“We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.” – Aristotle.
Tennis is one of the most
mental sports in the world – the mental
strength plays a huge part in determining who wins the match.
The success to solid
tournament and competition performances is to practice with the same intensity and mental approach that you
would use in a match.
It is one of the most
difficult things to do, and not very few players seem to do this,
and especially when they are practicing elsewhere without the watchful eye of
the coach, it often becomes easy to lose the focus and consistency.
The major problem with attitude on the court is that
taking it easy in practice creates a completely different focus for practice than the focus they use
when playing actual matches - and this creates some big problems.
The players find it
difficult to mentally tough out
their matches in tournaments, especially matches that go down to the 3rd set, because their minds
(and body) are simply ready for it.
The best way to perform
strongly in all your matches is to use your practice as a mental training rehearsal for your
tournament matches - treating practice as if it was a match. Doing
this keeps your mind trained up
for performing at the highest level, so that when you play a match, your mind
will think that it is no differently
and ensure you bring out your best tennis.
Most of the players
practice completely differently
to the way they actually play, because they under the pressure of a
tournament match. They can miss very easy shots that they would not miss during
the practice at all. It's important to
keep in mind that you are practicing to
win your tournament matches, not to impress your practice partner.
So from now on, begin using practice as a mental
training exercise as well as your tennis
practice. Practice with a new intensity and purpose, practice your fight backs, practice the shots you
will actually use in your tournament
matches, and practice getting into the mental zone more often.
You will find that your tournament results will be more
successful, as your mind and body will always be primed and ready for every match!
