After gaining his first coaching qualification in the UK, James immediately set out for the US, spending a season in Massachussetts. On returning to Britain, he started out as a Club Pro at a performance academy in Surrey, rising to Head Pro within two years. James next transitioned to continental Europe, working on the clay in some of Austria's top academies.

 

Looking for a greater challenge, James then joined a colleague from the US in setting up an academy in Pune and Bangalore, India, where he worked with some of the top U14 players in the country. These included Siddhant Banthia and Adil Kalyanpur, ranked first and fourth nationally. Here James worked with two coaches from New Zealand where he went on to work for the largest regional federation, Tennis Auckland, as Head Coach of their 12 and Under Programme. 

 

James then returned to the UK, coaching across Leicestershire and Cambridgeshire, working towards his Level 5 Master of Tennis Certification with the Professional Tennis Registry. He studied the first year of a Sports Psychology BSc at Loughborough University, gaining a  Level 3 Diploma in Sports Massage Therapy.

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Then the pandemic arrived. After enduring two lockdowns without tennis, James escaped to Abu Dhabi and Dubai for a chance to coach again. Next came a dream job offer at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca, with one hiccup: Brexit! Two days before James was due to fly out, Spanish bureaucracy with impeccable timing rejected the academy's residence application. Every cloud has a silver lining though, and this roadblock allowed James to accept an offer from an academy in Berlin, where he coached the men's first team comprising semi-professional players in Germany's highest regional league.

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James has also remained in contact with Adil Kalyanpur, now competing on the men's professional tour, ranked inside the world's top 1000 on the ATP rankings, and coached him at Futures tournaments in Spain. Previously James was also a hitting partner for Yann Marti, ranked in the top 300 ATP, and Swiss number 3 behind Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka.