Tennis Insider Club with Caro Garcia

Can a parent also be the coach? And can perfectionism create greatness without destroying the person?

Former world No. 3 and Roger Federer’s former coach Ivan Ljubicic joins Caroline Garcia and Borja Duran for an honest conversation about tennis parents, junior development, elite coaching and the hidden cost of becoming one of the best.

Ivan explains why parents should be responsible for developing the human being—not coaching the tennis player—and how even a small expression of doubt can undermine a child’s relationship with their coach. He discusses parents who project their own ambitions, the difficult transition toward independence, and why a parent can never fully occupy both roles.

They also explore why results should not be the objective, how Jannik Sinner focuses on constant improvement, why junior success can be misleading, and what players should value when choosing a coach.

Ivan then reveals what made Roger Federer so professional and coachable, how Federer treated the people around him, and why the greatest players never stop adding new tools to their game.

In this episode:

• The biggest mistakes tennis parents make
• How to raise an ambitious but independent young athlete
• Why results are outside a player’s control
• The relationship between perfectionism, success and happiness
• How to choose the right coach
• Why player and coach must share the same ambition
• The danger of becoming successful too young
• How elite tennis teams are built
• What players can learn from Roger Federer
• Why players must take ownership of their careers

Can a parent successfully be both the parent and the coach? Share your perspective in the episode comments.

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Ben Shelton did not seriously choose tennis until he was 11. His father and coach, Bryan Shelton, reveals how he helped build Ben’s extraordinary confidence—without controlling him, limiting his personality or coaching the talent out of him.

From setting his own alarm for 6 a.m. practices to leaving college early and eventually asking his father to join him on tour, Ben’s journey was built around responsibility, independence and belief.

Bryan explains why he only gives Ben “five or ten percent” of what he knows, why he smiles from the player box even when things are going badly, and why parents should ask more questions instead of constantly telling young athletes what to do.

This is The Insight: the most powerful lessons from our complete conversation with Bryan Shelton.

Watch the full Bryan Shelton episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JOp69bDfkg

CHAPTERS

00:00 Ben Didn’t Want to Play Tennis
01:24 The 6 A.M. Practice Rule
02:08 Developing the Person, Not Just the Player
03:05 Ben’s Unusual Confidence
04:18 Don’t Put Him in a Box
05:18 Raising the Floor Without Lowering the Ceiling
06:22 Keep Making the Right Mistakes 07:48 Why Ben Left College Early
10:23 “Dad, You Have to Come Out Here With Me”
10:50 Balancing Being a Father and Coach
12:12 Why Bryan Only Gives Ben 10%
12:54 Why Bryan Always Smiles
13:58 What Parents Project From the Player Box
15:24 Confidence Before Results
17:18 Bryan’s Advice to Parents
19:18 The Lesson Every Sports Parent Should Hear

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Corentin Moutet is known for playing—and reacting—differently. But behind the emotional moments and public labels is a player trying to understand why losing once felt unbearable, why tennis celebrates personality and then punishes it, and how to find peace in a sport he still loves.
In this honest conversation with Caroline Garcia and Borja Durán, Corentin explains why he never learned how to lose, how winning became connected to his self-worth, why he struggled to control his emotions, and what facing Carlos Alcaraz revealed about his game.
He also opens up about being misunderstood as lazy, the freedom he finds through music, his unique relationship with Roland-Garros, why he believes tennis culture must evolve, and the goal that matters more to him than rankings or money: finding peace before his career ends.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Why Moutet couldn’t stop breaking rackets
01:00 Growing up with tennis as a game
06:00 The origins of his unique playing style
08:00 Why he never learned how to lose
13:00 Anger, rackets and emotional control
15:00 When winning became personal worth
21:00 The mentality hurting professional athletes
23:00 Tennis promotes personality—then punishes it
27:00 What Carlos Alcaraz exposed in his game
33:00 Unlearning childhood beliefs
36:00 Music, balance and being misunderstood
44:00 Why Roland-Garros feels like home
47:00 Why tennis culture must change
49:00 “Tennis is boring” and the ATP contradiction
52:00 His goals beyond results
56:00 Finding peace before retirement
Tennis Insider Club is where the people who have lived professional tennis share the stories and lessons fans rarely get to hear.
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Tim Henman joins Caroline Garcia and Borja Durán to discuss Wimbledon pressure, prize money, family legacy and what success really means.
A former World No.4 and four-time Wimbledon semifinalist, Tim opens up about growing up with Wimbledon in his family, carrying British expectations, the debate around Grand Slam prize money, and why tennis needs better communication between players and tournaments. Caroline, Borja and Tim also explore parenting, pressure, respect, success beyond winning, and how the sport can build a healthier future.
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Marta Kostyuk’s coach Sandra Zaniewska joins Caroline Garcia and Borja Duran on Tennis Insider Club for a deep conversation about emotions, pressure, coaching, parents, data, recovery and what it really takes to build a top tennis player.

Sandra shares how she went from professional player to coach, what she learned from working with Petra Martić and Alizé Cornet, and how she built a long-term relationship with Marta Kostyuk. She explains why she loves emotional players, why the goal is not to get rid of emotions, and how Marta is learning to turn them into strength.

They also discuss the pressure of winning titles, the difference between being an underdog and a top seed, why Sandra does not set ranking goals, how she uses data to measure progress, how players can recover mentally during a long WTA season, and why tennis parents need more education and support.

This episode is for Marta Kostyuk fans, tennis coaches, tennis parents, junior players, WTA fans, and anyone interested in elite sport, mental performance and high performance.

This episode is sponsored by IM8.

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Chapters:

00:00 Intro: emotions, parents and coaching
00:42 How Sandra Zaniewska started playing tennis
02:20 Why you don’t need to start tennis at age three
03:00 Retiring as a player and becoming a coach
04:05 IM8 Daily Essentials ad
05:20 From player to coach: the transition
06:30 Coaching Petra Martić and learning on the job
08:00 Petra Martić’s French Open quarterfinal and Sandra’s breakthrough moment
09:15 Why coach-player splits feel like breakups
11:00 Learning to coach different personalities
12:00 How to start with a new player and build trust
14:00 Joining a team and working with staff
14:40 Coaching Marta Kostyuk under pressure
17:00 Why Sandra loves emotional players
19:15 The pressure of being an underdog vs a top seed
22:00 What happens after winning a title
23:15 Managing expectations after big success
24:00 Marta Kostyuk’s “princess treatment” at Roland Garros
25:20 Why Marta skipped Rome
26:00 Mental recovery and protecting the player
27:00 Why Sandra told Marta to consider stopping her season
29:00 Giving players space outside tennis
30:30 Learning when not to play
32:00 The ranking trap and outside pressure
33:30 What parents misunderstand in junior tennis
35:00 Why tennis parents need more education
36:00 Sandra’s advice to parents of young players
38:30 Parents living through their children
40:30 Why players must enjoy the journey
42:30 What really changed before Marta Kostyuk’s breakthrough
45:00 Why Sandra doesn’t set ranking goals
46:30 Using data to prove progress
48:15 How long should a coach-player relationship last?
49:45 The stats Sandra uses with Marta Kostyuk
51:00 Scouting opponents and choosing the right tools
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