Mind
Training for Tennis Tip
5
Practicing
Great - But Not Winning In Tournaments?
http://www.tennispsychology.com / Email
this page
It
is a common scenario that some players practice brilliantly
yet seem to never show the same form
on the court in tournaments. Often
strokes which were incredibly smooth
and powerful in practice, become much
weaker and lacking in rhythm out there
in a tournament match.
It's
important to know first of all that this
common problem has absolutely nothing
to do with the 'physical or technique'
side of tennis. It's purely the mind's
reaction to the pressure of the match
or tournament (or both), and it comes
out in the strokes.
So
by simply making some mental changes, your
results can change too - but of course,
it does take some discipline to make these
mental changes.
The
answer to stopping this situation occuring
(or getting out of this situation if you
are already in it) lies in your attitude
and mental approach - and so here is your
5-Part Action Plan.
Firstly,
look at tournaments and matches in their
'true' perspective from now on. For
instance, how many millions of people
will know about the results of this match?
(Often) none! Will the results be broadcast
all over the country or around the world?
No. Is this match life or death? No.
Will you continue to live after this
tournament is over? Yes.
OK,
so we've just discovered that this match
is not as important as we first thought!
In
fact, compared to many other things going
on in the world right now, it could pretty
safely be considered UN-important! So really
there's no need to stress out about
it at all. There'll be plenty more matches
after this one, so you might as well just
relax, enjoy yourself and go for it. The
more fun you have, the better you'll perform,
anyway.
Secondly,
look at the match from your competitor's
viewpoint - look what THEY have to deal
with - YOU!
You
certainly wouldn't want to be in their
shoes, would you?! They might even be the
favorite to win, which means ALL the pressure
is on them and not you. Even worse, they
see this great player down the other end
(you), trying to de-rail their dreams!
So always remember, THEY may be scared
of YOU!
Next,
it's very important to build yourself
up mentally. Reinforce the positives
about yourself - going over all of your
own positive attributes. Literally ask
yourself "what's great about me?" and
begin to think of (and write down) all
the things you've done in the past which
made you feel great about yourself. (If
you cannot think of anything, it simply
means you are not thinking hard enough
- because EVERYONE has positive attributes.
And so the answer "nothing" is
not only banned from this list, but worthy
of a firm kick in the butt!).
List
down anything that makes you feel
good about your game - your great
service action, your whippy topsin forehand,
your consistency, your mental strength,
your fitness, your coach, the win you
had over so-and-so, the tournament you
won last year, what someone told you
about how good your game was, etc etc.
Go over this list at least once before
each and every match, and let each point
sink in a little before you move on to
the next.
Last
of all, two more important things. It's
important to regularly visualize yourself
winning the matches and playing great shots,
imagining a great tournament where you
show them all who's the best!
Absolutely
essential is to make your tennis
mind just as strong as your groundstrokes,
which can only be done the same
way - through regular daily practice of
your mental training, even just for a
few minutes each day.
A
powerful way to do this is to mentally
visualize your game going absolutely
perfectly in your mind for around 10
minutes each day, with every single
major shot included in the mental scenario,
playing points in your mind and seeing
yourself coming out on top every time.
This
can be done to upbeat motivational
music, or if you are serious
about it, you might want to check out
my daily Mind Training for Tennis Visualization
below this article.
The
other thing is to talk positively to
yourself, using positive affirmations
and upbeat thoughts (no, not aloud
- in your mind!) - become your own inner
'cheer squad' who constantly tells yourself
how great you are. This can transform
your results more than you could ever
possibly imagine.
So
to overcome the 'great practice / bad tournament'
blues - here's the action plan: Put
the tournament in its true perspective,
then look at the match from your competitor's
viewpoint. Build yourself up mentally,
and then visualize and affirm to yourself
just how great the whole experience is
going to be.
So
if you find yourself stuck in a negative
pattern, change it. You can create your
life into anything you WANT it to be. You've
got the action plan, now the rest is up
to you!
