Sports manga is not for everyone, but what makes Baby Steps stand out from others is that the lead character Ei-chan knows nothing about tennis so we, the readers learn as he is learning and so all the needed exposition that's required in sport mangas does not feel cheap or forced. The secondary characters get very little development, but that is ok because most of the story is about the tennis matches, which are beautifully drawn. The romance is almost an after thought and feels a little forced at times, but it works for the most part. Natsu is very underdeveloped and that is the mostunfortunate part of this manga as she is a very interesting character. In fact, it would be nice if there was a parallel manga that tells the same story, but from her point of view.
So if you want a sports story, or if you play tennis or enjoy watching tennis and have time to read a somewhat long, but we'll paced story about a kid that goes from knowing nothing about the sport to competing at the highest amateur level through sheer will force and smarts, then I highly recommend Baby Steps for you.
~WiruSempai