“They waste millions of dollars on boondoggles,” Roger Federer’s former coach Jose Higueras strongly criticizes USTA’s budget cuts at the expense of top American players

The renowned coach did not mince his words while slamming the USTA.

“They waste millions of dollars on boondoggles,” Roger Federer’s former coach Jose Higueras strongly criticizes USTA’s budget cuts at the expense of top American players

Jose Higueras slams USTA (Images via Imago, X)

The United States Tennis Association (USTA) has come under scrutiny for its budget cut for the Player Development Program, with Roger Federer‘s former coach Jose Higueras hitting hard at the authorities. 

The Spaniard, who also helped lead the player development program for the USTA, has openly criticized the tennis body for wasting “millions of dollars on boondoggles.”

As per The Athletic, Higueras has written a letter to the USTA and has criticized the tennis governing body in the United States for its decision to cut down on the budget for the play development program. He has claimed that it might undo the progress achieved in the past few years.

Higueras has claimed that while the USTA has cut down on the budget for the play development program, it is busy with unnecessary building renovations. The renowned tennis coach, who worked with the likes of Jim Courier and Michael Chang, is concerned about the future of American tennis after such a step from the USTA.

In his letter, Higueras said the leadership of the USTA had veered off course since 2020

Deliberately cutting funding and staffing for the Team USA pathway and American players, while they waste millions of dollars on boondoggles like unnecessary building renovations at the USTA Campus in Lake Nona and a million dollar holiday party.
A report in The Athletic states.

Why has the USTA cut budgets and what does Jose Higueras think about it?

While Jose Higueras is infuriated about the budget cut from the USTA, the tennis governing body has come up with explanations. USTA says that it wants to ensure the flow of funds for all of its priorities. It also claims that it is investing heavily in community tennis to make the sport accessible to all.

Jose-Higueras
Jose Higueras (Image via Tennis.com)

The report claims that the USTA has stated that the budget cut was part of “a holistic approach to ensuring that appropriate levels of funding are in place for all of its priorities”. The USTA said that it wants to ensure that the growth in participation witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic continues and hence it is investing in community tennis. 

To do so, the USTA must balance and reprioritize support for key areas, such as growing participation — ensuring that every player has access to a facility and a place to play — and that there are sufficient, qualified coaches available nationwide to inspire love of the game.
The USTA said. (H/T: The Athletic)

Meanwhile, Jose Higueras has stated that he has no issues with USTA investing in community tennis, but doing it at the expense of the player development program does not seem like the best option. He has also claimed that the tennis governing body has enough funds to facilitate both tasks. 

I am 100 percent for community tennis. Community tennis should be a good start to find some kids. But the next step is player development. That is a totally different expertise.
The renowned coach said

Notably, as per the report, the USTA has cut funding for the camp programs and has also removed four positions that helped to run those programs. Also, the tennis governing body has reduced the number of national coaches from 24 to 11.

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