his experience on tour and the journey that took him from an ‘ok’ junior in Australia to a good US college player, to a Wimbledon Champion. We then delve into his coaching philosophies and much more, as we discuss life on tour as a coach, life working at the USTA, and where the game goes next? A great listen! Read the full shownotes here. Connect with Control the Controllables: Website | Instagram | Email

Katie Swan has been on our screens for many years, as a 15 year old she made the final of the Junior Australian Girls Event. Katie has had her ups and her downs, but has moved into a place where she has a happy, healthy mindset that stands her in a great place for the rest of her career. Enjoy Katie’s story 😊

Dominik Koepfer sits as the current 65th best male tennis player in the world, yet he played 1-2 times a week before he was 16. A story that will blow you away and you think not possible.

Sergiy Stahkovsky is a Ukranian pro tennis player who has been ranked as high as 31 ATP. Sergiy jumped onto our screens in 2013, when he became the lowest ranked player to beat Roger Federer at a Grand Slam. He knocked the defending champion out of Wimbledon on Centre Court in the 2nd round. Since recording this podcast, Sergiy has retired from professional tennis, announcing he was hanging up his rackets in January 2022. He has been a member of the ATP Player Council and has been outspoken on many controversial topics, including equal pay in tennis. In this episode, Sergiy opens up and provides context to all his thoughts in an amazing podcast. Enjoy. Read full shownotes here. Links & Resources Control the Controllables: Instagram | Website | Email Follow Sergiy Stahkovsky on Twitter SotoTennis Academy website Follow Control the Controllables on itunes

Simon Jones worked for the LTA in many different capacities for 31 years before turning his hand to other sports over the last couple of years. We explore the similarities and differences between sports and his opinions from the inside looking in to British Tennis and from the outside looking in. A honest, healthy discussion which we hope will provoke thought for you all. Enjoy 😊

Nick Lester is the epitome of what we want from our Tennis Academy. Someone who has truly used his passion for tennis as a vehicle through his life, as a player, as a coach and over the last 15 years as a tennis commentator on Sky Sports, Amazon Prime, BBC, Eurosport and the World Feed.  Nick shares his story, tennis stories and insights and his favourite experiences including Novak Djokovic winning his 9th Master Series event in Cincinnati. Enjoy 😊 Twitter: @nicklester

Kyle Spencer is a former GB number 1 doubles player and represented GB at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He is the current Head Men’s Coach at North Carolina State University and has experienced US College in all positions as a player, Assistant Coach and Head Coach. Kyle offers valuable insights and stories to connect the opportunity for many and the cons to be aware of. This listen is highly recommended.

What a story! Leon went from decent junior player to coaching one of the best juniors in the world, Sir Andy Murray. He was catapulted to GB Davis Cup Captain over 10 years ago where he´s guided the team to glory on the court as the 2015 Davis Cup Winners, but also to a collective culture that brings positivity, team spirit and much more.  Leon is the LTA Head of Men’s Tennis and he doesn’t hold back his insights in the podcast. See him as you haven’t seen him before. A wonderful listen. Twitter: @leonsmith

Kris has dedicated his life to tennis in one form or another. From coaching International Players to coaching parents how to coach, he has worked across the spectrum, but always to a very high level.  Kris was part of the Scottish National team when Andy and Jamie Murray were coming through the junior ranks and he now works very closely with Judy Murray for her foundation and other projects. A coach who has inside knowledge behind the scenes and who shares his story and philosophies in an articulate manner. Lots of learning to take from this one! Twitter: @krissoutar Podcast: Kris Soutar´s Tennis Journal, The Podcast YouTube: Kris Soutar´s Tennis Journal

Simon Dickson was one of the best junior players in the world with wins over Roger Federer and Leyton Hewitt to name a couple as he grew up.  He combined this with playing football for Manchester United Juniors when he was younger. Yet his highest ATP ranking was 469. We explore why? Does he regret it? What has he learned? And what is he now passing onto the juniors he works with at Edgbaston Priory Club?  Simon is one of the nicest, most humble men you will ever meet and it is a treat to discuss tennis with him. Enjoy

Steve Hewitt is the CEO of Gym Shark, a fitness clothing and accessory brand that is currently one of the fastest growing businesses in the UK. A few weeks ago it was valued at $1.3 billion from the humble beginnings of the founder, Ben Francis home with his Mums sewing machine.  We discuss the transferable skills from sport to business and the importance of culture in any business. Steve is also a ‘tennis parent’ and we explore this side of his life and where his business lessons have helped. A must listen. Enjoy 😊 Website: www.gymshark.com

Heather Watson has been one of Great Britain’s most successful female tennis players of the last 30 years. She won the Wimbledon Mixed Doubles title in 2016, has won 4 WTA titles and has a career high of 38 in the world.  Heather moved from her home island of Guernsey aged 11 to go to Florida and we learn all about that journey of dedicating her life to tennis and whether she has been ‘successful’ in her career. Heather gives fascinating insight and shares her story so well. Enjoy

Valorie Kondos Field was Head Gymnastics Coach at UCLA for 29 years. She led them to 7 National Championships and her background wasn’t even in gymnastics. She dramatically changed her philosophies throughout her coaching career. Find out why in this episode. Valorie has since gone on to deliver TED Talks with her philosophy of ‘Winning doesn’t always equal success’. Her inspiration has come from meetings with the late Kobe Bryant, her mentor John Wooden and listening to her team, some of whom were survivors of the USA Gymnastics sexual abuse scandal. You will learn and take so much from this podcast, we promise 😊. Enjoy.  Click here sign up to the summit to hear Valorie, Dan and many more in action September 24-26, 2020  Website: www.officialmissval.com Valorie´s Tedtalk: Why winning doesn´t always equal success Twitter: @OfficalMissVal

Emilio Sanchez comes from the famous Sanchez family who have been so influential on Spanish Tennis. A former World number 1 doubles player and number 7 singles player at the same time, he won 5 Grand slam doubles titles and the men´s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. Emilio is the brother of Arantcha Sanchez Vicario and later in his career, her coach.  After retiring, Emilio captained Spain to Davis Cup victory in 2008. He also joined forces with Sergio Casal to set up the Sanchez- Casal Academy in Barcelona. They now have 4 academies in Spain, USA and China. A great conversation. Enjoy! Emilio is one of the keynote speakers at the upcoming Between the White Lines Summit. The 2 day event will take place on September 24-26th 2020, giving coaches an opportunity to connect with and learn from tennis-preneurs and like-minded people in the tennis world. Book your place on the summit to listen to Emilio and 44 other big names in tennis and sport. Twitter: @emiliosvicario LinkedIn: tennis-worldwide-leadership-sanchez-casal-academy

We speak to Anthony Harris who is top 100 ATP Player Lloyd Harris’s coach.  Anthony also coached Dudi Sela in his formative years aged 11-19. We discuss his Academy and philosophy in South Africa and the journey to creating an African Champion.  Halfway through the pod Lloyd Harris joins us for 15 mins to offer his amazing insight, enjoy this episode!

Sam Jalloh was brought up in Sierra Leone in what was a difficult upbringing personally, but also during the civil war which added many complications which included living on the streets, seeing his best friend get shot and killed and being taken from his family aged 5. So how did this young boy who didn’t own shoes until he was 14-years-old manage to get to the point of playing on the ITF circuit, hitting with Andrey Rublev and many more? It is a fascinating, inspirational story we all have to listen and learn from. Sam is now a motivational speaker and tennis coach and you will see why when you listen to him. Enjoy! Connect with Sam Jollah Website: spjalloh.com Twitter: @samuelpjalloh Book: How Tennis Saved my Life Let us know what you think of this episode! Email us at [email protected] You can also find us on Instagram @ctc.podcast

Magnus Tideman is a former top 80 ATP Player who came from an amazing crop of Swedish Players, where his practice partners included Bjorn Borg, Mats Wilander and many more.  He turned his hand to coaching 29 years ago and has spent most of that at the top end of the ATP Tour, including coaching Thomas Johansson to the 2002 Australian Open Title.  Magnus shares opinions, insights and stories. A brilliant listen!

Mark has had tennis running through his life for 60 years. He was in the military, and has worked closely with David Lloyd and Jimmy Connors on previous projects. He´s currently taking on his biggest challenge yet, as he is looking to bring the private sector of tennis together postcode by postcode.  We discuss his reasons and drive behind this, and the similarities with the PTPA movement with Novak Djokovic and where this is going in the future. A great passionate listen. Mark is running the Between the White Lines Summit on September 24-26th 2020.  45 world-class tennis-preneurs from around the world will be sharing their experiences, cutting-edge strategies, and knowledge over the 2 days, including Control the Controllables host and SotoTennis Academy Director Dan Kiernan.  Not one to be missed! Book your place here. LinkedIn: markjjeffery 

Kieron Vorster has been a strength and conditioning coach on the ATP Tour for 25 years. He started his career with Wayne Ferreira before spending many years with Tim Henman.  Kieron is currently working with British number 1 Dan Evans. We talk through nature vs nature, hard work vs sport science. How Dan has prepared for the US Open and much more. Twitter: @vossy1973

Cameron Norrie has an illustrious College career at Texas Christian University before seamlessly moving into the top 100 ATP. Since recording, he has reached a career high of 12, and is the current British number 1. In this episode, Cameron speaks to us from the US Open bubble where we discuss positive COVID tests and PTPA movements with Novak Djokovic spearheading a new player association. Read the full shownotes here. Links & Resources Control the Controllables: Instagram|Website|Email Cameron Norrie on Instagram SotoTennis Academy website Check out Tennis Smart for advice and support for US College options Texas Christian University