Noah Rubin’s “Behind The Racquet” with Kristyna Nepivodova • Tennis | 10sBalls

By TennisBalls Staff
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Updated: August 30, 2021

Editor’s note: 10sBalls thanks Noah Rubin for giving us permission to repost these great stories.

#MyBTR- “Matt Stevenson made an incredible impact on my life. And not only mine. His kind heart led the example to others. He was dedicated to coaching tennis, his always positive energy, outstanding sense of empathy and playful insight made his classes fun and kids loved him. He would never show a single sign of feeling sad or troubled. You would never think he was going through personal challenges. Instead, he focused on alleviating the personal worries others would face.

I remember I was stressed about meeting my tuition payments. I worked as much as I could to make it, and he would source more clinics and private lessons into my schedule. He also helped me to set up a stringing gig. I remember he told me he owned a stringer machine and since he hated stringing, he would gift me that machine. We went to pick it up which was the funniest story on its own; we carried the stringer from a top floor to the far back of a parking lot and although it was incredibly heavy, we laughed our lungs out. Matt lifted a heavy weight of my chest by such random actions of kindness.

I wish he knew how much he changed my life. I wish we knew and could help him back before it was too late.

To continue Matt’s legacy of helping others and promote the importance of mental health, ProtoStar Foundation is launching the Matt Stevenson Junior Tennis Tournament Series, which kicks off in San Diego on September 11-13, 2021. The tournament will continue to Flushing Meadows Corona Park, New York on September 17-19, 2021, and round off at the Fitzgerald Tennis Center, Washington DC, home of the Citi Open, on October 2-3, 2021. Practical mental health information that is geared towards teens and pre-teens, as well as their parents and coaches, will be provided at the tournament sites.”

Kristyna Nepivodova