NRL club's staggering move amid Ash Barty's rise in world tennis
The Brisbane Broncos have clearly been taking note of Ash Barty's meteoric rise up the world rankings of women's tennis.
The NRL club has taken the staggering step of hiring the Australian tennis champion's 'mindset coach' in a bid to find their form again.
According to the Courier Mail, the Broncos have hired Ben Crowe "on an NRL exclusive contract."
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Broncos CEO Dave Donaghy said the move was designed to help the club through a period of instability.
“A few of us have been working with Ben Crowe of late. He’s in vogue at the moment, especially when you see how athletes like Ash Barty and clubs like Richmond have responded to his work," Donaghy told the Courier Mail.
“He’s very good at what he does and if he can play a role in adding shape to our development, that can only be positive.”
Crowe has also worked with the Richmond Tigers and some of the world's biggest sporting stars, including Tiger Woods and Steph Gilmore.
Barty has credited Crowe with helping her reach World No.1 and winning Wimbledon last month.
She's been in top spot on the WTA rankings for over two years, with her rise coinciding with her link-up with professional mentor and 'mindset coach' Crowe.
Crowe has been helping Barty with the mental side of being a professional tennis player, and the results speak for themselves.
"It's so beautiful and humbling for the rest of us as Australians to see someone focus on being a good human being first, and a great athlete second," Crowe told ABC Radio after Barty won Wimbledon.
"But she also remembers to celebrate the opportunities she's creating for herself and have that sense of appreciation and thankfulness.
"Going back to that child-like, carefree, without-consequence little girl who fell in love with the game, and reminds herself of that person. "[It] is an incredibly powerful technique as well."
Ash Barty's father offers glowing praise for Ben Crowe
Barty's father Rob gave a glowing endorsement of Crowe after his daughter's triumph in the Wimbledon final.
"She used to speak to her first coach, Jim Joyce, about things like this, but then she went through a period where she didn’t want to tell people what she was thinking or what she was aiming for,” Rob Barty told the Sydney Morning Herald.
“Then she got in connection with Ben Crowe, and Ben’s done an amazing job with her, and Ben said ‘let’s tell the world what you want to do, let’s tell the world how you’re going to do it, and let’s live the dream’.
"And the difference he’s made to her life and her tennis is just incredible.”
Crowe is so highly-regarded that the producer of Broadway musical 'Hamilton' even hired him to help his cast and crew get through lockdown in Sydney.
“I’ve been seeing Ben for a while now and frankly, without him, I’m not sure how I would have been able to get to this point," Michael Cassel told the Herald.
"He has been a huge help for me to deal with what is an overwhelming situation, which is very difficult to navigate and full of uncertainty."
Crowe has also been working with fellow Aussie tennis superstar Dylan Alcott, who made it a double delight for Australia by winning the wheelchair singles final at Wimbledon.
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