Your Mindset For Beating Higher Ranked Players
Competing against tough competition requires mental toughness…
When competing against top competition, your opponent may be more skilled than you, but if you have more mental toughness, you can even the match court.
Many tennis players lose the match even before they step on the court because they lack the necessary mental toughness to perform their best.
Take for instance the following illustration…
Becky L. is a sophomore Division II tennis player.
Becky has performed solidly her first two collegiate seasons but falls apart when she competes against the top players in her conference.
It is the same old story for Becky, when she finds out she is playing a highly ranked opponent, she becomes overwhelmed by negative thoughts, such as, “I can’t beat her,” “She is the best player in the conference… she will crush me,” “She has such a dominating serve, I will never be able to return it.”
Becky’s anxiety steadily climbs and, by the time the match starts, she can’t even relax.
Becky becomes acutely aware of her pounding heart, tight muscles and upset stomach.
At that point, focusing on playing good tennis feels like an impossible task… Becky just wants the match over as quickly as possible and it is evident by her play.
Becky appears rushed and makes mistake after mistake.
Becky’s confidence sinks and she is loses in straight sets… Just as she had predicted!
A better way to approach playing against top-ranked opponents is the approach successfully utilized by rising star Naomi Osaka.
Osaka displayed a high level of mental toughness during her breakthrough win at the BNP Paribas Open.
Osaka beat several top-ranked players including No.1 Simona Halep, No.5 Karolina Pliskova, Agnieszka Radwanska, and Maria Sharapova en route to her first professional title beating Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 6-2 in the final.
Even more impressive is the fact that Osaka dropped just one set during the tournament as she climbed 22 spots in the rankings with her victory.
Osaka revealed her mindset for each match against higher ranked opponents…
Osaka: “Every match that I’ve played I’ve thought, ‘just don’t give up no matter what’ because everyone I played was super tough. I feel like that’s really helped me and my mentality of coming to the finals and eventually winning.”
Osaka’s mindset helped her grind out tough matches and never lose faith.
Osaka focused on her game and playing consistently throughout the tournament instead of getting wrapped up in her opponent’s rankings, successes and abilities.
Osaka: “[Being consistent] means that I’m not giving away free points. I’m not going to slap a ball when it’s not there. Just to have good matches… and not be as much of a roller-coaster.”
Mental toughness gives you the chance to focus on your strategy for playing each point. This focus-on-one-point mindset is critical for consistent play.
When you play consistent tennis, anything can happen… even beating top-ranked players.
How to Beat the Better Players:
Adopt the “any-given-day” mentality. Stuff happens on the other side of the court.
Your opponent might:
- Get tight
- Become tired at the end
- Protect the lead
- Cramp up
On any given day, you can pull out a victory against higher ranked players.
After all, you don’t know if your opponent is having an off day, is tired, has a nagging injury, is just getting over being sick or is dealing with personal issues.
And you don’t even know if this current match will be your breakout performance or the match that takes your game to the next level.
Give yourself a chance and you will always have a chance.
Start by tuning up your mental toughness for matches:
Boost Your Self-Confidence in Tennis With Expert Mental Game Coaching!
Master mental game coach, Dr. Patrick Cohn, can help you overcome your mental game issues with personal mental game coaching.
You can work with Dr. Patrick Cohn himself in Orlando, Florida or via Skype, FaceTime, or telephone.
Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 (local: 407-909-1700) or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!
One-on-one mental game coaching with Dr. Cohn
What are our mental coaching students saying?
“Dr. Cohn did a great job working with my son Joe on his mental skills for tennis. He taught him the mental skills and discipline necessary to move to the next level. Thanks Doc!”
~Mike Withers, Joe Withers Father
“Since you last worked with AJ in early September, his National ranking has improved from 349 to 148. His tournament record at one point, since talking with you was 17-4, with 3 of the 4 being in third sets or tiebreakers and 2 of those matches being the same player, whom he has since beaten (you may recall he was on an 0-9 losing streak when we contacted you). His tie-breaker record is at least 90% through last weekend when he won the 18s District tournament with a semi and final match tiebreak win. Your help has definitely improved AJ’s results and his on-court demeanor has substantially improved.”
~Dawn Woodman, A.J.’s Mother
Visit perform sports psychology for more Tennis Psychology articles.
Learn Proven Tennis Mental Game Strategies To Perform Your Best On The Court!
Are you (or your players) performing up to your ability in competition?
Do you bring your best and most confident game to matches?
I often hear players complain about the following problems when they play in matches…
- “I get so tight or tense before matches that I can’t think straight or have any rhythm in my game.”
- “I get so frustrated with hitting bad shots or with errors and it snowballs.”
- “I expect so much when I play that I unravel and lose confidence when the match does not go as planned.”
- “My confidence seems to disappear when I go from practice to matches and I don’t know why.”
Successful tennis players have learned how to perform with ultimate confidence in tournaments.
If you are ready to improve your mental toughness and perform with ultimate self-confidence in matches, Tennis Confidence: Mental Toughness For Tournament Players can help you do this!
Players: Learn how to take control of your confidence, focus your best, and win more close matches.
Parents: Help boost your junior tennis player’s confidence for tournaments. Just load the program on your player’s IPod!
Coaches: Boost your team’s confidence using simple, proven mental strategies.
Instructors: Learn how to give your students the mental game advantage.
Use Tennis Confidence to help boost your mental toughness in tennis and discover powerful and proven mental game strategies that have helped professional athletes win!
Tennis Confidence: Mental Toughness For Tournament Players
What are mental game customers saying?
“She did really well with controlling her emotions during the matches today. We were very proud of her for not showing her frustrations during the match; I think that was a big accomplishment. She really looked in control of her emotions even when she double faulted or made mistakes. The changes we saw in her behavior in less than 24 hours were AWESOME! Thank you for your guidance!”
~Jennifer, Tennis Parent
Leave a Reply