[ColoradoTree]

What also irks me about this is that if memory serves, Forood doesn't coach her players for the individual part of the tournament, unlike many other team coaches. And we almost always fare much worse in the individual portion than the team portion, which would seem to indicate that her coaching makes a difference. Yes, a deep team run almost every year will also mean we're often out of gas for the individual and doubles tournaments, but I do think the difference in outcome is so striking as to suggest it's not just the raw inputs she's acquiring that turn into trophies but also how she molds them.

I recall the same thing you do about past individual tournaments (or at least the ones where I live streamed some of it, where I didn't see Lele out there at all, even in key points where our players were in a tailspin), but when I was watching the end of Lord's first set yesterday, I saw her talk to Lele, and then Lele went over one court to talk to Gordon, who was just getting started, I believe. 

So, she was present, but I don't know how much in-match coaching went on. Even during the regular season, she's not as intense an in-game coach as many others are, and I see Frankie do a lot of the in-match stuff, too (I also saw Frankie talk to Lord at one point during that match). 

I could be completely off base here, but my impression is that Lele tries to build players who are sufficiently mentally tough that they don't need a lot of in-match pick-me-ups. "We're all here for you, we're going to cheer for you, and I'll come check in from time to time, too, but I'm not going to talk to you on every changeover. You're an adult, and you can handle your business." But I'm making a lot of assumptions there. But it feels right.

[ColoradoTree]

What also irks me about this is that if memory serves, Forood doesn't coach her players for the individual part of the tournament, unlike many other team coaches. And we almost always fare much worse in the individual portion than the team portion, which would seem to indicate that her coaching makes a difference. Yes, a deep team run almost every year will also mean we're often out of gas for the individual and doubles tournaments, but I do think the difference in outcome is so striking as to suggest it's not just the raw inputs she's acquiring that turn into trophies but also how she molds them.

I recall the same thing you do about past individual tournaments (or at least the ones where I live streamed some of it, where I didn't see Lele out there at all, even in key points where our players were in a tailspin), but when I was watching the end of Lord's first set yesterday, I saw her talk to Lele, and then Lele went over one court to talk to Gordon, who was just getting started, I believe. 

So, she was present, but I don't know how much in-match coaching went on. Even during the regular season, she's not as intense an in-game coach as many others are, and I see Frankie do a lot of the in-match stuff, too (I also saw Frankie talk to Lord at one point during that match). 

I could be completely off base here, but my impression is that Lele tries to build players who are sufficiently mentally tough that they don't need a lot of in-match pick-me-ups. "We're all here for you, we're going to cheer for you, and I'll come check in from time to time, too, but I'm not going to talk to you on every changeover. You're an adult, and you can handle your business." But I'm making a lot of assumptions there. But it feels right.