Mind
Training for Tennis -
Tennis Tip 10
Develop
Your Mental Strength In Practice
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The
secret to solid tournament and competition
performances is to practice with
the same intensity and mental approach
that you would use in a match.
It
may seem amazing but very few players
seem to do this, except for possibly
during the hour they might spend with
their coach in a lesson - but once
they are practicing elsewhere without
the watchful eye of the coach, it often
becomes easy to take the foot off the
accelerator.
For
instance, often you will see players
regularly letting the ball bounce twice in
practice, yet obviously when
they are playing a match, they simply
would not allow this to happen or they would
lose the point.
The
major problem with this attitude is
that taking it easy in practice creates
a completely separate
mindset for practice than
the mindset they use when playing
actual matches - and this creates
some big problems.
These
players find it difficult to mentally tough
out their matches in tournaments,
especially matches that go down
to the wire in the 3rd set, because
their mind (and body) are simply not
accustomed to toughing it out
on a regular basis.
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 treat it no differently and
ensure you bring out your best tennis.
This one tip, alone, can help to
pull ahead of most of your competition.
Practice
is also a fabulous place to sharpen up your
ability to fight back from behind in
a match - an ability that every tournament
player will need, but very few ever
actually practice!
For
instance, if you are in a practice set with
someone, and find yourself down 5-1, dig
deep and see if you can pull out a 7-5
or 7-6 win. Doing this conditions your mind
to never give up, which makes it far easier
for you to stage a spirited fightback in your
tournament matches when you are behind in the
3rd set.
Also,
some players practice completely
differently to the way they actually
play while in the heat of competition - practicing heaps of low-percentage
shots that they simply would not
use when under the pressure of
a tournament match. It's important
to keep in mind that you are practicing to
win your tournament matches, not
to impress your practice partner.
Last
of all, it is also productive to practice quietening
your mind during actual points in practice (unless you
are having a lesson with your coach of course,
where you will need to be listening to their
instructions) as this often helps players
to click into The Zone more often,
by playing more instinctively rather
than 'thinking' every shot.
The
Zone is the (somewhat rare) mental state that
delivers your absolute best tennis every
single time, and it appears most often when
we can switch off and allow our subconscious
to run our performance (for more info on this,
see The
Zone)
So
from now on, begin using practice as a mental
training exercise as well as your tennis practice,
to get the jump on your opponents. Practice
with a new intensity and purpose, practice
your fightbacks, practice the shots
you will actually use in your tournament
matches, and practice getting into the
zone more often.
By
doing this, you will find that your tournament
results will be far more successful, as your
mind and body will always be primed and
ready for every match!
