John Isner’s Will to Win

History was made at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, when John Isner and Nicolas Mahut battled on the court for a record 11 hours, 5 minutes spread over three days. Both players displayed remarkable mental toughness throughout the match, but Inser took the victory 70-68 in the fifth set. “It was the will to win. Not that I outwilled him; I mean, obviously, he gave it his all,” Isner said.

Reasonably, both men were wiped out when it was all said and done. Isner “was incoherent” for 20 minutes, according to his coach, Craig Boynton. “We played the greatest match ever, in the greatest place to play tennis,” said Mahut. Each player gave it their all leaving everything they had on the court day after day. “It was really painful, but I knew I couldn’t hold anything back,” said Mahut.

To be successful in tennis you must have the mental toughness to overcome adversity, keep your composure, and maintain a high level of performance. “I kept telling myself to stay focused on finishing strong after I missed a shot. I knew I would eventually get my look,” Isner said.  

Isner was able to keep his composure by sticking with his strategy, and not letting mistakes affect his ability to perform at a high level. To do this you need to develop mental strength that compliments your tennis skills, and avoid frustration. Practice and training will help you achieve mental strength, but it is import that you avoid frustration between points. Frustration only works in favor of your opponent.

“It was frustrating at times, but I didn’t let it get to me or throw me off my game,” said Isner. Do not be afraid to make mistakes. Every athlete makes mistakes, but the ability to maintain confidence and focus on the next play separates talented athletes from the elite.  Leave it all on the court! Let your mental strength, abilities, and preparation guide your performance.

Melzer Enjoys the Mental Battle

How do you react when you’re down in a match? Do you try harder, tighten up and try to avoid making mistakes? Do you get frustrated and try to end the point as quick as you can by trying to hit a winner on every shot?. Or do you give up, tank the match, and want the match to be over–fast. If you said yes, you must learn how to comeback after losing a game or set and fight to win the match. Let’s examine a resent example at the French Open…

Jurgen Melzer is one of those players who can mount a comeback. Melzer upset number 3 seed Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the French Open. He was down two sets and 2-0 in the third before he started to change the momentum in the match. Melzer went on to win the match 3-6, 2-6, 6-2, 7-6 (3), 6-4.

When he was down two sets and 2-0 in the third, Melzer commented on how he was able to stay in the match mentally.

“I changed the match. Well, the only thing I told myself, It’s my first quarterfinals in my life in a Grand Slam. Just don’t go away. Just don’t make it easy for him. Fight as much as you can, and I was I wasn’t playing so bad. I just missed a lot of easy shots when I had the chance and the opportunity to finish the point. And after that, I mean, I got back in, and at 2 All in the third it was an open match,” said Melzer.

“Well, at the end, it’s just like getting to another chance and just believing you’re gonna win. I think all those break points I played good points. I came in and won. And then at the end, it’s just a battle. You just I mean, of course we were both tired and everything hurt. I just got through.”

Melzer also believed that he could win the match. When asked what keeps him going, he said,

“That I’m a good tennis player. It was just a few links here and there were missing. As long as you believe in yourself I had enough as I said earlier, I have enough game or I had enough game all the time. I played good matches.

It’s just the more matches you win on a high level, the more confidence you get. For me, it was never a question of talent. It was more in the head.”

Do you lose confidence when you are down or enjoy the battle of making a comeback? First, you have to believe you can’t win a tight match or comeback when down early, so you don’t tank the match and give up. You will learn to win more matches when you can enjoy the battle instead of be frustrated with losing. You must embrace these moments when you can, which will make you a better player.

Your tennis psychology tip for today is to love the challenge of coming from behind. Stay confident in your ability to make a comeback instead of tanking the match.

Composure After Bad Line Calls

Welcome to session number forty nine of The Tennis Psychology Podcast. Dr. Patrick Cohn at Sports Psychology for Tennis, is a mental game of tennis expert and helps tournament players, tennis coaches and parents improve confidence, focus, and composure using sports psychology strategies.

In this week’s tennis psychology session, Dr. Cohn teaches you the top mental strategies to staying composed after a bad line call from an opponent. Many tennis players become angry or upset after a bad line call from an opponent. This can cause players to lose focus, speed up their play and under perform. Listen to this mental game of tennis podcast to learn how keep your composure after a bad line call.

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*Download The Tennis Psychology Podcast #49 (right click and “save as” to your computer)

Subscribe to The Tennis Psychology Podcast via iTunes

*Submit your mental game of tennis question to Dr. Cohn at Peak Performance Sports

*Download a free tennis psychology report to improve your mindset between points

Improve Your Mental Toughness for Tennis Quickly with Dr. Cohn’s new Tennis Confidence audio program!

Kim Clijsters Wins the Mind Game

Kim Clijsters was an unlikely champion at the 2009 U.S. Open defeating Caroline Wozniacki 7-5 6-3 in the final. After a long absence from the game, Clijsters returned to tennis with a new outlook and a new mental game for tennis. Her mental game was the key to her success in the final match against Wozniacki…

Clijsters played the 2009 US Open with a calm about her. She was composed and did not get rattled after errors. Playing in a major championship, it’s easy for players to think about winning during a match, get over excited, and lose focus. But getting too far ahead of yourself will not help you win the current point. When you focus on winning, you can lose focus on the current point or shot.

Your tennis mind can only focus on one thought at a time. When you fill your might with results, you aren’t focused on hitting the current shot. And when you’re not focused on the current shot, you’re more likely to have a few loose points or make more errors.

Playing in the present moment or playing one point at a time is important to perform your best, especially when you are winning matches. You must focus on the process, rather than what it would mean to win. Kim Clijsters knew this important task: to not let her mind jump forward to winning the US Open.

“I think I really had to be patient, as well, but also try not to play along with her (Wozniacki’s) game. So I didn’t have that feeling [I could win this match] until, you know, when I had match point. I was like, Okay, maybe I can do this. Because in the past, it’s so easy to just lose focus if you start thinking like that.”

Having confidence you can win a match is a good thing. Thinking too much about winning the match in the final set is not a good thing because it does not help you close out the match. If you find your mind racing ahead to the results of the match, refocus on the current point instead. Focus on how you will construct the point and play to your strengths.

Your tennis psychology tip is to not allow your mind to race ahead to winning the match when playing. Instead, focus on the current point or shot. Play one point at a time. Whether you’re winning or losing isn’t important during the match. Focus on your strategy playing each point to the best of your physical ability.

Boost Your Tennis Confidence Quickly

Tennis Podcast: Managing Perfectionism

Welcome to session number twenty two of The Tennis Psychology Podcast. Dr. Patrick Cohn at Sports Psychology for Tennis, is a mental game of tennis expert and helps tournament players, tennis coaches and parents improve confidence, focus, and composure using sports psychology strategies.

In this week’s tennis psychology session, you’ll learn how to manage perfectionism on the court. Many tennis players have sound fundaments, but underperform in matches. They perform tenatively, try to avoid mistakes and become frustrated with themselves. Dr. Cohn teaches you the top mental strategies to manage your perfectionism on the court.

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*Download The Tennis Psychology Podcast #22  (right click and “save as” to your computer)

Subscribe to The Tennis Psychology Podcast via iTunes

*Submit your mental game of tennis question to Dr. Cohn at Peak Performance Sports

*Download a free tennis psychology report to improve your mindset between points

Improve Your Mental Toughness for Tennis Quickly with Dr. Cohn’s new Tennis Confidence audio program!

Tennis Podcast: Stay Composed When Losing

 Welcome to session number nineteen of The Tennis Psychology Podcast. Dr. Patrick Cohn at Sports Psychology for Tennis, is a mental game of tennis expert and helps tournament players, tennis coaches and parents improve confidence, focus, and composure using sports psychology strategies.

In this week’s tennis psychology session, you’ll learn how to play your best tennis when losing. Many tennis players become angry and frustrated when losing, which snowballs in the wrong direction. Dr. Cohn teaches you the top mental strategies to keep your composure.

 

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*Download The Tennis Psychology Podcast #19  (right click and “save as” to your computer)

Subscribe to The Tennis Psychology Podcast via iTunes

*Submit your mental game of tennis question to Dr. Cohn at Peak Performance Sports

*Download a free tennis psychology report to improve your mindset between points

Emotional Control Leads Azarenka to Win

Tennis players can experience strong emotions during match play. Positive emotions, such as experiencing the thrill of hitting a winner can have a powerful effect on your mental game and thus boost your confidence and focus during the match. Feeling positive emotions, such as momentum, can help keep your run going strong.

Negative emotions, such as frustration or anger, can hurt your game. Tennis players feel upset, frustrated or angry for several different reasons. You might become upset after missing shots you have no trouble executing in practice. You might feel angry with yourself after making a poor decision on shot selection or strategy. You might even become frustrated with an opponent’s bad line call.

Whatever the cause of your frustration, a process I call “dwelling on the past” happens and causes you to lose focus on the match. You may carry your frustration with you to the next point or shot causing more mistakes and lower confidence in your game.

Staying composed is critical to improving your mental game of tennis. Victoria Azarenka is an excellent example of staying composed on the court. She experienced the biggest win of her career so far, beating Serena Williams in the final of the Sony Ericsson Open last week.

“I was more consistent and more aggressive. I would say I was always trying to put pressure and I was just believing in myself so much. No matter what, I have to play and keep going and I can win. I think I controlled [my emotions] very well for the first big final. I wasn’t getting upset on any ball. I was just happy to play every point,” said Victoria Azarenka.

Often in my work as a mental game coach to athletes, I see athletes become frustrated because they are blocked from reaching their expectations. The solution is to modify your unrealistic or strict expectations. Your expectations might be about stats (number of winners for example) or results (beating someone in two sets). When you don’t achieve those high expectations, you become frustrated easily and might lose confidence.

Here’s you mental game tip for today: Understand that you can’t be perfect in tennis and always play up to your high expectations. Give yourself the luxury of making 3-4 errors per match. This way you can put mistakes behind you and move on to the next point. Learn from your mistakes instead of beat yourself up for a lost chance or opportunity.

Federer’s Mental Toughness and Maturity

I find that younger players with less tournament experience struggle with their emotional control more so that veteran players on Tour. With maturity and greater mental toughness comes increased emotional and mental control on the court.

Even Roger Federer early in his career would lose his composure on the court. But he’s learned to stay calm on the outside and inside as his mental toughness has matured with his experience and wins. He can see it in his opponents, which might turn into his advantage:

“I don’t get the anxiety during a match so much anymore. You know, to throw racquets, to toss balls out of the court, scream and stuff. I almost laugh [on the inside] about it a little bit today when an opponent does it. But that’s something for me that’s not a problem any more.”
~ Roger Federer

However, he does demand more of himself in practice and his frustration comes out. He lets it show in practice. You might argue that it helps him get up for practice and make changes. He does not like to show his anger in tournaments for more than one reason. He wants the respect of his fans and does not want to embarrass himself:

“But in practice that comes out much more often, you know, the frustration, let’s say, disappointment, and the anger and stuff. But, I don’t know, it’s just something that’s gone away over time. And I think, on the match court, it’s just a respect for the fans sitting there and not embarrassing myself, you know, in front of millions on the TV, as well.”
~ Roger Federer

He’s also concerned about kids who watch him play. He wants to set a good example for young kids in tennis even though he enjoyed – on some level – watching McEnroe throw racquets and get upset at officials:

“And maybe kids watching, as well. I want them to have a proper example. Even though I enjoyed watching Goran, McEnroe, these guys throwing racquets. I thought it was funny. But at the same time, I don’t think a tennis player needs to act this way. I think there are different ways, I hope, that kids get inspired other than throwing racquets.”
~Roger Federer

One thing I find interesting about Federer’s mental game based on the quotes above is how much he thinks about embarrassing himself and the image he portrays to kids about his behavior on the court. If concern about what others think about your behavior on the court helps you stay composed, this can be a positive. However, based on what I know about tennis psychology, athletes that worry about what others think have fear of failure and tighten up. But it must work for Federer.

Roddick’s “Happy Medium” Tennis Mindset

Do you try to hit perfect shots and can’t handle imperfection during play? If you try to play a perfect game, you most likely sabotage your mental game with high expectations for your performance. Your high expectations can backfire and have a negative effect on your tennis mindset. Why? Most of the time, your high expectations cause you to become upset or frustrated when you under perform. And this leads to a loss of confidence or trying even harder in the match.

Andy Roddick confessed that he used to try too hard to win, but has been able to find a balance in his mental game:

“It’s almost like you work so hard and almost try too hard. Before I’d come out almost unprepared and sort of wing it. I’m trying to find a happy medium. Hopefully, things will go up from here.”
~Andy Roddick

Trying too hard can be a tennis player’s worst enemy. When you try too hard, you tighten up, lose control of your shots and get down on your self. Roddick knows that his best tennis performance is somewhere in between trying too hard and winging it. When Roddick finds this “happy medium” he’s able to perform his best, which is typical for most players.

Tennis players who try to be perfect and don’t have trust in their skills focus too much on trying to fix what may not be broken. Do you ever over-coach yourself through the match? Coaching yourself will not make things better and can make matters worse. You start to over control or guide your shots, hoping they go where you want them to go.

The reality of coaching yourself is this: your mind tries to control your body. Your body gets too many messages and doesn’t perform freely. The bottom line: Turn off your trying mind and allow your body react to the ball. Less self-instruction is better.

Roddick is also in tune with his negative emotions on the court. He tries to keep an even keel with his emotions:

“I can still play better. I’m playing a lot calmer now. I’m not worried about trying to win every point or win the match in every point. I’m kind of just staying a little bit even keel, and I’m serving 10 times better than I have been this year, which is a big, big plus for me.”
~Andy Roddick

His mind used to be preoccupied with winning every point during the match. When he didn’t achieve this expectation for this performance, he would become frustrated. In the past and even today, that frustration can cause him to lose control of the match and the mistakes start to snowball.

Today, Any Roddick’s new attitude understands that getting upset, angry or frustrated doesn’t help him win matches. What will help Andy Roddick win the match? Staying composed after mistakes will allow him to grind out the match.

You too can improve your game by staying composed during the match. Mistakes are part of the game. Here’s your tennis psychology tip for today: Apply the Tiger Woods 10-second rule. Give yourself a few seconds (about 10 or less) to process the point and then let it go. Turn your back to the net and after 10 seconds, you have to turn around and face the next point. Errors can only hurt you if they compound themselves due to a loss of composure.