EUROPEAN RACQUET STRINGERS ASSOCIATION

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Features

04 My Serve

06 Product News

07 ERSA Symposium

09 Industry News

19 Aesthetic Stringing

24 Shop Stringing

26 ERSA Around the World

18 News Shorts

- Ashaway Named Official String of World Squash Championships - HEAD and (RED)TM partner to fight for an Aids free generation- The HEAD GOLD RUSH Is on again!- Murray pulls out of Paris- BBC to cover Eastbourne after 5 year gap- BOA receives cash boost from London 2012- K•Swiss and Palladium brands added to E.Land Group’s portfolio- WTA Player Li Na Honored By Time Magazine- Wimbledon Hikes 2013 Prize Money- Player Use Of Cell Phones Is Becoming A Problem On The Pro Tour- Henman Commends Murray For Skipping French Open To Prepare For Wimbledon

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Welcome to issue 4 of RacquetTech Magazine!The ERSA Member Meeting / Symposium in Düsseldorf on the 17-20 May got off to a great start with 35 people signed up from around the world including China, Hong Kong, USA, Ukraine. The presentations took place at the Tryp Düsseldorf Airport Hotel in Ratingen.

The new Power Horse Cup 2013, a 250 ATP tournament took place 200 meters from our office and tennis club. Everyone enjoyed the three to four days of the Symposium, depending if they did testing, and want to return next year. Pictures and an article are included in this issue, along with some of the presentations from myself, Richard Parnell, Fred Beer and Rob Maessen.

I saw the USRSA and TIA in the United States have set up a “Tennis Tune Up”/Restring Campaign. This is another example of the many projects taking place in the USA to promote tennis. This is how they have built up record amounts of players in the USA over the last couple of years. We would like to try and organize a program like this. It benefits the players with correct new strings, new grips, racket tuning. This will increase tennis playing over the long haul, increase profits for shops and stringing services, and increase sales in the tennis industry. Please let me know if this is interesting and you would support this campaign.

Here is my adjusted schedule as of today if anyone has a chance to meet up with me. I will be in the Düsseldorf office except for these dates: June 22 – 30 Wimbledon, July 6-8 Milano, Italy, Pro Tour Stringer Workshop and Testing, July 25- August 5 Montreal, Rogers Cup, August 6-13, Vacation USA (I will still be available at my e-mail address, September 5 – 15 Warsaw, Poland, Davis Cup, September 26-October 6, Tokyo, Rakutan Open. I will also be travelling doing workshops in October and November. I will update my schedule in the next issue.

Mark MaslowskiDirector - ERSA

RACQUETTECH EUROPE

European Racquet Stringers AssociationDirectorMark Maslowski

ERSA Germany, Austria, Switzerland ManagerSanda Maslowski

ERSA AustraliaAnthony Aley

ERSA UK ManagerJamie Pethick

ERSA UK TesterRoger Dalton

ERSA Spain ManagerRichard Parnell

ERSA France ManagerJean Baviera

ERSA Italy ManagerMarco Rossani

ERSA Netherlands ManagerTimo van DrielRob Maessen

ERSA Greece Manager

ERSA Greece Tester

ERSA Czech Republic & SlovakiaVaclav Smat

TECHNICAL CONSULTANTRod Cross

TENNIS CONSULTANTGabe Jaramillo

European Racquet Stringers AssociationLenaustr. 3840470 DüseldorfDE GermanyPhone /Fax 0049(0)211-68814151

George Pahiakos

Petros Biris

FOUNDING MEMBERSAshaway BabolatHead IsospeedKirschbaum LuxilonPacific Wilson

CORPORATE MEMBERSAshaway HeadPrince IsospeedGOSEN Tecnifibre

STRING SUPPLIER MEMBERSApollo Leisure Bow BrandKirschbaum Signum ProTyger / Tennis Planet

Timo van Driel – NetherlandsRob Maessen – NetherlandsOscar Sallmen – SwedenGiuseppe Sella – EnglandRay Wan – EnglandGeoff George - England

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MASTER RACQUET TECHNICIANS

Nick Down - EnglandSergio Angulo Romero - Spain

PRO TOUR STRINGERS

Andrea Candusso -ItalyGiancarlo Sparla -ItalyPaolo Rondini-ItalyGerhard Moitzi - AustriaRolf Friederich - Switzerland

New Certified Stringers, Master Racquet Technicians and Pro Tour Stringers.

ERSA now offers certification for different levels of stringers, from beginners to the top professional stringers in the world. The first level is ERSA Stringer is for new stringers to show they have completed a stringing course and learned to string correctly. Certified Stringer is for stringing services, such as coaches, club stringers, shop string¬ers, after passing a day of practical and written tests. Master Racquet Technician is for shop stringers and owners who can tune racquets, string at a high level and have a broad knowledge of products for their customers. Pro Tour Stringer certification is for MRTs who are stringing at ATP and WTA tournaments. There are 3 levels for this certification, Level 1, Level 2 and Master Pro Tour Stringer. The highest level, Master PTS is only given to stringers who have proven themselves at professional tournaments for over 10 years.NEW – Anyone with a Master Racquet Technician certification can take the Level 1 Pro Tour Stringer certification without tournament experience. This will only be a practical test. After five years, the applicant can apply to take the Level 2 certification. A resume will be required with tournament experience. Master Pro Tour Stringer can be applied for after 10 years and must be recommended from another Master PTS.Congratulations to :

The MANTIS Tour, with its 500cm sq traditional head shape, enables players to generate more power without losing the control and feel associated with a Tour racket.

Whilst the MANTIS Power Black has a tear drop head shape and fan stringing with open throat design to offer maximum unrivalled power.

MANTIS Launch Two New Squash Rackets

MANTIS Serve Up a Hat Trick of New Balls

MANTIS have this week announced the launch of three brand new tennis balls into their expanding product portfolio.Mantis has released the MANTIS All Court, Team Pressureless and Stage One Mini Green balls into the market and will be stocking all three from June 2013.The ITF approved pressurised MANTIS All Court ball is suitable for all surfaces and has been tested by MANTIS professionals across the World. The premium woven cloth ball is available in a four ball can immediately with the three ball can hitting the market in the autumn of 2013.The MANTIS Team is a pressureless ball ideal for coaching, training and match play. With a high quality woven cloth for increased durability the MANTIS Team ball also has a superb inner core for enhanced consistency.

Ideal for developing adults and juniors in match play or training the ITF approved Stage One MANTIS Mini Green ball is also new to the market. The all yellow ball (with a green dot for identification) has a reduced pressure allowing players more time to move into position and hit the ball and can be used in official Under 10 events.MANTIS is the official Racket and Ball Partner of the Statoil Masters Tennis at the Royal Albert Hall.For more information about MANTIS go to www.mantis-sport.com

UK based racket sports brand MANTIS have this week launched two new squash rackets into the market in time for the Allam British Open Squash Championship.MANTIS, the official racket of the Allam British Open Squash Championship which starts on 20th May in Hull, have released the MANTIS Tour and the MANTIS Power Black following a successful first year.Aimed at the advanced squash player, the two rackets complement the current range of four rackets that have proved a big hit worldwide since entering into the squash racket market in 2011.

Both of these rackets will come strung in the MANTIS Tour response premium squash string that used on the Tour by professionals Emma Beddoes and Eddie Charlton.Martin Aldridge, founder and managing director of MANTIS, said; “We are very excited about the two new MANTIS squash rackets. We have been working closely with our tour professionals to design and create rackets that will appeal to the best players both on the PSA/WSA Tour and in the squash clubs across the world. Both rackets incorporate an extra stiffness and superb balance that will help players deliver even more power and precision in their game.”The MANTIS Tour racket will be used by Under 17 European Number 1 David Ryan and World number 73 Eddie Charlton will be endorsing the MANTIS Power Black.Follow MANTIS on twitter @MANTISsport

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The Symposium was a great success for the first time organizing it. 37 participants took part over the four days. The first evening, Friday, 17 May, we had Welcome Cocktails in the Tryp Airport Hotel Düsseldorf. People came from 12 different countries and were able to exchange stringing experiences with each other, and meeting many well known tournament stringers from around the world. The level of competence was unbelievable, with mostly very experienced stringers with Master Racquet Technician and Pro Tour Stringer levels. Eleven stringers signed up for certification the last day of the meeting. Two for MRT and 9 for Pro Tour Stringer Level 1.Saturday, the first day of meetings and presentations, started out with a general member meeting to discuss the future of the ERSA and getting member input into what they would like to see new in the ERSA. Some of the items that came out were the design of the new website, linking together all the information and websites from the countries we have managers in.

The next session offered Private Stringing Lessons from Master Pro Tour Stringers. This was the most popular part of the Symposium and will be included in next year’s meeting. After finishing the day, we headed up to the ATP Power Horse Cup in the Rochusclub. We were blessed with sunshine and beautiful weather the rest of the day. We were only able to catch the last match and headed down to my tennis club for drinks and dinner.Day two started off with a presentation on grip moulding from Rob Maessen. A summary and diagrams are included in this issue. Rob has been working all year with a group of engineers to get perfect grip moulding.Richard Parnell was up next with a presentation on “The Art of Stringing Natural Gut”. After the talk, Richard got Lucien Nogues, to demonstrate with him on two machines so everyone could get a good view. Lucien, the famous Babolat stringer who has strung on the tour for years when everyone was using natural gut, probably has more experience stringing gut than anyone in the world.

The last presentation was on racket tuning by Mark Maslowski, going over everything from using lead tape, silicon, moulding and gripping. Other tips about checking the rackets lengths and cutting them off the same length, different was to get more weight in the racket and how much weight you can add to a racket without breaking the frame were covered. The ERSA will be offering several workshops on racquet tuning and Tournament Stringing in the next year.

The first presentation by Mark Maslowski, was on tournament stringing and the Pro Tour Stringer Levels and certification. A discussion on how to achieve the different levels took place and why the ERSA changed to 3 levels. This was done to allow more stringers to pass a competence test to start at lower levels of tournament stringing. The original PTS certification was only available to MRT with 5 years tournament stringing experience. Today, any MRT can take the Level 1 test to get started in tournament stringing. Next, the presentation went into what equipment is needed to string at a tournament, how many stringers are needed and what basic knowledge is needed to organize a Futures up through Grand Slam stringing room.

Fred Beer, the inventor of the ERT 300 string bed stiffness tester, that most of the attendees use, gave an interesting talk on how the device works and exactly what is tests. He is also working on a new racket attachment to give an analysis of your match or training.

After lunch, Richard Parnell gave a presentation on Aesthetic Stringing, which some of the articles in this issue are based upon. Richard covered everything from cleaning the racket to bagging it at the end.

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Manufacturer presentations were last on the agenda. Prince’s International Product Manager, Dennis Fabian gave a presentation on Prince products and new directions Prince is taking with their re-organization. The attendees also got to see several new frames coming out next year and got to test them on court afterwards.

MANTIS founder, Martin Aldridge could not make it for his presentation, but Petros Biris, Greece Mantis Importer and Master Pro Tour Stringer filled in with a presentation on Mantis products. Mantis is an amazing company which is only several years old and growing very fast in the racket sports industry. Petros also supplied test rackets for Sunday and Monday which received very high marks from our members. Thanks also to sponsors Kirschbaum, GAMMA and Signum Pro for supplying test strings, grips and brochures to the participants to offset their travel expenses. They were unable to come for presentations this year but will be there next year.

Monday was Test Day, with 9 participants signed up for the Pro Tour Stringer Level 1 test and 2 for the Master Racquet Technician test. Even with all the stress, everyone said the day was great being around top stringers all day.

Almost 100% of the participants have signed up for next year. We are planning a little earlier as several members had to string in tournaments and many had club matches on this weekend. Next year the Symposium will take place in April and we have 50 people already signed up. We will keep you informed of the schedule in the next month.

Hope to see you all there next year!

Comments:“It was great meeting stringers from all over the world. I learned a lot in two days!”“Super, I will be back next year!” / “I learned so much in a few days I cannot believe it!”“Thanks for a great weekend. See you next year!” / “Everyone should attend the Symposium. I learned a lot and met great people!”

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- Ashaway also to have stringing rights for the British Open- SuperNick® XL, PowerNick® and UltraNick® are strings of choice

Ashaway Racket Strings has been named the Official String Partner for the 2013 Men's World Squash Championships. The tournament will be held from October 26th to November 3rd in Manchester, England, where 64 of the world's top professional squash players will compete for a $325,000 prize. Ashaway will also have stringing rights to the 2013 Allam British Open in Hull, England, from May 20th to the 26th. Ashaway was the Official String Partner for the British Open last year and the British Grand Prix for the past three years.

"Ashaway is always eager to support professional and amateur squash whenever we can," said Steve Crandall, Vice President of Ashaway. "And to be associated with prestigious events like the British Open, the World Championships, and the Grand Prix is an honor as well as a pleasure."

Ashaway will be represented at these events by its longtime UK distributor Goode Sport. According to Goode Partner, Paul Smith, stringers for the events will be Liam Nolan of the UKRSA and Nick Down of Smart Racquet. They will use Ashaway Electronic SM7900 machines.

Ashaway has long been the leading brand of squash string, with its 17 gauge SuperNick® XL topping the charts as the world's most popular squash string, and new Zyex-based PowerNick® and UltraNick® brands offering new realms of soft power, durability and control.

Prince Global Sports announced earlier this month that it will be opening a retail store in London just in time for Wimbledon. For its first foray into retail, the global racquet sports equipment company is setting up shop in London’s most famous postcode SW19, right in the heart of Wimbledon Village. Opening Saturday, June 15th and will showcase the brand’s top performance line of tennis and squash racquets, footwear, strings, grips and accessories as well as a selection of Prince apparel and Prince SW19 themed t-shirts and swag. The shop will also have a racquet tech service center featuring customization services including racquet stringing and gripping. Throughout the tennis fortnight the shop will be a hub of tennis activity with daily player appearances, special guests, promotions and giveaways. Follow @prince_tennis for the latest Prince SW19 news.

Ashaway Named Official String of World Squash Championships

- Material: 100% Polyester- Compartments for 12 racquets, one with CCT+- Front zipper pocket- Detachable, adjustable and hideable backpackstraps - Inside mesh pocket and extra shoesack

RED Monstercombi

- Material: 100% Polyester- compartment for 1 racquet - Integrated shoe compartment- Front zipper pocket

RED Backpack

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HEAD players will carry (HEAD)RED Special Edition bags at the French Open

HEAD AND (RED)TM PARTNER TO FIGHT FOR AN AIDS FREE GENERATION

HEAD Tennis is joining (RED) and the fight against AIDS with the launch of a HEAD (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition bag collection. Partnering to raise both awareness and money for the fight, 40% of the profits from each (HEAD)RED bag sold will go to the Global Fund to fight AIDS. HEAD’s world’s best tennis players will showcase their support by carrying the (HEAD)RED Special Edition racquet bag on court at the upcoming French Open Grand Slam tournament in Paris. In addition, HEAD asked its stars Maria Sharapova, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Tomas Berdych, Marin Cilic, Gilles Simon and Sloane Stephens to pack their favourite items into one special (HEAD)RED bag which features in a unique viral video. The spot on www.youtube.com/headtennis will promote the partnership across digital and social media. Furthermore, a bespoke app on www.facebook.com/headtennis gives tennis fans the chance to show their support and win the special (HEAD)RED bag with the personal items and signatures of the HEAD tennis stars. “We are extremely proud to join a family of leading global brands supporting (RED) in the fight for an AIDS free generation”, says HEAD CEO Johan Eliasch. “I would like to thank our players for their support and invite tennis fans and players around the world to join HEAD and (RED) in this worthy and important cause.”

“It’s fantastic to see a brand as iconic as HEAD partner with (RED) raise funds and blow out awareness of the fight against AIDS at an event as high profile as the French Open. Tennis fans right around the world will love these fantastic bags!” says Deborah Dugan, CEO (RED). The new (HEAD)RED collection is the latest addition to the range of (RED) products. It includes a tennis racquet bag and a backpack, which will be available at selected retail stores around the world at the end of May 2013.

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THE HEAD GOLD RUSH IS ON AGAIN!

Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray are joining the search for gold hidden in HEAD ATP Tennis Balls

The 2013 Golden HEAD ball promotion running from May 15th to July 31st in participating retail stores and on the HEAD website will once again kick off a gold rush amongst tennis fans around the globe, led by ATP’s top-ranked players Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. Ten gram pieces of gold are hidden in a total of ten HEAD ATP tennis balls worldwide. In addition, the main winner will enjoy a trip to London with two tickets for the 2013 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

Joining the HEAD ‘Gold Rush’ is easy: find a code inside a HEAD ATP Ball can and check it online. Or simply register on www.head.com/tennis/goldenheadball for a chance to win one of the more than 1,000 attractive prizes.

HEAD’s digital spot on www.youtube.com/headtennis features friends and rivals Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray for the first time together in one commercial. While they are currently the most dominating players in the game of tennis, they use rather surprising methods in their search for gold…

In 2012, HEAD consumers from all over the globe already joined last year’s HEAD Gold Rush. Estevao Junqueira (Brazil), Daniel Simanic (Austria), Moritz Kölsch (Germany) and Kyle Pittman (United Kingdom) are just a few of the winners who won a piece of real gold from HEAD. On top of that, the lucky winner of the main prize, 20 year-old Rosalie Briant from France, will get the chance to play tennis with HEAD tennis stars Maria Sharapova and Novak Djokovic.

The HEAD ATP ball with Encore™ technology and SmartOptik™ felt for better visibility embodies three decisive advantages for pros and amateur players: it picks up more spin, allows even better control and stands out with its improved durability. "It's the best ball in tennis," Novak Djokovic confirms. "I really like playing with it. I can produce a lot of spin. I like to play with touch and with control - this ball gives me everything I need!" Therefore it is continuously trusted as the official tennis ball of the ATP World Tour and the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

For more information please visit:www.head.com/tenniswww.facebook.com/headtenniswww.youtube.com/headtennis

Murray pulls out of ParisBritish fans are disappointed to learn that Andy Murray has withdrawn from the French Open because of a chronic back injury first sustained in Madrid.

The British number one will now focus on preparing for the start of the grass-court season next month.Murray met with specialists earlier this week after being forced to pull out of his second round match against Marcel Granollers of Spain at the Italian Open last Wednesday because of what is now known as a long-standing complaint that seems to be exacerbated by playing on clay."It's a really tough decision and I love playing in Paris, but after seeking medical advice I am not fit to compete," Murray said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Apologies to the organizers and thanks to everyone for the messages of support."Now my complete focus is on getting back on the court as soon as possible."The 2013 Aegon Championships, one of four ATP & WTA grass court tournaments staged and run by the LTA in the run up to The Championships at Wimbledon, will be broadcast live, every day from 10 - 16 June, on BBC Television and Eurosport.

BOA receives cash boost from London 2012

The Organising Committee for the London 2012 Olympic Games (LOCOG) has published its final report and accounts for the six-month period to 31 March 2013 before the entity is placed into a solvent Members Voluntary Liquidation. Over its eight-year lifecycle, LOCOG has successfully achieved revenues of GBP 2.41 billion through private sector revenue programmes and contained costs at GBP 2.38 billion.Commenting on the announcement, LOCOG Chairman Seb Coe said: "One of our key objectives was to deliver an outstanding Games within a balanced budget and I am proud to say that we have achieved this, thanks to the strong management of our core finances."It means we can make payments to the BOA and BPA, allowing both organisations to move into their next round of Olympic and Paralympic commitments with some additional certainty, return monies to DCMS, while also leaving a legacy for the International Inspiration charity and Join In Trust for them to continue their excellent work."

BBC to cover Eastbourne after 5 year gap

The BBC has signed a deal with the LTA to cover the Aegon International in Eastbourne this June after a five year break, showcasing tennis from some of the world's top male and female players.Coverage will commence from Tuesday 18 June through to the finals on Saturday 22 June and will be broadcast live on BBC Two HD and online.

Lawrence Robertson, Commercial Director at the LTA said: "The LTA are delighted that the BBC has extended its commitment to the grass court season and is back with us in Eastbourne after five years away.Viewers and spectators will be able to watch some of the world's best male and female players after a stellar player field was announced.Defending champion Tamira Paszek has confirmed she will return to defend her title after winning one of the most exciting finals on the WTA Tour last year, saving five match points against Angelique Kerber before taking the match 5-7 6-3 7-5.A bumper crowd is expected again at Devonshire Park this year - particularly on the opening day of the tournament, after it was announced that entry to the grounds will be free.Centre Court and Court One will also have unreserved seating, making it the ideal time to see great tennis served daily.Sunday June 16 will feature a host of legends competing in a Father's Day tussle as former British No 1 Greg Rusedski faces off with Mark Philippoussis before they team up with former world No 1 Lindsay Davenport and two-time Wimbledon Doubles Champion Rennae Stubbs in a mixed doubles match.

K•Swiss and Palladium brands added to E.Land Group’s portfolio

Under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by K•Swiss’ Board of Directors, K•Swiss stockholders will receive $4.75 in cash for each outstanding Class A and Class B share of K•Swiss common stock they own, representing a 49% premium over the closing price for a share of Class A common stock on the NASDAQ Stock Market on January 16, 2013, and a 62% premium over the three-month, volume-weighted average trading price for a share of Class A common stock on the NASDAQ Stock Market as of January 16, 2013.

Steven Nichols, Chairman of the Board and President of K•Swiss, stated, “We are excited to enter into this transaction with E.Land as we believe it is in the best interests of K•Swiss and our stockholders. E.Land has a 30-year record of successfully building a global fashion and retail conglomerate and also shares our culture of valuing associates. I believe that such a platform will provide K•Swiss with the resources and scale to return to its former performance levels and to further maximize Palladium’s potential.”

The merger, which is expected to close during the second quarter of 2013, requires the approval of 80% of K•Swiss’ outstanding voting power and applicable regulatory approvals in addition to other customary closing conditions. E.Land World will use existing resources and credit facilities to fund the acquisition and will not need additional external financing for this transaction.

Certain Class A and Class B stockholders, who collectively hold approximately 75% of the voting power of all outstanding common stock, have executed agreements to vote in favor of and support the transaction.

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BBC to cover Eastbourne after 5 year gapWTA Player Li Na Honored By Time Magazine

Time magazine named WTA pro Li Na to the 2013 Time 100, the magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, in its April 29 issue. Li also was one of seven cover subjects for the issue.“I am so excited to be featured on the cover of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People In The World issue”, Li said. “It’s a great honor for me to be in the position of being able to help grow, promote and further build the sport of women’s tennis around the world, especially in my native China. I couldn’t be more honored to be on the list that includes some of the most talented people in the world, and to make an impact on women and women athletes. I am grateful to Time for giving women’s tennis the recognition it deserves.”The list, currently in its 10th year, recognizes the activism, innovation and achievement of the world’s most influential individuals. Chris Evert wrote the tribute to Li that appeared in the magazine. Li made several historic breakthroughs in 2011, becoming the first Asian player to reach a Grand Slam final at the Australian Open, subsequently becoming the first Chinese player to reach the Top 10, and a few months later becoming the first Asian player to win a Grand Slam title at the French Open. Earlier this year she made her third Grand Slam final, again at the Australian Open, andshe is currently the No.5-ranked player on the WTA Tour.

As the Grand Slam tournaments continue to try to top each other with prize money increases and please the professional tours, Wimbledon said it will up its prize money this by 40 percent, to 22.6 million pounds ($34.4 million). The All England Club called it the largest single increase ($9.9 million) and biggest total prize found in the history of professional tennis. The increases follow similar announcements by the Australian, U.S., and French Opens.Men’s and women’s singles champions will each receive 1.6 million 2.4 million). Roger Federer and Serena Williams each received 1.15 million pounds ($1.75 million) for last year’s titles. The focus of the prize money increase will be for players who lose in the early rounds or in qualifying of the grass-court championships, which will be played from June 24 to July 7.

Prize money will go up 60 percent for singles players who lose in the first three rounds. The purse for qualifying is going up by 41 percent. Doubles players will receive a 22 percent increase in prize money.

In addition, Wimbledon said it intends to have a roof installed over Court No. 1 in time for the 2019 tournament. A retractable roof has been in place on Centre Court since 2009.

Wimbledon Hikes 2013 Prize Money

Player Use Of Cell Phones Is Becoming A Problem On The Pro Tour

So far the main trend as this year‘s French Open is the dash for cover as another wave of inclement and wet Parisian weather disrupts play but it is closely followed by the use of mobile or cell telephones on court, which potentially contravenes outlines set by the Tennis Integrity Unit who are mindful of messages being sent to potential gamblers. It could also be a way coaches communicate with their players during matches.Subsequently the rulebooks of both the ATP World Tour and International Tennis Federation clearly outlaw the use of electronic devices of any kind, computers, tablets or smart phones, on court during play. First Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky used his phone to take a picture of a ball mark he disputed with the umpire during his defeat by Richard Gasquet. Consequently he was fined a seventh of his first round prize money, the approximate equivalent of $2,000, for his indiscretion.

Stakhovsky then admitted he was wrong saying: „Something just itched in my butt; it was a spontaneous thing to do.”„But it was wrong. The rule book says you can't do it. Some media have made a big thing of it. But that's pathetic - I was quite calm, I had a nice chat with the umpire. It was more a joke than anything and I hope people won't judge me that badly. It was near the beginning of the match.”

Then Gael Monfils used his phone to record a keepsake of the Mexican wave that swept around Court Philippe Chatrier as crowd intensity mounted during his second round win over Ernests Gulbis. Monfils maintained he gained permission from the chair umpire and has subsequently received no financial reprimand.Now Roger Federer, chairman of the ATP World Tour‘s Players Council, has joined the debate and said stricter penalties could be written in the future.

“It's happened before and it's only going to happen more,“ Federer said. „I wouldn't be surprised if they change the rules because of it again. If you do it, fines are going to be more severe, all these things, because we are moving this professional route."I think it's pretty funny, actually. The problem is that clearly there could be coaching going on through mobile devices.

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But Henman insisted common sense had to be brought to bear after world no.2 Murray underwent numerous examinations, tests and scans in London and Bristol. „It won't have been easy for him because no-one wants to miss a Major but Roland Garros is the biggest challenge for him when he is 100 per cent fit, let alone 60 or 70,“ said Henman who now serves on the All England Club‘s Board of Management.

“Andy is much better served making sure he is completely healthy for the grass and getting totally ready for that. I do think he will play Wimbledon and very much hope he does.”

“If he is 100 per cent it's his best chance yet. He's got a Slam now, reached the final and won the Olympics final against the guy who beat him in that, he is a better player than he was a year ago.“

Henman is not entirely surprised Murray has encountered physical problems on clay and says it is a common problem amongst players who are not reared on the surface. He said: „My body is different to his, but I know how clay puts strain on your hips and lower back, it doesn't matter that you are incredibly strong like he is.

“There's a lot of talk about how Rafa has to manage himself on hard courts and it may become the same for Andy on clay.”Murray suffered back issues playing the European clay court circuit last year and needed several deep rooted injections in his lower vertebrae in order to be fit for the grass court season where he reached the Wimbledon final and took Olympic gold.

Henman Commends Murray For Skipping French Open To Prepare For Wimbledon

Britain expects its‘ best man to do his duty on the fields that mean most to the nation. . . and in Andy Murray‘s case that means Wimbledon. So Tim Henman, the Scot‘s predecessor as national tennis hero insists Murray has done the right thing by erring on the side of caution and pulling out of the French Open because of lower back issues.

Henman, like Murray a former semi-finalist at Roland Garros and also a player plagued by back problems throughout his career, sympathizes with the reigning US Open and Olympic champion‘s plight, and appreciates the decision not to play must have been an extremely tough one as no-show will end a run of contesting 22 successive Grand Slam events, his last absence coming at Wimbledon in 2007.

Czech Republic has ended Spain’s four-year run asleaders of the ITF Davis Cup Nations Ranking,becoming just the sixth nation overall to top the listand third to lead both the Davis Cup and Fed Cup Nations Rankings simultaneously.

The International Tennis Federation has confirmed the dates for the 2014 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas competition. The World Group first round, quarter finals and semifinals/play-offs will take place during the weekends of 31 January – 2 February, 4-6 April and 12-14 September respectively. The finals will be held from 21-23 November. The dates for the 2014 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas will be announced in June.

Victoria Azarenka recently became the 10th – and youngest – WTA player ever to surpass $20 million in career prize money. Maria Sharapova meanwhile has become the first female athlete to have more than 10 million fans on Facebook.

MasterCard has signed a five-year deal with the French Tennis Federation and will be recognised as the official payment card of the French Open.

The WTA Tour has awarded the season-ending WTA Championships to Singapore from 2014-2018, where the event will be held at the 7,500-seat Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Organisers of the Wimbledon Championships have followed the other Grand Slam events in announcing sizeable prize money increases for players. £22.6 million will be distributed between the competitors this year, an increase of 40% on last year’stotal. The singles champions will each receive £1.6 million, while singles players losing in the first three rounds of the event will receive 60% more prize money than in 2012. The organisers have also announced plans to construct a retractable roofacross No.1 Court, which is expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2019 Championships.

Three-time former champion Arantxa Sanchez- Vicario is competing in the legends event at Roland Garros alongside Mary-Joe Fernandez. A Beach Tennis court will be set up at Roland Garros on Court 13 throughout the fortnight, enabling fans to try the sport.

European men have won 35 of the last 37 Grand Slams.

The ITF has announced a three-year agreement with Tennis-Ticker GmbH, who will become the Preferred Live Scoring Partner of the ITF Junior and Seniors Circuits. The deal will ensure that live scoring is extended to a number of major events, including the Junior Davis & Fed Cup by BNP Paribas, World Junior Tennis finals, and the Seniors World Championships.

Coaching changes: Britain’s Laura Robson has split with trainer Zeljko Krajan. Former world #1 Martina Hingis is now coaching Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia. Milos Raonic of Canada and Spanish coach Galo Blanco are no longer working together, while Gilles Simon has started working with Jan deWitt of Germany.

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Rafael Nadal has confirmed that he will play at the Swiss Indoors in Basel this autumn for the first time in almost ten years.Former European #2 (now representing Australia) Jelena Dokic will attempt a comeback next month, starting with ITF Pro Circuit events.

A former ATP Executive Chaiman and President Brad Drewett, age 54, passed away May 2 at his home in Sydney, Australia, following a battle with Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Drewett was a former Top 40 pro player, and became an insightful and vibrant leader in his short tenure directing the men’s pro tour.

Head Penn player Paola Longoria won her 18th straight tournament on the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour recently, without dropping a single game.

Maria Sharapova has a three-year deal with Porsche AG and will be a brand ambassador for the carmaker. Last year, Sharapova won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix and drove home a Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet.

The U.S. Fed Cup team defeated Sweden, 3-2, in April in a World Group playoff match. The U.S. now will be back in the World Group for 2014 and eligible to compete for the Fed Cup championship.

StubHub, owned by eBay, has signed a three-year partnership deal with Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association to handle events at London’s Queen’s Club, Edgbaston and Eastbourne this summer.

“Tournament Tough: A Guide to Playing Championship Tennis,” the best-selling book by world-renowned tennis coach Carlos Goffi that offers a unique program for winning tennis matches, has been updated and re-released as an electronic Kindle e-book. Goffi is a former coach of John and Patrick McEnroe. The book is available for download for $9.99.

Badminton England plans to build a new $34.3 million National Badminton Arena in the town of Meynes, about 45 miles from London. Badminton England also announced a partnership with Gullivers Sports Travel for the London Grand Prix event Oct. 1-6.

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Richard Parnell demonstrated an Around the World method that keeps all the strings short on the outside of the frame. This was part of his Aesthetic Stringing Presentation. There are no long strings on the outside of the frame, no three strings running next to each other and very clean and neat looking. Here is the pattern for a 16 x 20 and 18 x 20 string pattern that Richard showed in Düsseldorf. It works well on frames that have two crosses below the last main, normally 20 cross frames. In the photos I tried it with a 16 x 18 Wilson racket and it works perfectly. The same as with 20 crosses. Just change the bottom cross number on the instructions below to 16, 17 and 18 instead of 18, 19 and 20.

Around the World with Richard Parnell

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Instructions for 16 x 20 pattern:

Center 12 mains as normal.

LS: put in LS7 and hold with starting clamp.

SS: go from SSM6 to X20, to X19, to SSM7, to X1 and leave without tensioning (the weave is opposite X20 or the same as X19).

LS: Retension LSM7 place machine clamp. install LSM8 and tension and clamp.

Tension X1 with extra Kgs. for knot and place starting Clamp.

LS: install X18, then SSM8, then X2 and continue down to X17 and then tie off on previously opened close grommet.

Instructions for 18 x 20 pattern:

Center 14 mains as normal.

LS: put in LS8 and hold with starting clamp.

SS: go from SSM7 to X20, to X19, to SSM8, to X1 and leave without tensioning (the weave is opposite X20 or the same as X19).

LS: Retension LSM8 place machine clamp. install LSM9 and tension and clamp.

Tension X1 with extra Kgs. for knot and place starting Clamp.

LS: install X18, then SSM9, then X2 and continue down to X17 and then tie off on previously opened close grommet.

It is a modification of the universal ATW as you are installing the two bottom crosses before going up put the top cross in, and the long side comes across at 3rd instead of the bottom cross to get to the short side to fill in the missing main.

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Here are the photos from my test racket-16 x 18 pattern:

Center 12 mains as normal. (ATW1)

LS: put in LS7 and hold with starting clamp.(ATW2)

SS: go from SSM6 to X18, to X17, to SSM7, to X1 and leave without tensioning (the weave is opposite X18 or the same as X17). (ATW3)

LS: Retension LSM7 place machine clamp. (ATW4) install LSM8 and tension and clamp.

LS: install X16 (ATW5), then SSM8, then X2 (ATW6) and continue down to X15 and then tie off on grommet on the next cross below (ATW7).

This works out well as it is a tie-off hole and does not need to be enlarged.

As you can see in the photo the crosses are all single on one side with 2 running close to each other on the other side. (ATW8)

Thanks to Richard Parnell, always looking for new ways to do things better.

Tension X1 with extra Kgs. for knot. (ATW5)

ATW1

ATW2

ATW3

ATW4

ATW8

ATW7

ATW6

ATW5

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Flat Gripping

Photo 5 – you can see the edges are in the dents and the racket surface is almost perfectly flat now compared to Photo 2.

Photo 1 – Here you see a flat basic grip which is preferred by tournament and professional players. Some beginners and intermediate players prefer ridges as they think the racket can fly out of their hands.

Photo 2 – Here we have placed an overgrip on the flat basic grip and is impossible to get it flat with the overlapping.

Photo 3 – Find a basic grip and overgrip around the same width. Tournagrip Original are too wide for most basic grips so this will not work.

Photo 4 – Re-grip a basic grip on the racket without overlapping too much so there is a small dent in the wrap all the way up the racket. Starting the overgrip takes a little time and practice so the top and bottom edge go down into the dent to fill it in. Do not stretch the overgrip very much.

Richard Parnell demonstrated how to get the overgrip flat on the racket without all the lumps.

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Rob Maessen, our co-Manager for Benelux has been busy trying to find an easier, inexpensive way to put out better moulding quality than available at this time. He has been working with a group of engineers for over a half year and is waiting for the device to be delivered in the next few weeks. He is also ready to produce pallets of different weights for Head and Volkl rackets. Here is Rob’s presentation at the Symposium.

In order to create various grip weights, different materials are added to the PU. The weight & density of the grip can hereby be adjusted. This same technique will be used for creating the various grip-pallets to fit on head & völkl racquets.

We wanted to create a "universal" device, that holds every racquet completely LEVEL & ALIGNED, in order to mould the handle. (Diagram 1) First we need to measure the length & width of the racquet, and place it in the "holder".

Then the thickness of the racquet is measured in 3 crucial places. (Diagram 2). In the second diagram where the 2 pins are at 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock will be another leveling device added since these diagrams where made. Once correctly adjusted using a scale, the racquet is perfectly aligned vertically and horizontaly.

After this it will also be fixed in place at the throat (Diagram 3), and finally the chosen mould is attached. The racket starts in a horizontal position and changed to vertical to inject the polyurethane.

ROB MAESSEN GRIP MOULDING

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Here are some simple steps on giving your customer the best job possible so he goes out with a smile on his face, keeps coming back and telling others to come to you.

As part of several presentations, we put together how everyone who wants to keep their customers and get new ones. Stringers have to place themselves apart from the others without getting into a price war with other stringers and shops. Aesthetic stringing, grip moulding, racket tuning, tournament stringing all set you apart from the other stringers in your area.

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Aside from grip moulding and tuning, here are the basic steps to caring for each racket that comes in:

1.Use a cloth and a cleaner such as Cockpit Cleaner for autos to clean the frame.

2.Clean and inspect the frame before starting

3.String the racket making sure the strings are installed correctly, no crossovers, miss weaves, etc. Make sure the knots are tied neatly, the same knots the same length. Straighten the strings, on the machine while stringing and after taking it of the machine, check and straighten again

4.Stencil the racket. We always ask if we should stencil or not. Some players do not want stenciling so always ask first.

5.Applying the stencil right side up and centered.

6.Check the racket tension with an ERT 300 or RDC, make a label with the customer name, date, tension, string and DT or RDC value.

7.Put a new overgrip on the racket to make it look better and feel better.

8.If you want your customer to feel like a pro, bag the racket and label the bag. This also keeps off moisture and dirt.

Now you are able to compete with the other stringers in your area and charge prices in the upper range instead of trying to be the cheapest on the block.

ERSA Members stringing in Rome

Pro Tour Stringers and MRTs at Roland Garros – Again this year, a number of ERSA stringers have been named to the Babolat team for 2013. Jamie Pethick, UK Manager and Pro Tour Stringer, Toru Yusuki, Master Pro Tour Stringer, Timo van Driel, Benelux Manger and Pro Tour Stringer and Karin Goodman, Master Racquest Technician have been chosen to join the busiest stringing service in the world, with over 3500 rackets being strung in 3 weeks.

Pro Tour Stringer Certification Milano, Italy – Mark Maslowski, ERSA Director, will be in Milano from July 6-8 testing top Italian stringers for the Pro Tour Stringer Certification Level 1. Marco Rossani has organized the weekend and is almost full. One open spot is remaining, so if you have interest please contact ERSA-Italy or Mark Maslowski at the ERSA Headquarters.

Advanced Workshop took place on the 25 May in Milano, Italy. One week after returning from the Symposium, Marco Rossani had a successful Advanced Workshop with stringers preparing for the Master Racquet Technician Certification.

ERSA Latin America – After requests from many stringers in South America, the ERSA is launching ERSA Latin America later this year. Richard Parnell, ERSA Spain manager, has been named ERSA Latin America Manager. We will be announcing new Manager/Testers in South America in October.

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ERSA Ukraine – Meetings were held in Düsseldorf last month to launch ERSA Ukraine later this year. The Digest, Study Guide and Certification tests are being translated in Russian so there will be a possibility for many more east Europeans to get certified in the near future. Sergiy Konovolenko has been named manager and will be in charge of organizing the project. The first workshop is planned with Mark Maslowski this coming winter.