Mantilla, a former top 10 ranked singles player, is at the Australian Institute of Sport this week as part of the Tennis Australia junior draft camp.

Mantilla has been on the Australian coaching staff since April 2008 as a claycourt expert, a traditional weakness for Australians.

Mantilla sees a fundamental flaw in the way Australian juniors learn to play and wants to expose them to a European style of tennis.

''For example, Australian kids are used to playing faster, in Europe they play more flat,'' Mantilla said.

''The points here are four or five shots and finish the point.

''If you go to Spain, even if you play at a lower level, all the matches are longer. They suffer, they fight and that builds up a lot of confidence in the kid. It's something the kids here need, they should learn to really have different patterns of game.''

Mantilla did not possess the serve, volley or natural talent of many of his opponents, but still managed to claw his way to 10 career titles during a career that lasted 15 years.

During that time he defeated world No1s Pete Sampras, Lleyton Hewitt and Roger Federer.

Mantilla was known for his consistency at the baseline from both sides, endurance levels and courage.

Mantilla said learning to stay in a game was an important skill.

''If you hit the right defensive shot you can be able to be in the next shot attacking the ball, it's really important for the kids to learn that.

''For example, the running forehand, hit one high, defensive down the line and the point is starting again. When you introduce that type of shot and plenty of them, it helps to be better.''

Mantilla is keen to give Australian juniors more exposure to their European counterparts as part of their development.

Australian juniors currently spend five to six weeks in Europe contesting elite competitions each year.

''We're heading in the right direction where we're trying to have a good interaction between Australia and Europe, in that case Spain,'' Mantilla said. ''It will be really helpful for the young Australian kids because they will learn to mix up their defensive shots and their attacking shots.''