"No doubt in my mind that Emma Raducanu is going to have an amazing career" - Lucie Ahl on state of British tennis, prize money, transition to coaching & more
Lucie Ahl is a multi-faceted personality in the world of tennis. A former professional player who peaked at No. 161 in the world rankings, Ahl was the top-ranked British woman in 2001 and 2002, winning 15 titles on the ITF women’s circuit.
Her best Grand Slam performance came at Wimbledon in 2000, when she reached the second round, and she also represented Great Britain in the Billie Jean King Cup.
Since retiring from the pro circuit in 2003, Ahl has gone on to forge a career in coaching and commentating.
Sportskeeda recently caught up with the 47-year-old to chat about her latest endeavors and her views on the British tennis scene, among other topics. Here are some excerpts from the interview:
Sportskeeda: Can you tell us about the work you have been doing in coaching and commentating after retiring?
Lucie Ahl: When I retired in 2003, I got an offer to work for the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA). I took on that role under David Felgate, who was in charge at that point, and worked for the LTA for a number of years. Katie O'Brien and Melanie South were the two main players that I traveled with back then.
After that, I decided to step out and develop my coaching skills. I moved back to Devon where I am from and worked with younger players in mini-tennis. I just felt that it would be good to develop those types of skills.
I later went back to the LTA again and was the national coach for the under-16 events. I did that for a number of years, working and traveling with players like Katie Swan, Francesca Jones and Jodie Burrage.
In 2015, Dave Felgate asked me to join JTC, the academy that he had set up with Alan Jones and Jo Durie, as they were opening a second base in Chiswick. I’ve been working at JTC since then with different players, including Jodie Burrage and Laura Robson, and that's really where I still am.
Alongside that, I've done some work for the LTA with the Education Department, which I really enjoy, and I have also been commentating on tennis. So, it’s a mix at the moment and I quite like the balance and variety.
Sportskeeda: You finished in the top 200 for six consecutive years. You were also the top-ranked British player during a couple of seasons. How do you look back on your professional career?
Lucie Ahl: I played on the tour for 13 years, traveling the world and building my way. I was quite a late developer actually and didn't win a round at the British Nationals till the under-16s.
I then started playing some junior ITF tournaments and I got the opportunity to play qualifying for the junior French Open, and then junior Wimbledon. Over the next few years, I developed quite quickly.
I was probably a late developer and today I'm not sure I would have been able to stay in the sport, I think I would have been written off too early. But in some ways, it helped me because I loved playing the sport and around the age of 15, I made the decision that this is what I wanted to do.
There are obviously some ups and downs of being a professional player, but certainly all the different experiences that I have had while playing have opened doors for me in different careers since I retired. I think I’ve been really lucky to have had the opportunity to play in most countries around the world, to represent my country and to play in the main draw at Wimbledon a number of times.
There's obviously hindsight, but I'm not one to have regrets. I think a lot about moving forward. I might have done things differently if I had another chance, but those experiences helped me develop my skills as a coach, because I certainly learnt a lot from my playing career. And similarly with the commentary as well.
Sportskeeda: There's been talk of how tennis is a very difficult profession in terms of breaking even for players who are not in the top 100, especially during the pandemic when prize money was reduced. What were some of the challenges that you faced? Did you have good support from the British Federation back then?
Lucie Ahl: Definitely. I had good support from the Federation because tennis is an expensive sport. You're probably not going to be able to make money and certainly not break even unless you're in the top 80. The costs are high given that you're having to travel and play around the world.
Back then, it was less common to have a coach on the road with you, which made things difficult because you were away for long periods of time on your own. You didn’t have the right perspective in terms of getting any feedback. And then there's a lot of time, especially if you've lost early in a tournament, where you perhaps start overthinking things.
It would have been nice to have someone there, not just supporting you, but being able to then get back on the court with you and work on some of the areas that you need to improve for the next tournament. But when I was playing, a lot of the other players were in a similar position.
These days, it's much more common to have a coach on the road, which of course doubles the cost. So, it's not easy, most of the money is at the top end of the game and doesn't filter down as much into the ITF events. Players definitely need to either have a sponsor or help from their Federation.
It can be a challenge but if it's something that you choose to do, it's all about trying to find a way and keep working hard, keep believing in yourself. If you can market yourself, you can obviously get some sponsorships as well. I think that's just how it is.
I think it has certainly got better, year in, year out. Some of the top players understand that more money needs to filter down. The pandemic certainly didn't help with the economic climate and now it's even more difficult to get sponsors. It's something that players have to be quite resilient about and have to find a way to fund themselves until they get into main draws of the Grand Slams.
Sportskeeda: Athletes talk about playing in front of their home crowd and the added pressure that it brings. Wimbledon, as we all know, is the biggest tournament in the world. Did you feel a lot of more pressure when you played at Wimbledon as compared to other big events?
Lucie Ahl: Wimbledon is a massive dream for British players. But I think for all players that’s the goal, to be able to compete at the Grand Slams. For most of my career, I'd mix the WTA events with ITF events. So, to have that opportunity to be at Wimbledon was a big motivation.
I loved it. It was exciting, you obviously had more attention on you, which was motivating and you certainly wanted to do well. That did bring some pressure, but as Billie Jean King says, “Pressure is a privilege”.
I really tried to look at it that way and make the most of the opportunity to gain that experience, to prepare well. I never saw any of it as a negative. I knew that that opportunity could set me up for the rest of the year in terms of points and prize money if I was able to do well.
It also gave you the opportunity to play against higher-ranked players and a better idea of what you really needed to improve on. I loved it, I was lucky enough to play Wimbledon a number of times, and it was certainly my favorite part of the year.
Sportskeeda: Talking about British tennis, Andy Murray has been back on the court after his hip surgery. He's had some good results at ATP events of late, but he's not done as well as he would have liked at the Grand Slams. How do you assess his comeback and how far can he go?
Lucie Ahl: What Andy Murray has achieved is just amazing. Not only in terms of his career, but also how great an ambassador he is for the sport. I think he gives so much back to the game. The support he gives all the players, the British players, the men and the women is great. It's made a massive difference to many players and they've been able to build on that.
I think it's amazing how he's got himself back to this position after going through all that he has. It took him quite a long time to figure out what he needed to do and what his options could be. Just that perseverance is something you can admire.
I've seen him work at the National Tennis Centre day-in day-out and what he's put in, so it's brilliant to see him back on the court.
He started the year well, reaching the final in Sydney. Then there was the quick turnaround for the Australian Open where he had that great five-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili. I think that match certainly took a lot out of him. Taro Daniel played a great match, but I feel that wasn’t Andy's best match.
I think he’s going to need to find some solutions because it's about finding the balance between needing to play matches so that he’s competitive and match fit, but also being able to back it up in the next rounds.
Obviously, he's said that he wants to win 50 titles and go deep in the Grand Slams. I would never say never to Andy Murray. I think he's proven us wrong time and time again. It's going to be interesting to see because he knows that there's only a few more years left in his playing career and he wants to make the most of it.
I think it's a positive sign that he's taken a new coach on board and he's changed his racket. I think that just shows that he's finally been able to actually have some confidence in his body, because that's been an issue. I think we'll certainly see him go deep in one or two Majors this year.
Sportskeeda: Some people have said that the British tennis system has not capitalized on the success of Andy Murray and Jamie Murray. Do you agree with that and what do you think could have been done better at the grassroots level?
Lucie Ahl: Andy and Jamie have both won Grand Slams, been World No. 1s and stayed at the top of the game for many years. They have also been big contributors to Britain's Davis Cup wins. It's important for the next generations to really try and build on that type of success.
I know there has been a fair amount said in the media. I can kind of see both sides. There was a period of time where we did not have many international events at the lower level. I think that's a big starting point that's certainly going to help. I know there's a lot of focus on when the next Andy Murray will come along.
But I think the focus needs to be on trying to get people in the top-250 bracket. From there, you see more players get into the qualifying rounds for the Slams, then you're giving them that experience, and then they can then make the move into top 100 and beyond.
You look at countries like Italy, where they have tournaments back-to-back, and it's evident that there's a large group of Italian men now coming through on the back of that. That's also happened in Spain.
We've (Britain) got the players at the top of the game. Now, I think it's a balancing act. We have a few that are consistently in the main draw of the Slams, and are doing well –- Cameron Norrie, Dan Evans, Emma Raducanu and Murray, which is positive for British tennis. So hopefully over the next few years, we will see more players coming through from the lower ranks and making it to the top 100.
Sportskeeda: Emma Raducanu stunned the world by winning the US Open. But since then, she has had to deal with some tough losses at WTA events. How do you see her career pan out over the next few years?
Lucie Ahl: For someone to come through qualifying and win the US Open with the little experience that she had was incredible. She played unbelievably well at Wimbledon too. I've known her for quite a few years and you can see the talent that she's got.
You saw at Wimbledon that she is a player that likes the big stage, she steps up in those sorts of environments, and is able to produce her best tennis. There's no doubt about her talent and she has the type of game that is effective at the WTA level. What’s important for me is the fact that she is able to really step up and bring out her best when it matters, which is something that can be difficult to teach.
Winning the US Open was life-changing? Everything turned on its head suddenly. So it's vital that she has the right team around her, the coach, the agent and everyone that is going to be on the road with her. She’s with IMG and Max Eisenberg, who's had a lot of experience with Maria Sharapova.
I think the trouble is the expectations on her shoulders. When you qualify and win the US Open, people are expecting you to win everything, which realistically, is not going to happen. It's going to take a bit of time for her to build up her experience, because she's really not played a lot.
There’s no doubt in my mind that she's going to have an amazing career, but I think there needs to be a bit of patience. She's certainly very smart, she's got really good perspective. The way that she interviews, how she talks, she seems to have an understanding of what has happened, and that it is going to take maybe a little bit longer. So, it's going to be interesting.
Sportskeeda: As a coach, what are the two or three things that you look out for in a young player?
Lucie Ahl: I think it's important to follow the game and be passionate. Although there's amazing things about being a tennis pro, it is that day-in, day-out grind that you have to learn to love and that’s hard. The top players are setting the bar so it's forever moving. You've got to be open to dealing with disappointment, you've got to have that resilience to be able to bounce back and to understand that it is a journey.
You also require major support from your team, your coach to help educate you on those sorts of things. With the experience I've had as a player and a coach, a few things I try to do is help the player understand what the journey is going to be like.
I think another key thing is trying to help them understand what sort of player they are, what their identity is on the court, what their strengths are, their weaknesses, their patterns of play, so they know themselves inside out and can then showcase that on the court.
Sportskeeda: A few young British players like Paul Jubb, Jack Draper and Katie Swan have been doing well of late. What do you think about their prospects and that of the other young British players trying to rise up the ranks?
Lucie Ahl: Jack Draper had a very good junior career. After a number of injuries, it’s great to see him finally doing well again. He did really well at Queen's and of course, at Wimbledon, against Novak Djokovic. He's got a huge amount of potential and is a great competitor. He used to be with us at JTC so I know him quite well. I certainly think he's got a really good future.
Jubb, who took the American college route, has started to do well. He's got a good game too. There’s also Aidan McHugh. All of these guys have started to do well at the Challenger level. There are also some other juniors like Arthur Fery and Jack Pinnington-Jones, who are improving.
On the women's side, we’ve got a group of players who are trying to push forward and break into the top 100: Harriet Dart, who qualified for the Australian Open, Katie Boulter, Katie Swan, and Jodie Burrage. I think it's important to have groups of players, so they can push through together. Sometimes when there's a standalone player, and they move quickly, it can be difficult for the other players ranked lower to catch up.
During the pandemic, the Battle of the Brits that Jamie Murray put together definitely brought the British players closer together. They support each other a lot, which then builds belief and confidence within each other. So hopefully over the next few years, we can start to see more players come through.
Sportskeeda: One final question. Did you visit India during your time on the ITF circuit and do you have any memories or fun stories you would like to share with our readers?
Lucie Ahl: I've been to India several times and I love coming there. I played a number of times in Delhi and came over as a coach as well.
I was also involved with "The Road to Wimbledon" initiative. I came over with Jeremy Bates a few times to give the young kids some advice about playing on grass. I've probably been there over 10 times and still have a lot of friends there.
So yes, I've got a lot of fond memories. I always enjoy having different rides on the Tuk-tuks, which was always good fun and I love the energy, the food, the people and the culture.