Bigger Better Tennis - Paul Dale

I recently had a player, “James”, who was going through a rough period. James was struggling in practice and in competition. He didn’t seem to be enjoying himself on-court, becoming over-stressed and making poor decisions while executing strokes and tactics. It would have been easy to point the blame at his faltering ground-strokes and poor on-court execution, but I felt that spending time working on the details of his game would not have helped.   It seemed to me that the problem was mental and not technical.   Sometimes players lose sight of the real reasons they love to play tennis and compete. Often I ask players “Why do you play tennis”?   The answers are mostly the same.   Players say they “Like to Win” and “It’s fun”. But if that was true we would all play against opponents that we could beat easily.   Obviously playing against opponents that can be beaten easily would not be satisfying at all, therefore “winning” is not what brings us back...

                                                                   Nothing is more satisfying than beating an opponent who is, on paper, at least better than you.   A win against a superior opponent sets you apart as a genuine competitor. Beating superior opponents set you apart from the other players. Here are three ways to overcome a stronger opponent. 1.  Do Your Homework First Playing someone supposedly better than you suggests that your opponent is technically, physically, OR mentally stronger than you. They could even be technically, physically, AND mentally stronger than you! Don’t panic. It's time to plan their demise. Begin by l ooking at what they do best. Ask the following questions: Speed: do they prefer the ball fast or slow? Direction: do they like the ball wide or tight into the body?...