TENNIS: No-rest Parker targets Open

HAWKE'S Bay's sole New Zealand under-18 tennis representative Kate Parker was sent home from her Auckland base for a rest at the weekend.
Her coach, Peter Blow, reckoned she needed a spell after four consecutive International Tennis Federation under-18 tournaments during the past month - one in Auckland, one in Waikato and two in Gosford, NSW. The 10th-seeded Parker, who boasts a national under-18 ranking of five, beat the fourth-seeded Jennifer Nguyen, who is ranked seven in Australia, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in her final at the second Gosford event.
Parker's version of rest is a little different to most of us. On Saturday morning, she ran from her family's McHardy St home in Havelock North to the top of Te Mata Peak and back.
"I just wanted to see if I could still do it," she told SportToday, referring to the fact she hadn't tackled the peak since basing herself in Auckland permanently in February with the aim of improving her tennis.
That's one of the secrets to Parker's success. She enjoys pushing herself on and off the court so much she always has to be told by her coach when to rest not vice versa.
"It's the Hawke's Bay upbringing ... some of the Auckland girls are a lot softer in comparison," laughed the former Iona College student who now attends Mount Albert Grammar School.
When Parker, 17, was selected in the New Zealand under-18 team to play in the Fiji-hosted Oceania championships in August, it proved her decision to sacrifice representative hockey to focus fully on tennis had paid off.
"I liked hockey but I've always loved tennis. I wanted to go for it because I knew I could be good. In tennis you make yourself win ... I can always go back to hockey later on if I want to," Parker said.
In Fiji, she lost in the first round of the singles in three sets to Australian Sandy Vo and, in the doubles, reached the quarter-finals with fellow Complete Tennis Academy member Olivia Isbey of Auckland.
Parker is proof Hawke's Bay youngsters can crack New Zealand squads providing they are prepared to put the work in.
She started at the Havelock North club as a 6-year-old and was coached by Bob Christensen until she was 11.
Another Havelock North player, Trevor Hinton, coached her for six months and she had a 12-month stint with French player Remy Jurve before Hawke's Bay Lawn-based pro Simon Winter coached her.
The lefthander, who represented the Bay through the age groups and was the province's top senior woman for two seasons pointed out she had to make plenty of adjustments to her game when she arrived in Auckland.
"I had to reshape my forehand and completely change my serve ... my backhand wasn't too bad," said Parker who fits her Year 12 studies around 20-25 hours of tennis each week.
Her first daily coaching session begins at 6am and continues until 8am. She then goes to school until lunchtime and has more coaching in the afternoons.
Parker advises Hawke's Bay youngsters aiming for New Zealand selection to base themselves in Auckland.
"You don't have to go overseas until you're older. Auckland is the place to go ... probably could have gone up earlier but because I went up later I'm more fresh compared with a lot of the girls who have been having that intense training for longer."
If she continues to progress at the rate she has during the past 10 months, Parker is likely to have a tough decision to make in 12 months - whether to go to the United States on a scholarship or turn professional.
Her immediate goals include tackling the Australian Summer Circuit and qualifying for the junior section of next year's Australia Open. Her programme also includes the national under-18 tournament and the New Zealand Residentials. When time permits, Parker will also play for Remuera in Auckland's premier women's interclub competition.
She relishes her visits home to relax with family and friends. It also provides her with an opportunity to catch up with her "good luck charm" - her jack russell dog, Georgie.
Parker was to return to Auckland last night. It would be interesting to hear whether she mentioned that peak run when she reported in for training today.