EP17 - Peter Lucassen
04/11/25 • 40 min
Coach Unboxed EP17: Peter Lucassen, now coaching Botic Van de Zandschulp and having coached multiple top 30, 50 and 100 ATP players, as well as top ITF juniors. Peter played professionally and also collegiately at the University of Southern California, helping secure NCAA team championships.
Peter shares his journey from winning teenage years to challenging pros and his eventual transition to college tennis at USC, finding great success. He reflects on becoming a coach as he finished his studies while also starting his own tennis academy in California. Peter highlights his USTA work with some American greats and the building character while taking ownership of your journey. He closes with moving back to Amsterdam, his partnership with Botic and emphasizes family support and team communication in balancing a coaching career and personal life.
About Peter Lucassen: From the Netherlands, Peter Lucassen won the Dutch national championship in 14s and 18s, also reaching world #36 as a junior. He was ranked ATP #541 before accepting an offer to play two years of college tennis at USC. With his team, Peter won the NCAA Division I team championship and then helped the team as an assistant coach in winning two NCAA team championships in 2012, while founding Baseline Tennis Academy.
Now coaching Botic Van de Zandschulp, Peter has coached on tour for over a decade, working with top players including Ryan Harrison (#40), Steve Johnson (#37), Gael Monfils and Hailey Baptiste. He also guided Ernesto Escobedo from early juniors to #67 ATP, also having worked with talents like Fritz, Giron, among many others through the USTA development program. Peter is a proud husband and father of two.
Follow Peter Lucassen on Instagram @petertjelucassen and LinkedIn Peter Lucassen .
Subscribe to Coach Unboxed and leave your rating and comment! Full episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Follow Unbox Sports on social media for Coach Unboxed highlights: Instagram, LinkedIn, X and at unboxsports.com.
Production: Unbox Sports; Location: Embarc Collective; Music: BongÔMusics; Photo: Felipe Figueiredo
Coach Unboxed EP17: Peter Lucassen, now coaching Botic Van de Zandschulp and having coached multiple top 30, 50 and 100 ATP players, as well as top ITF juniors. Peter played professionally and also collegiately at the University of Southern California, helping secure NCAA team championships.
Peter shares his journey from winning teenage years to challenging pros and his eventual transition to college tennis at USC, finding great success. He reflects on becoming a coach as he finished his studies while also starting his own tennis academy in California. Peter highlights his USTA work with some American greats and the building character while taking ownership of your journey. He closes with moving back to Amsterdam, his partnership with Botic and emphasizes family support and team communication in balancing a coaching career and personal life.
About Peter Lucassen: From the Netherlands, Peter Lucassen won the Dutch national championship in 14s and 18s, also reaching world #36 as a junior. He was ranked ATP #541 before accepting an offer to play two years of college tennis at USC. With his team, Peter won the NCAA Division I team championship and then helped the team as an assistant coach in winning two NCAA team championships in 2012, while founding Baseline Tennis Academy.
Now coaching Botic Van de Zandschulp, Peter has coached on tour for over a decade, working with top players including Ryan Harrison (#40), Steve Johnson (#37), Gael Monfils and Hailey Baptiste. He also guided Ernesto Escobedo from early juniors to #67 ATP, also having worked with talents like Fritz, Giron, among many others through the USTA development program. Peter is a proud husband and father of two.
Follow Peter Lucassen on Instagram @petertjelucassen and LinkedIn Peter Lucassen .
Subscribe to Coach Unboxed and leave your rating and comment! Full episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Follow Unbox Sports on social media for Coach Unboxed highlights: Instagram, LinkedIn, X and at unboxsports.com.
Production: Unbox Sports; Location: Embarc Collective; Music: BongÔMusics; Photo: Felipe Figueiredo
Previous Episode
EP16 - Thomas Drouet
Coach Unboxed EP16: Thomas Drouet, a former top junior player in France and pro in Monaco, who went from hitting partner at the Monte Carlo tournament to 3x Grand Slam winning coach. Thomas has led players to become #1 in doubles and has coached a top 10 and 4 top 25s in singles, winning 18 doubles titles including the WTA Finals and 6 singles titles between both tours.
Thomas shares his journey from France to Monaco and the transition to pros in a new country, taking on hitting partner roles in Monte Carlo. He reflects on winning Wimbledon with Marion Bartoli and the six-year work with Timea Babos that also resulted in Grand Slam wins and many learnings as a coach. He delves into exploring the balance between singles and doubles success, the cultural adaptations required in the sport, and the impact of COVID-19. He finally shares the story behind creating The Cards Challenge game and new lessons learned by coaching his son.
About Thomas Drouet: Thomas became a hitting partner to tennis legends like Federer, Nadal, Soderling, Wawrinka and Monfils in Monte Carlo while playing pros. Starting as a coach on tour in 2011, he first worked with Bernard Tomic followed by Marion Bartoli, together winning the 2013 Wimbledon title and reaching the top 10. Later on, Thomas started coaching Timea Babos, leading her from outside of top 100 to top 25 in singles and to become #1 in doubles. Thomas has also coached former #12 Qiang Wang, #55 Jaqueline Cristian, among other top players.
Beyond his discipline both on and off the court, Drouet is passionate about infusing interactive techniques into coaching. This led him to pursuing an entrepreneurial path alongside coaching, introducing the first-ever interactive tennis card game, The Cards Challenge. Thomas is a proud father and avid cyclist.
Follow Thomas Drouet on Instagram @coachdrouet and LinkedIn Thomas Drouet . You can shop The Cards Challenge on the official website.
Subscribe to Coach Unboxed and leave your rating and comment! Full episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Follow Unbox Sports on social media for Coach Unboxed highlights: Instagram, LinkedIn, X and at unboxsports.com.
Production: Unbox Sports; Location: Embarc Collective; Music: BongÔMusics; Photo: Felipe Figueiredo
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