"It's a really beautiful thing" - USTA manager believes rising US talent owe success to a balanced relationship with their parents
ATP
Sebastian Korda, Ben Shelton, and Brandon Holt are three of the most exciting prospects coming up in American tennis. With the parents of all three prodigies being professional tennis players themselves, former player Martin Blackman is of the opinion that their success can be chalked up to the perfect balance their parents have created for them.
22-year-old Sebastian Korda is the son of two former Czech players — 1998 Australian Open winner Petr Korda and Regina Rajchrtova. Ben, 20, impressed the world by reaching the quarterfinals of the 2023 Australian Open and is the son of Bryan Shelton. Brandon, 24, is the son of two-time US Open champion Tracy Austin.
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Speaking on the TENNIS.com podcast recently, Blackman, the General Manager of Player Development with the USTA, stated that all three players benefited from the personal and professional balance that their parents brought in. He added Casper Ruud's name to the list as well, who is the son of former ATP player Christian Ruud.
"I think in all three cases and other cases like Casper Ruud and his dad Christian Ruud, that is kind of the epitome of a former great player and athlete, who takes that knowledge but maintains a relationship as a father, as a mother. If you're able to do that, it's a really beautiful thing," said Blackman.
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The 52-year-old further stated that although the retired players were there for emotional support for the most part, they would not mince their words when it came to on-court performances.
"On one hand, you've got the unconditional love of a parent, so even if you have a really bad practice, you're not bringing it back to the dinner table," he added. "On the other hand, you've got the knowledge of somebody who has played at the highest level like Tracy, Peter, or Bryan, and they're not going to sugarcoat it. So, 'Hey, you told me you want to be the No.1 in the world. What you did today, is it going to get you there?'
"The habit of having those kinds of conversations and balancing it out, it's really difficult to do, but when you're able to do it, like Bryan, Peter, and Tracy have, it's a beautiful thing. And those are three amazing character individuals — Sebi, Ben, and Brandon."
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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