Pete Sampras. Venus Williams. John McEnroe. Anna Kournikova. Who will be playing for your favorite WTT teams this summer? That question will be answered when the 2006 WTT Pro League Player Draft gets underway at 10 am (EST) on Tuesday, March 28, in Miami. For the first time in League history, fans can follow the draft results live online at www.WTT.com

The 12 teams will draft in reverse order of the previous year's final team standings, based on overall match won/loss record. The New York Sportimes, the 2005 WTT Champions, will draft last. For the Houston Wranglers, the only good thing about their 2005 record is they get the top spot in the 2006 draft.

Players expected to be taken in the first rounds of the draft include Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams, Nicole Vaidisova, Anna Kournikova, Mardy Fish, Anna-Lena Groenefeld, and the doubles team of Mike and Bob Bryan.

Teams can protect the rights to players who suited up for them during the previous year or even trade those rights to another team for a player or financial consideration. Draft day traditionally includes a few position or player trades during and after the draft. The final draft results, including all trades, will be posted no later than 2 p.m. EST on the website. The 2006 WTT schedule will be released mid- April.

The second WTT national qualifier of the 2006 season is set for the Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas, April 28-30. Teams from several states are expected to compete for titles in seven divisions and an opportunity to advance to the 2006 WTT Nationals, Nov. 2-5, in Indian Wells, Calif. The deadline for Las Vegas entries is April 14.
Las Vegas registration

Six teams have already earned their trip to the Desert with wins in Bradenton, Fla., last month.

Winners from each division at the WTT National Qualifier in Bradenton, Fla.
4.5: Saratoga Slammers (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) (pictured above)
4.0: Game-Set-Match (Key Biscayne, Fla.)
3.0: Ball Busters (Buena Vista, Ga.)
3.5: Plash (Scotia, N.Y.)
Senior 3.5/under: Slow Mo’ (Longboat Key, Fla.)
Senior 4.0: Beach Nuts (Virginia Beach, Va.)

In 2003, Advanta started the “Ready, Set, Racquet!” program for children in order to promote youth fitness and the lifelong sport of tennis. In the program’s first year, 20,000 free racquets were distributed.

In 2005, the Spring House, Pa., based company became the presenting sponsor of World TeamTennis, and free racquets, tennis balls and books were provided to children who attended any Pro League match in the country. In addition, racquets were distributed at the Advanta Championships for the third straight year, and many youth organizations in the Philadelphia area and around the country received free Advanta racquets as part of the program.

More than 75,000 free racquets have now been distributed to children by Advanta since the program’s inception, and thousands more will be given away in 2006.

“Our hope is that kids will be inspired by these athletes to go out and start playing,” said Dennis Alter, Chairman and CEO of Advanta and himself an avid tennis player. “Recent studies have shown that, more than most sports, tennis can be sustained throughout life and therefore yields lifelong health benefits. We are committed to introducing children to the benefits of a healthy, active lifestyle, both on and off the court.”

Photo: Advanta

If you would like to become a doubles specialist, you’ll need to learn “magical momentum” for a game that can change like Chicago weather.

You spin in a first serve, waltz tenaciously into the net, smile at the shallow return, and smash a volley winner. Your next serve the opponent lobs, and your partner smashes an effortless overhead. Another point ensues, with a rapid volley exchange that ends with the winning volley up the middle. Doubles induces quick points, and frequent winners. In a match, a player sometimes goes two, three, or a whole game’s worth of points, without hitting a shot. Doubles is chemistry, a shift in moods, and a game of “peaks and valleys”. Whatever doubles is, it’s a game of momentum.

Controlling momentum is to the doubles team like slight of hand is to the magician. A 0-3 deficit can happen as quickly as a rabbit is pulled from a hat. The most successful doubles teams gain the slight of hand through communication and appropriate shot strategy to help swing the rabbit tricks in their favor.

Too often, players act as two individuals on the doubles court. Successful teams communicate and recognize when to continue the pace of play, and more importantly, when to regulate the pace before a set or match is out of grasp.

If you find that the points of a match are falling in your favor, keep quick, positive communication with your partner and continue your strategy. Dazzle your opponents with your magic before they know what hit them, and your lead will build.

You will want to slow down play if your opponents appear quicker, more talented, aggressive, or lack team experience. Taking your time between points can keep a more aggressive team out of sync, or put an inexperienced team into a frustrated frenzy.

Whether at a quick or slow pace, the magic, or strategy that your team attempts to create must constantly be evaluated. If a usually aggressive style of play is backfiring and the match finds your team getting burned, take some time with your partner and cool off your hot opponent. Throwing up some lobs and mixing up speeds of serves and returns can be methods of dousing quick fires, too.

If you are the hot team, keep the fire burning with “kindling” comments like, “Let’s keep it going”, or simple nods of the head.

Controlling momentum is the experienced team’s weapon, or “bag of tricks”.

Tip by Jim Burda

The HBO Documentary Billie Jean King: Portrait of a Pioneer takes an in-depth look at the professional and personal life of the tennis legend. The documentary, scheduled to air at 10 p.m. EST on April 26, explores King’s life as a trailblazer on and off the court. Elton John, Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova are among those interviewed for the special.

WTT co-founder Billie Jean King holds a bumper sticker that says it all.

All Photos
(except where noted):
Fred & Susan Mullane
(Camerawork USA)