I started playing tennis when I was three years old. I loved the sport so much. I got into the sport in pre-school because there was a program to set kids up with extracurricular activities after school. I chose tennis and swimming. I found it funny because as I got older, my dad told me that before I was born, he hoped his kid would play tennis, so in a way, it was fate for me to play the sport. I loved being on the court and hitting tennis balls with friends, and I never wanted to leave.
When I was a little older, my parents surprised me with a trip to New York, and little did I know that I was going to the U.S. Open. I was so excited when we showed up to the tournament. I got to see players I would always watch on TV and look up to. That experience made me want to be a professional tennis player. So many tennis players signed the huge tennis ball that I got at the Open, and I still have it at my house. After that experience, I knew that I wanted to work harder to try and get the opportunity to become a pro.
A few years later, I found a new coach to train me because I wanted to become a better player and play more competitively. It was fun for a while because he had an academy, and I got to be with kids my age. Then, it ended up being private lessons with my coach. I didn’t like it as much because it became more serious and stressful to do well in tournaments and less about having fun. About a year later, I had gotten a shoulder injury that caused me to be out of tennis for a month. I thought about quitting, but I loved the sport too much to do so.
When I got back to tennis a little over a month later, I had a few different coaches, but they weren’t right for me. They all made the sport feel like it was too competitive, and I didn’t feel like I was having fun. It was like this for a few years until I met a coach in the summer of sixth grade. He had a tennis academy, and I felt welcomed by the other students and coaches. I felt like my love for tennis grew because of the people I became friends with and how amazing the other coaches were. The coach that I had met also became my private coach, and even though he was serious about the sport, he made it fun. He made me want to not quit and play longer. I may not have wanted to be a professional tennis player anymore, but I wanted to keep playing because of him and the academy. I have learned so many life lessons from him, and I still keep them with me.
After four years, my coach had to move, and I found a new coach. I still enjoyed the sport, but not as much after he left. In my senior year of high school, I sustained an injury that required surgery. In a way, I was grateful. I realized that I no longer wanted to play tennis because I was burnt out. I gained stress and anxiety from the sport, and I realized my love for tennis left when my old tennis coach moved. By the time I started my freshman year of college, I quit tennis. Although I no longer play, I still keep my love for the sport. I also hold everything that I learned from my past coaches and academies in my heart because I believe everything happens for a reason, and I am grateful that they did.