Hello! My name is Ricardo and I am a developing Tennis Coach.
But before I stepped into coaching, I was a recreational player who was stuck in my own head. For a long time, I thought improvement came from analyzing every movement, watching every video, and trying to reach perfect technique. But that just made me feel lost and overwhelmed — and not improving that much.
The real turning point in my game didn't come from more analysis. It came when I finally stopped overthinking and started experimenting. I treated matches like a laboratory — purposefully trying new things, discovering what felt right, and actually enjoying the puzzle of the game.
As I started my journey to become a coach, I discovered something amazing: this way of learning actually has a name. It's called Ecological Dynamics and the Constraints-Led Approach. I realized that the best way to learn isn't by copying a textbook, but by adapting to the environment around you.
I created Discovering Tennis to share this journey. I'm here to bridge the gap between "scientific" theory and the practical fun of playing. Whether you're a player or a fellow coach, let's learn together. Let's stop overanalysing and start discovering.
Intellectual clarity is not the absence of thought, but the precise selection of it. We don't add; we subtract until only the truth remains.
My Passion
For me, tennis is an amazing, fun sport that gives me immense joy. Everybody has played some form of racket sports — beach tennis, padel, pickleball, table tennis — and had tons of fun. So why does tennis get a reputation for being difficult and not fun?
I want to show people that tennis actually is super fun. It has been proven tennis is an extremely healthy sport, that increases your life expectancy, and provides skills that are very useful in life. My passion is to make people feel that same joy I feel.
How I Coach
I believe tennis has been over-complicated for a long time. When I have a beginner on my court, even if they've never picked up a racket before, in 10 minutes that beginner is playing a tennis match. The yellow ball is hard? Use a foam ball. The net is too high? Lower it. The court is too big? Use mini tennis.
This isn't just my passion speaking louder — when I took my coaching credentials I learned about Ecological Dynamics, Representative Learning Design, Constraints-Led Approach, and Game-Based Learning. Science proves people learn better and have more fun by playing the game.
Minimalist Coaching
Removing complexity to reveal what's effective.
Learning by Doing
Training through play, not through drill repetition.
Sources of Inspiration
Even though the content on the blog is original and comes from my personal insights, there are other sources of information I go to regularly. They deserve a stronger highlight.
People
- Tomaz Mencinger — Tennis Coach from Slovenia who has been a mentor to me. Focuses on learning by feel, deconstructs myths, and helped me develop technically. See Feel Tennis.
- Steve Whelan — Tennis Coach and Coach Developer with a big focus on educating coaches about Ecological Dynamics and the Constraints-Led Approach. See his My Tennis Coaching website.
- Ricardo Cortes — My internship mentor and Tennis Director at Lawn Tennis Club da Foz. An extremely knowledgeable and inventive coach key to my development.
Books
- The Inner Game of Tennis by Timothy Gallwey — A must-read for any tennis player. Much more than a book about tennis; it's a philosophy of how to better approach learning and competition.
- How to Move by Rob Gray — The book that introduced me to the Constraints-Led Approach and Ecological Dynamics. Deep but easy to understand.
Communities
- r/10s — A super friendly community of tennis players on Reddit that gives me a lot of inspiration on the issues common to all of us.