How to be a good tennis parent

Published 26 June 2026, 07:47 BST Updated 6 hours ago
By the time Ellie-Rose Griffiths was nine, she had left school to train full-time. That was when tennis stopped being just a game and became her life. The former top-ranked junior player would go on to compete alongside some of the top names in British tennis including Katie Boulter, Emma Raducanu, and Harriet Dart before stopping playing at 19 because she was burned out and not enjoying it anymore.
Looking back now, the 27-year-old reflects on not just the tennis, but also the pressure surrounding it, particularly regarding a group that she believes could cope with it better: the parents. Pushy parents are a common issue in a sport promising potential millions in prize money, with well-documented cases involving Jelena Dokic, Mary Pierce, and Bernard Tomic.
The trend starts at junior level. “You see parents shouting at children all the time in tennis,” says Griffiths, who criticizes not her own supportive parents but those she’s observed in the game. “There’s a lack of understanding on how they should behave... on how they could help their child to blossom into the athlete that they should become.”
Behavior can escalate. Chris Johnson, head coach at Sutton Coldfield Tennis Club for 36 years, notes past occurrences where the police had to be called due to out-of-control parental behavior. “They won’t listen, they think they can get away with anything; they don’t respect the referees; it can get a bit ugly.”
Both Griffiths and Johnson agree that such behavior does not occur in isolation, linking it to the environment the sport creates. Tennis can become intense for parents, entailing arrangements for transportation, coaching fees, and navigating a complex player pathway. John from Derbyshire mentions being caught in a “hamster wheel,” as his 11-year-old son, Harrison, pursues the sport year-round.
Children can start tennis at age four, with the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) supporting promising juniors from age seven. Competitions for children as young as eight are organized. Johnson believes competition intensifies once children begin playing, a sentiment he finds concerning, especially for young players.
Steve Whelan, a coach in St Albans, concurs that there is excessive emphasis on winning from a young age, leading parents to chase ratings and rankings. The LTA reviewed its rating system in 2018 to mitigate pressure on children, leading to a policy where children can’t be nationally ranked until they are 11 years old.
Financial pressures also impact parents. Griffiths estimates training expenses at £1,000 weekly if a child trains four hours daily. The LTA offers support through grants for young players but notes that some parents invest hoping for returns in the form of their child’s success. “A 10-year-old isn’t expected to do a job, but it does become that,” Griffiths remarks.
Former junior star Todd Ley, who faced similar pressures, describes how early success can create incentives pushing families to prioritizing performance over childhood enjoyment. Ley recalls that early on, tennis consumed every aspect of life, leading him to eventually quit the sport he had once loved.
Some former players, like Emma Raducanu, express that their pushy parents motivated them. In contrast, Kyle Edmund reflects on how his parents encouraged improvements without undue pressure. He opted to continue in the sport after realizing his love for the game.