STA was packed out for our October Half-term Kids Camp!

Up to 30 performance players from England came to Sotogrande for intensive coaching on our European red clay courts. Despite some unseasonal showers during the week, (made up for with a trip to Gibraltar and some extra gym work!) it didn’t dampen the spirits, and the week ended with a fun tournament against our STA pre-academy players that went on into the night!

A special mention must go to Richard Crabtree and John Willis who were the main organisers of their respective groups, Nuffield Health Tennis Academy in Hull and a variety of places in the North East.

SotoTennis Academy is looking forward to seeing you all again soon!

See more pictures from the week in our Photo Gallery.

STA’s Josh Ward-Hibbert has broken into the top 100 in the world for the first time! The 17-year-old from Nottingham is now ranked 99 in the ITF junior rankings after reaching the last 16 of the Grade A World Super Junior Championships in Japan last week.

It’s a massive climb for Josh who was ranked 650 when he started at STA eighteen months ago. Head Coach Dan Kiernan says “This is a great reflection of all the hard work Josh has put in at STA. Nobody here has one bad word to say about him and I am sure he will continue to grow and develop in the correct manner as he continues to take care of all that is in his control”.

This year has seen Josh reach the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon boys doubles, and the semi-finals of a Grade 2 Junior ITF event in India. He also represented Great Britain in the Under 18 European Championships in Switzerland.  He is currently at a Grade 2 ITF in Korea where he’s getting ready to play his quarter-final match against Wimbledon Junior winner Luke Saville.

It has been a big week for Alastair Barnes as he became a world ranked player! The 20-year-old from Bournemouth came through three qualifying rounds to get into the main draw at the Cordoba Futures in Spain.  He then went onto beat David Perez Sanz 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to pick up his first ATP point.

Alastair lost in the second round to the 1st seed and eventual winner Ivan Navarro from Spain, but the week means he now has a world ranking of  1570.

Liam Broady made the most of his training at SotoTennis Academy last week by reaching the quarterfinals of the Sevilla Futures.

Liam beat the number 4 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-4, 7-5 and Spain’s Ricardo Ojeda Lara 6-1, 6-2 on his way to the quarters, before going down 4-6, 6-7 to 5th seed Jordi Samper-Montana from Spain. The 17-year-old spent last week training on the clay with STA’s full-time players in preparation for the tournament.

STA Head Coach Dan Kiernan was in Sevilla to watch his quarterfinal and said “Liam played a great match today against a guy full of confidence on the back of his futures title in Serbia last week.. This is another great experience in Liam’s development and lots of positives as well as lessons to take with him while moving forward.”

Earlier in the week STA full-time player Alistair Barnes lost in the 2nd round of qualifying. He travelled back to Sevilla with Andrew Fitzpatrick to support Liam in his quarterfinal, before heading off to the Cordoba Futures. Good luck boys!

STA access player Liam Broady has arrived back in Sotogrande for a week’s training. The 17-year-old from Stockport is at STA preparing for a Futures event in Seville next week.

Liam has had a great summer, reaching the final of the Wimbledon boys singles, and the third round of the US Open Juniors earlier this month. He’s currently ranked 15 in the world ITF junior rankings, making him Britain’s 3rd ranked junior.

STA Head Coach Dan Kiernan says: “It’s great to have Liam back at STA. We are all very fond of him and his coach Mark Hilton and are pleased to be their International base now. This works great for Liam, and is a boost for all our full-time players. “

Read more about Liam.