Hagelauer on path to finding future Henman

As Wimbledon fades into the background for another year, the search for a future Tim Henman has led Patrice Hagelauer, the Lawn Tennis Association's performance director, to narrow his margins, if not his ambitions.

Four tennis academies for 14 to 16-year-olds have been established rather than seven, as originally planned. The four are situated in Bath, Leeds, Loughborough and Welling, and each will be supervised by a head coach.

"It took me quite a while – too long – to see we were coaching too many people," Hagelauer reasons. "It was not only a question of lack of talent, it was also a question of not enough real commitment. It is a vicious circle: you can't develop somebody who hasn't got the right ability."

Nor, critics of the British game would retort, can players be developed by coaches who do not have the right ability. Hagelauer's answer is that he is seeking the same self-motivational qualities in the four head coaches he appoints as they, in turn, will seek in their assistants and their students.

"It is not a glamorous job", Hagelauer emphasised. "These coaches do not all have big names and will not be sitting up in boxes next to the Royal Box. It is not that rewarding to work in this area. It is much more rewarding to be working with senior players. But it is the important work.

"It is a very specific job. I am looking for people with passion and dedication to work with this age group. I'm looking for teamwork, communication, self-improvement. I want people who want to improve each second of their careers."

Hagelauer, 54, was appointed by the LTA in April 1999 after a hugely successful coaching career in France. He guided Yannick Noah to the French Open title in 1983 and coached the French Davis Cup team for 16 years, during which time they twice won the trophy. He was director of men's tennis at the French Federation for 10 years.

Having presented a performance plan for the nurturing of potential British talent, from club level upwards, he is keen for the cream of the intermediate group to be groomed in the right environment at the tennis academies. "Out of the four head coach positions, we chose just two of the people we have at the moment," Hagelauer said.

"We have offered some positions and we still have three people to reassess. We are also interviewing foreign coaches. We hope to get answers in the coming few weeks. If I don't find the people I want, we will have to advertise the job."

Hagelauer can empathise with the frustrations of being a coach: "I have spent four hours with people in on-court sessions. A lot of these people have good experience and good skills. It is not easy to choose, but it is something I have to do, because it will make my team. The people I am not going to choose could be very good with other age groups.

"Sometimes a coach can spend 15 years without any results, and then the right talent comes along. Mr Gasquet [the father of Richard Gasquet, the French prodigy] has been coaching for a long time. Now he has got his son, and he is seen as the best coach in France."

He added: "A coach may not get a lot of credit, but what he needs is the desire to improve, and our role is to provide him with the right training programme. This is a way to be better. Tennis is changing every six months. We have advisers coming from all over the world. We have the desire to achieve something."