Happy New Year to all STA members and readers!
I love the start of the year, it is a chance to `reset` your life or job whether it is going well or not so well, and get ready to move on. For example, here at STA we have had a wonderful few months with players improving greatly and everything moving on smoothly, but we do not want to take that for granted and always want to better ourselves further and stay ahead of the game. So in 2011, we are looking to improve all aspects of the Academy from the attention to detail we give to our players, to on a much greater scale, our facilities.
This idea of `resetting` as I like to call it, can also be utilised after each and every point that is played on a tennis court. This is something that the best players in the world do so well. ‘Resetting` needs to happen on a regular basis. Others will call it a routine. The resetting for me is the mental side of your pre-point routine. It is easy for us to see a player`s physical routine i.e 3 bounces, Roddick fiddling with his cap, or Rafa picking his pants from his bum! However, what we can`t see is the mental part of the routine, but believe me it happens. It may be a key word or phrase that you think of that pulls your focus into line. One example of a routine I heard was imagining mini `windscreen wipers` washing away the last point and clearing your head ready for the next. Hey, give it a try!
We talk about the first point of every game being key, which I agree with, however it is only another point. The reason for it being key is the mentality change it brings to many players. However, do you think it affects Serena Williams if she goes 0-15 on her serve? I am not sure it does, as her routines will be so drilled in and her thought processes will be so clear whether she is up or down in the game. She, as will other top player `reset` her mind time and time again in a match, not getting too far ahead of herself, and `boom` down goes an ace 15-15.
Or take Rafa – how many times do you see him set down, to then come back and win in 3. Is he affected when he loses the first set? No, because he has an amazing ability to play a point at a time, as he resets his mind so well!
We often think we only need to reset and dig in when we are losing, but it is just as dangerous when we are ahead!
How many times have you seen or played a match and been set and 4-2 up and then relaxed, and before you know it you are in a 3rd set? When you have a big lead in a game, it’s about telling yourself “Ok I am 40-0 up, but come on let’s focus on finishing the game here”. Taking a few seconds before each point, rather than having no thought process can make all the difference between winning the game, and all of a sudden 40-30 and the nerves starting to jangle!
This is a vital skill for juniors out there to work on and will lead to much clearer thought processes. Tennis is an amazing sport as with the scoring system the way it is, you’re never out of the match, until that last point is played. Hence why the `toughest` players mentally are the ones who rise to the top.
So why not give it a try? In your next practice session whether going well or not so well, take small pauses to `reset` your mind ready for the next drill rather than messing with your mates while you have a drink. Everyone will have their own ways and techniques of resetting, it is just figuring out what works for you!
Lastly, good luck to our STA players who are starting the year at tournaments around the world. I’m sure they will take all the hard work they did in their training block in December into the new season.
As I write Josh has advanced to the semi-finals out in India beating the 92nd ranked player in the world and more importantly starting to understand his game more and more… Long may this continue with all of our players.
Dan Kiernan
Director, SotoTennis Academy
Inspiring Excellence | Tennis Academy Spain