Junior Player Spotlight: Tiffany Cai, SPORTIME/JMTA
During the COVID-19 pandemic we saw a massive increase in tennis participation. With many places shut down and social distancing becoming a top priority, tennis became the ideal activity.
Tiffany Cai, a young girl from Syosset, picked up a racquet for the first time, playing tennis with her family and quickly found a passion for the sport.
“I first began playing when I was eight-years-old. My family started playing together because it was Covid and everything that we could do had to have a six-foot social distance in between us,” Cai recalls. “We were so lucky that in our community there was a tennis court and so we decided to pick up a racket and play.”
From there, Cai had caught the tennis bug. Soon after, she joined group programs at SPORTIME, and began going through the progression of learning the sport and becoming a better player.
While she also participated in other sports such as dance, swimming and ice skating growing up, doing dance and swimming competitively while ice skating recreationally, tennis became her passion.
“I love tennis because when I’m playing a match, in the end, it’s all about me,” she said. “It’s all about me making the decisions, giving myself pep talks, and not anybody else. I love that I can be independent and have fun during the process. I also love it so much because when you’re by yourself, you can experiment what you want to do with the ball. Unlike dance which is a set perfect performance, tennis is always changing and isn’t the same everyday so you can find out what your strengths and weaknesses are. I also love what there are so many things to learn and take in because it’s just so much fun learning something new like a slice and practicing it in my game.”
Cai is now 11-years-old and has been playing within the SPORTIME and John McEnroe Tennis Academy programs for the last four years, and as a result, has seen her tennis take a massive step forward.
The all-encompassing training regimen at JMTA has allowed her to see where she stands against other top players her age, as well as provided her an environment to thrive.
“Playing at JMTA is super fun. We play up and down games, and do effective drills, plus there are also so many great players to compete with,” she said. “I have been playing at SPORTIME from when I first started to play. There are fitness classes to help improve your physicality, in addition, the fitness room can be used as a stretching room which is perfect for after I train.” 
Cai’s game is anchored in her strength and aggressiveness with her groundstrokes as she hits the ball with more power than a lot of her peers. She hits a two-handed backhand which she says comes naturally to her, and is always looking to improve her game, and embracing the process of getting better. She takes great pride in her mental toughness which is something she is always looking to elevate.
“I also think that I have a great growth mindset that can help me be tough. I try to improve on my emotion control in practices.”
Her primary coach at JMTA, Mario Leguizamon, said:
“Tiffany brings passion and determination to the court, always pushing herself to improve and play her best game both physically and mentally.”
Cai takes a lot of inspiration from her tennis idols, which include the Williams Sisters and Coco Gauff. But perhaps her biggest tennis idol lives under the same roof as her, and that’s her mother, Shasha, with whom she began her tennis journey during the pandemic.
Shasha has since embarked on her own tennis journey, becoming a high-level player on adult league teams even after only starting to play a few years ago. She recently competed in the Tri-Level final at the USTA Eastern Sectional Championships, and together, her and Tiffany are able to bond over their shared love of the sport.
“My mom and I play tennis together a lot. She encourages and helps me get better. She really inspires to work harder, and is always able to point out what I didn’t do well at a tournament so we can then work on it,” said Tiffany. “Since she plays lots of USTA League matches, she can understand and relate to the feelings I have and the difficulties that come up during matches. When I am confused or struggling at something, her and I can analyze that together.”
Tiffany even recalls a specific moment recently when she was frustrated with the way she was playing in a match during a tournament. That was when her mom walked up to her and offered her some much-needed words of advice.
“She told me, ‘It’s fine, it’s the first time you are playing at night on the weekend and you are in a different location,’” Tiffany recalls. “Afterwards, I played better and better. It’s just like she always tells me, tennis is the ‘adapt, adjust and repeat’ game.”
Those were valuable words of wisdom and ones that Cai takes with her whenever she practices or plays matches, and will continue to reinforce that mantra as she progresses in her tennis career.
“Tiffany is not only an extremely talented and driven tennis player, her coachability is off the charts,” said Jay Harris, Director of Tennis at SPORTIME Port Washington. “She has the ability to absorb coaching tips with incredible focus, and that makes her an absolute pleasure for any of our coaches that have the opportunity to be on court with her!”
When she isn’t playing tennis, Cai enjoys traveling, writing and spending time with her family and friends. She is also an avid food lover and spends a lot of time cooking, to the point where she joined a cooking club at her school.
But those interests take a backseat to her love of tennis which remains the top priority in her life. She is excited to continue her ascent into becoming the best tennis player she can possibly be.
“I hope that I can keep playing tennis for a long time and achieve more than my abilities. One of my present goals is to win one of the big under 12 titles like the Junior Orange Bowl. In the long-term, I want to become a college player and even have the chance to turn pro one day. I hope that I can go on to win many Grand Slams and become a famous professional player!”
