If you’re watching Wimbledon this year, you know that a lot of top players have gotten knocked out of the tournament early–including Maria Sharapova, who lost in the second round.
Sharapova lost to Michelle Larcher de Brito in two sets: 6-3, 6-4.
How does Sharapova deal with defeat?
She certainly does not make excuses for her poor play by blaming it on the slippery grass courts.
“I’m not making an excuse about the court. That’s not why I made errors or I didn’t make returns. As I said, the situation on the court was exactly the same as it was for my opponent. I just didn’t deal with it as well as she did. I can’t make excuses for my errors. Those are in my own hands,” Sharapova said after the match.
Why is this important? She accepts responsibility for her game. I see other players who make excuses for their poor play. They blame it on the court, the opponent, or the coach. They don’t take personal responsibility for defeat.
It’s much harder to improve if you make excuses for losing and blame outside factors that you have no control over.
What’s next for Maria Sharapova?
“You certainly don’t want to lose matches, I mean, whether it’s early or late… But I’m going to keep my head high about it because there’s no other way, and try to find the positives out of what I have today and my career, set new goals, and just keep moving forward,” Sharapova said.
Great answer from a champion. Find the positives, set new goals, and keep moving forward.
Why is this important? If you dwell on the loss and are self-critical of your game, no good can come from this approach. Setting new goals and moving forward after a loss helps you regroup and continue to improve your game.