Coaching Team
Our Coaches
The FDT Coaching team are committed to making all players the best they can be. Our Tennis Australia Qualified Coaches deliver informative and engaging lessons while ensuring each lesson remains fun and enjoyable from start to finish.
Box Hill Tennis Club
Head Coach
Director of coaching
Senior COACH
SENIOR COACH
SENIOR COACH
SENIOR COACH
Trainee Coach
Trainee Coach
Mia Guilieri
Tennis Australia Development Coach
Rachel Pan
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Bruce Chen
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Balwyn Park Tennis Club
Head Coach
Director of coaching
SENIOR COACH
Senior Coach
Senior COACH
senior COACH
ASSISTANT COACH
Nicolas Currea
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Bruce Chen
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Cranross Tennis Club
Head Coach
Director of coaching
Nicolas Currea
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
St Christopher's Tennis Club
Battheram Park Tennis Club
Our Holy Redeemer Primary School
Our Lady's Surrey Hills
Box Hill Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
HOLLMAN PINZON
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Hu Tao
Assistant Coach
Sam Day
Tim Wilson
Balwyn Park Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
HOLLMAN PINZON
Linda Kelly
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Ken Wang
Assistant Coach
Sam Day
Eduardo
Assistant Coach
Jasper Diep
Cranross Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
HOLLMAN PINZON
Eduardo
Assistant Coach
Jasper Diep
St Christopher's Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
Hu Tao
Assistant Coach
Calum Bennet
Our Holy Redeemer Primary School
Sam Day
About the Coaches
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
Qualification – Tennis Australia Club Professional
Tennis Coaches Association of Victoria George Gilmore Club Coach of the Year 2023
USPTA Coach Award
Alexei is the Owner and Head Coach of FD Tennis. He has 24 years coaching experience both in Australia and abroad and currently holds a Tennis Australia Club Professional qualification. In 2023, Alexei was awarded the TCAV George Gilmore Club Coach of the Year award and he is passionate about providing a strong learning environment for all players and is driven by seeing them progress and grow through their tennis journey.
HOLLMAN PINZON
Director of coaching
Qualification – Tennis Australia Club Professional
Hollman is a Senior Coach at FD Tennis and has been coaching for over 20 years across the world, including in countries such as Australia, Colombia, Spain and the USA. His international experience has seen him coach at the Yenera tennis club in Barcelona, as well as spend 13 years in Cali, Colombia. Here Hollman ran his own academy called Samitenis and was also the high-performance coach at Zaverian University.
Hollman has also seen great success as a player. From 11 to 17 years of age, Hollman was in the National Colombian tour, reaching top 10 in under 12’s, under 14’s and under 16’s. From 17 – 21 years of age, Hollman competed in ITF tournaments, such as future changes and satellites. Hollman then moved on to compete in the University tour in Colombia, consistently placing first and second position qualifying to the National finals.
As a Coach, Hollman enjoys being on the court with players seeing them work hard and watching how much they improve day by day doing the things that they have previously been unable to do. Hollman is great at challenging his players to reach further and get the best out of themselves and their abilities.
Outside of coaching, Hollman enjoys going to the movies, going to the beach, riding his bike and going to the gym.
Linda Kelly
SENIOR COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Club Professional
Linda is a seasoned tennis coach who has successfully operated in the Victorian Tennis industry for 35 years. This success has also been translated internationally in England, Spain, USA & Fiji. During the last 35 year Linda has not only become one of Victoria’s leading tennis coaches but has also developed a tennis services business which incorporates all of her skills and networks. One of her greatest skills is to identify with people of all ages and ‘get into their world’ while maintaining high technical standards and a fun and enjoyable approach to the game. As an effective leader of people her effervescent personality is infectious and she uses this to focus around events and tasks so she can be relied on to achieve excellent performance from both herself and others. She has a passion to succeed in every endeavour and a ‘can do’ attitude which brings with it results rather than simply a whole lot of activity.
Pablo Hurtardo
Senior Coach
Qualification – ITF Level 3
Pablo joins the FD Tennis team all the way from Colombia, bringing a wealth of experience and passion for the sport. Having picked up a racquet at the age of 8, he quickly developed into a competitive player, competing at the national level. By 16, Pablo had already transitioned into coaching, demonstrating his natural leadership and love for teaching the game.
With four years as the director of a youth tennis school in Colombia, Pablo gained invaluable experience developing junior talent. He also led an elite academy, managing 35 of the country’s top athletes competing in ITF tournaments. His expertise in both coaching and athlete development makes him a fantastic addition to the FD Tennis community.
If you see Pablo at Box Hill or Balwyn Park, don’t hesitate to say hello! He’s excited to meet our players and help them achieve their goals on the court.
SHIYING LI (POLLY)
Senior COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Club Professional
Polly started playing tennis at 7 and has been coaching for 9 years. She used to compete at National and Provincial levels in China, and reached Top 20 in the country in the U16. She competed in ITF tournaments with a few trophies before deciding to move to Australia. She remained competitive in Australia with a Top 100 ranking and won several gold medals in the University Games while studying.
Polly is passionate about coaching. She loves to see her students’ improvement in a fun and engaging environment. Her coaching philosophy is to help each individual to improve at different stages of their learning journey.
Eduardo Salinas
Senior COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Junior Development
I have been playing tennis for over 10 years. I love the sport because it’s social and also technical – you can never stop learning to improve your game. What’s interesting too is that technology in equipment and techniques are always changing in this sport.
I have coached in two tennis clubs, but for fun have taught tennis to my friends for a couple of years given my passion for the sport. I have completed the Tennis Australia Community Coaching Course and will soon start my Tennis Australia Junior Development Course.
I’ve played for over 10 years and I’m currently participating in a social competition in Melbourne. Previously I competed in competitions in Chile as well as receiving private coaching myself in my first two years of learning tennis.
It’s very rewarding to see a student improve through my coaching and seeing how grateful they are. I’m best at helping players with technical movement, which is crucial in tennis, putting focus on correct contact point, rotation and position to the ball.
Tim Wilson
Senior COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Junior Development
Hi there, I’m Tim, one of the tall coaches, this fortunate gene allows me to have a big serve and big levers. The main reason why I love tennis is because it’s a sport that you can always improve your game, whilst also being able to grow as a person through certain mental and physical challenges.
I have played tennis since I was 5 years old, and I began playing domestic competition at the age of 9 all at Box Hill Tennis Club. This year is my 4th year of coaching and after two crazy years I’m looking forward to staying on court and helping the next generation of super stars along to grand slam glory.
The things I enjoy the most about coaching are meeting new people, getting to work with such talented kids whilst watching them grow and prosper as tennis players and I love working alongside the amazing FDT coaching team they really are a great group of people, which allows me to coach with a big smile.
Outside of coaching I adore and passionately follow AFL Football; I love footy because of its competitive nature and rich history amongst Aussie society. In addition, AFL also provides me with many analogies that I can adopt into my lessons while coaching. I look forward to seeing you all out on court soon.
Camilo Anaya
Senior Coach
Qualification – ITF Level 1 & Level 2, Tennis Australia Development Coach
Don Pritenang
Tennis Australia Development Coach
Qualification – Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Laurent Phansavath
COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Laurent Phansavath is originally from France but now calls Australia home. Laurent is experienced in delivering Hot Shots, Junior Squads, and Junior & Adult Private Lessons and will teach at our Box Hill & Balwyn Park venues.
Jasper Diep
Coach
QUALIFICATION – Tennis Australia Trainee COACH
Jasper has played tennis for 7 years and has grown a great love for the sport. Starting his tennis journey at Cranross Tennis Club, Jasper has been training since 2014 and continually getting coaching to improve himself as a player. As a coach, Jasper started his coaching journey in 2021, completing a Community Coaching Course. He believes that everyone learns better when they are enjoying themselves.
Rynash Singh
COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Ryansh Singh focuses on tasking our red ball and orange ball beginner classes. Trained alongside Alexei in 2023, Ryansh has honed his coaching skills and is eager to inspire the next generation of tennis players.
With a passion for working with young athletes, Ryansh aims to create a fun and supportive environment that helps players build confidence and foundational skills.
Amber Thomas
COACH
Amber is a current player and recently joined the FD Tennis Player Pathway Program at the beginning of 2024 where she trains twice a week with our lead coaches. She plays inter-club tennis for Box Hill TC and also competes in metropolitan and regional tournaments as well as representing the Eastern Region TA in AJP.
Her coaching journey began 6 months later when she was invited as the second inductee in our FD Tennis Coach Trainee Program after spending 12 weeks on the court with our coaching team as a part of her Duke of Ed Program where she instantly got great enjoyment out of the industry.
Since starting tennis, Amber has developed a great love for the sport and she aspires to guide others to love the sport and find entertainment, joy, and satisfaction in it as she does. Her greatest joy from coaching is working with such bubbly and funny kids who are motivated to improve and have a good time.
Clare Zhu
COACH
Clare has been passionate about tennis since she was seven years old, and it has been a significant part of her life ever since. As a child, her love for the sport grew through meeting new people at various clubs and making lasting friendships through competition, all while bonding over their shared passion for tennis. Since 2023, Clare has been shadowing as an assistant coach at Box Hill Tennis Club as part of the Duke of Edinburgh Award. In this role, she’s witnessed children at different skill levels developing their strengths in tennis while building meaningful connections within their squads.
In July 2024, Clare took the next step in her coaching journey by joining the FD Tennis Coach Trainee Program to further enhance her coaching skills. She is also a member of the FD Tennis Player Pathway Program and represents Box Hill TC in the Eastern Region weekend club competition. Additionally, Clare competes in both metro and regional tennis tournaments.
As a coach, Clare aims to ensure that every child leaves each lesson with something positive, helping them feel supported and confident in the environment she fosters. She loves seeing the smiles on students’ faces when they overcome challenges they once struggled with, a result of their own hard work. Above all, Clare enjoys witnessing the joy they share with others around them. Her goal is to guide her students in discovering their passion for the sport, just as she did.
Jervis Bai
COACH
Qualification – Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
aaron ka tsui
coach
Aaron is a passionate tennis coach with 2–3 years of international coaching experience. He is certified by the Hong Kong Tennis Association (HKTA) and qualified as a Tennis Australia Trainee Coach. Aaron has worked with players of all levels, focusing on developing strong foundational skills and boosting confidence on the court.
Aaron started playing tennis at the age of 10, developing a deep love for the sport early on. Before becoming a coach, he competed in tennis tournaments, gaining firsthand insight into the game’s challenges and strategies. He remains an active member of the tennis community, regularly playing both singles and doubles matches.
Aaron is dedicated to inspiring his students to develop a love for tennis and achieve their full potential through personalized guidance and tailored coaching sessions.
When he’s not coaching, Aaron can be found competing in local tournaments or enjoying watching Wimbledon matches—his favorite event of the year.
Mia Guilieri
Tennis Australia Development Coach
Qualification – Tennis Australia Development Coach – Level 1.
Rachel Pan
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
As Rachel has always loved the sport, coaching allows her to share her happiness with other
aspiring players, helping them feel confident on and off the court.
Nicolas Currea
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
Nicolas believes tennis is not only about learning skills, but also about building discipline, confidence, teamwork, and a healthy lifestyle. His goal as a coach is to help every player feel comfortable on the court, reach their personal goals, and enjoy the learning process.
Bruce Chen
Tennis Australia Trainee Coach
confidence, develop new skills, and fall in love with the game. With years of experience
coaching both children and adults, I specialise in making tennis fun, highly engaging, and
rewarding for every age group and skill level.
When I am not on the tennis court, I stay active through basketball, general fitness, and
exploring the great outdoors. I bring this high-energy, positive lifestyle to every coaching
session to inspire the next generation of players.
Box Hill
Alexei Demajo
HOLLMAN PINZON
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Hu Tao
Sam Day
Tim Wilson
Box Hill Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
HOLLMAN PINZON
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Hu Tao
Sam Day
Tim Wilson
Box Hill Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
HOLLMAN PINZON
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Hu Tao
Assistant Coach
Sam Day
Tim Wilson
Balwyn Park Tennis Club
Alexei Demajo
Head Coach
HOLLMAN PINZON
RAV SALELKAR
Calum Bennet
Hu Tao
Assistant Coach