Give it all you got

We’ve been lucky enough; or maybe it’s just by sheer persistence and thoroughness of our casting, to come across some perceptive and inspiring characters.

Last week we told a chapter in the life of Essence Martins, a tennis player and student at the university of North Carolina. When we met for the first time we also met her twin sister Destinee. While digging deep into their lives and their love for the game they laughed, danced, rapped...and before we knew it a whole day had passed. 

We reached out to Destinee again to find out what she’s been up to in the past couple of years and where she’s currently at in her life. 

Becoming a professional tennis player won’t go without the necessary bumps in the road. It’s hard work! Everybody knows that, especially Destinee. Even after playing in 2 of the biggest tournaments in the world as a junior - Wimbledon and the Australian Open - she realizes she still isn’t there yet. But letting her dreams go is not in her mental make-up.

“There’s a lot of things that playing tennis has given me. For example I have friends from all across the world. I've been to so many countries that I can’t even count them on my fingers, I got free clothes, free rackets, discounts, and most of all RESPECT, it’s made me a stronger person. When I was younger I used to get bullied a lot but now that I play tennis I have gained confidence within myself both physically and mentally.”

The last time we spoke to Destinee in 2018, she’d just heard she was going to play the Wimbledon Juniors tournament  for the first time and she came into the focus group buzzing! She was going to play there for the second time this year, but of course these unpredictable times we live in, have changed those plans. 

Even though as a born and bred Londoner,  Wimbledon will always have a special place in her heart, her favourite tennis experience was during the Australian Open. 

“The reason I picked this highlight is because I got to travel all the way across the world to do the thing I love. Although it was very hot and play got cancelled because of this, I got to watch, and play next to incredible players up close. I got to experience things that some people never get to experience in a lifetime. I will never take this moment for granted.”

“Since I last saw you I won a grade 2 tournament in Spain. That’s what the accomplishment I am most proud of in those 2 years. That was a really significant time for me because I was in a slump but me winning that tournament really made me want to give it all I’ve got!”

But now the time has come that every young person faces who wants to become pro to make a decision, or maybe execute plan B. This moment came when she went to Florida to train. During those practises to get to 10,000 hours, all of a sudden the realization set in about how much it REALLY TAKES to become pro. Luckily with youth on her side, she chose Tyler college in Texas to continue working on her tennis career and a back up plan as a linguistic expert. Currently Destinee is teaching herself Mandrin. It’s a win win situation, studying languages and becoming the best tennis player she can be. 

“Next year I want to be studying languages in university. This is because when I was travelling all of my friends could speak different languages and I would have loved to communicate with my peers using their mother tongue. I also think it would be a great thing to be able to speak a different language because this will open up many doors for you.”

One last piece of advice from Destinee: 

“Once you know what you want to do put 100% into it, because if you don’t you’ll get nothing out of doing it halfheartedly!”