How to stay positive between points?

1980 · 01-25-2013, 03:43 PM

Given the recent dismantlement of Nico Almagro by David Ferrer... I noticed a similarity between him and I. He really didn't believe in himself in his match against Ferrer. Granted, the guy had lost to Ferrer 12 times prior, but that being said, we all have someone or someones we have trouble beating and it doesn't help to come in to it with fragile belief in our performance to be easily rattled when the chips get down. Does anyone have any tips or sage advice on not becoming dispirited when falling behind in a match? Does anyone else have this problem? I don't really get angry, but I have a tough time staying positive. More time is spent not playing than playing when in a match and I am really interested in how others use the time in between points and what is going on with them mentally during these times.

slowfox · 01-25-2013, 04:38 PM

Some may suggest all the usual platitudes e.g. "You gotta play it one point at a time" and so on. But for me I find that staying positive or negative isn't as good as just staying neutral. Don't think one way or the other. Just don't think. In a match situation it's best to just play.

Vertiz · 01-25-2013, 04:49 PM

Whenever I head into a match, whether it's against someone I know & have played many times, or someone I've never met, I keep the same mentality. It's not something I've always had as I used to have really bad anger problems on the court. After visiting a psychologist years ago I've found that I'm much more positive in life and on court. Rarely does something happening on the court get to me. I don't really think about it when I'm playing, but it's kind of like a zen mode. I'm in my own little world where it's just me and the ball. I put forth everything, employing strategies and patterns, to make sure this ball doesn't beat me. If I win I get great satisfaction and if I lose, it's just a ball. In some ways I just completely erase my opponent from existence. The ball is my opponent. It's a little bit weird but give it a shot

. Also, do your best not to dwell on matches before or after. Walk in there with purpose, not worry.

1980 · 01-25-2013, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vertiz

Whenever I head into a match, whether it's against someone I know & have played many times, or someone I've never met, I keep the same mentality. It's not something I've always had as I used to have really bad anger problems on the court. After visiting a psychologist years ago I've found that I'm much more positive in life and on court. Rarely does something happening on the court get to me. I don't really think about it when I'm playing, but it's kind of like a zen mode. I'm in my own little world where it's just me and the ball. I put forth everything, employing strategies and patterns, to make sure this ball doesn't beat me. If I win I get great satisfaction and if I lose, it's just a ball. In some ways I just completely erase my opponent from existence. The ball is my opponent. It's a little bit weird but give it a shot

. Also, do your best not to dwell on matches before or after. Walk in there with purpose, not worry.

I like that, I'll try to remember it.

goran_ace · 01-25-2013, 05:26 PM

I was a bit of a headcase in juniors and my coach used to tell me to write notes to myself to keep in my bag and refer to during changeovers. Just simple things to remind you of what you were working on. So for example you could just take a post-it note and write 'THINK POSITIVE' on it and keep it next to your water bottle as a reminder. If it's still not enough to only see it on changeovers and you need an every point reminder you could take a sharpie and write it on the back of your hand. You could write out the words, or even just write symbol like the '+' sign.

1980 · 01-25-2013, 06:24 PM

I like that a lot, writing something on my hand would be quite helpful for reminding me of the kind of headspace I want to be in when I play. I just ran across a youtube video I found interesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbZ1hoBb3rU

Anyone have this 16 second cure DVD?

sp1derman · 01-26-2013, 08:36 AM

As some others have mentioned, I try and pretend that there is no opponent, only the ball I am playing. This helps me to focus on the ball throughout the match and not worrying about what my opponent is doing.

Also, when I find myself getting negative in my head I try and say positive things out loud. Saying them out loud is key for me to stop the negative thinking. ( I don't say them so loud everyone can hear, just loud enough for me.)

Good Luck.

dlam · 02-21-2013, 10:15 AM

I been finding I can only concentrate for 30 mins per match.
I "rest " between points.
so even if it's a 2 hours match, the total time I" really in the point" is just the time before the point ,during the point , and just a bit of time after the point.
When I walk into position i can think about anything else but tennis

My ritual is to hold my racket at the throat with my right hand and walk to gather balls.
This saves up a lot of mental and physical energy and direct it when you need it most, during the point not in between.
Once im in position, I hold the racquet at the handle, that is the trigger that Im in the point.
I use to just tap the racquet frame with my right hand but that's not enough.

Now to make myself more feel fully prepared :
For the return of serve I will twirl then split step and when I land I feel like I got full control with my right hand grip.
When Im about to serve, i might have to twirl with my right hand only (rather than both hands as in my ROS), to get the right feel for my racket hand grip. I like to bounce the ball to get my toss arm involved particulary on the ad side serving.
I been having issues bouncing properly on the deuce side serving, however , I will try to cup the ball at the end of the dribble to smooth out my rhythm.

After my serve and ROS, I try to regrip by using my left hegu type grip and holding the butt end with my right hand so my right thenar muscles match up together , I pretty much direct my racquet with my left hand during the rally point rather than my right (which I use for my serve and ROS)
The twirl action is opposite direction of that for my serve and ROS grip.

user92626 · 02-21-2013, 10:26 AM

You can't stay positive if there's no substantiation behind your positiveness. So don't bother. It's a house of cards if you try.

Positiveness and confidence don't come that cheaply.

With that said, you'd need real substance, ie skills, proofs, understandings. Get your skills up, or know your opponent's weakness and your own strength and exploit it. If it's true, it will only take a couple good shots for you to boost your confidence or affect your belief.

Almagro wasn't as much negative as the limitation his skills hit. Ferrer ranks highter, plays 5 setters better, etc. Ferrer is a walk over for Djokovic and who knows where these guys' confidence level really are!

luishcorreia · 02-21-2013, 03:36 PM

I can recommend a great book called "mindset" look it up on amazon. Great read. It can help you with feeling positive

LeeD · 02-21-2013, 03:54 PM

We all have our "Waterloos".
But consider the alternative, you could be at work and be yelled at by your boss AND your customers.

Relinquis · 02-21-2013, 03:57 PM

in tight situations i just focus on the ball and what i want to do to it... in a way, that thought, erases everything else.

LeeD · 02-21-2013, 04:02 PM

Then's there's the variance in our goals.
Maybe Almagro was happy he got to face Ferrer, would love to beat Ferrer, but didn't really care deep inside.
Not every tennis player's goal is to be No. ONE. Some are happy to play well when it happens, but can still relax and live on even after a loss.

01-25-2013, 03:43 PM	#1
1980 New User Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 27	How to stay positive between points? Given the recent dismantlement of Nico Almagro by David Ferrer... I noticed a similarity between him and I. He really didn't believe in himself in his match against Ferrer. Granted, the guy had lost to Ferrer 12 times prior, but that being said, we all have someone or someones we have trouble beating and it doesn't help to come in to it with fragile belief in our performance to be easily rattled when the chips get down. Does anyone have any tips or sage advice on not becoming dispirited when falling behind in a match? Does anyone else have this problem? I don't really get angry, but I have a tough time staying positive. More time is spent not playing than playing when in a match and I am really interested in how others use the time in between points and what is going on with them mentally during these times.

01-25-2013, 04:49 PM	#3
Vertiz Rookie Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: MA/PA Posts: 161	Whenever I head into a match, whether it's against someone I know & have played many times, or someone I've never met, I keep the same mentality. It's not something I've always had as I used to have really bad anger problems on the court. After visiting a psychologist years ago I've found that I'm much more positive in life and on court. Rarely does something happening on the court get to me. I don't really think about it when I'm playing, but it's kind of like a zen mode. I'm in my own little world where it's just me and the ball. I put forth everything, employing strategies and patterns, to make sure this ball doesn't beat me. If I win I get great satisfaction and if I lose, it's just a ball. In some ways I just completely erase my opponent from existence. The ball is my opponent. It's a little bit weird but give it a shot . Also, do your best not to dwell on matches before or after. Walk in there with purpose, not worry. __________________ It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.

02-21-2013, 10:15 AM	#8
dlam Rookie Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 280	I been finding I can only concentrate for 30 mins per match. I "rest " between points. so even if it's a 2 hours match, the total time I" really in the point" is just the time before the point ,during the point , and just a bit of time after the point. When I walk into position i can think about anything else but tennis My ritual is to hold my racket at the throat with my right hand and walk to gather balls. This saves up a lot of mental and physical energy and direct it when you need it most, during the point not in between. Once im in position, I hold the racquet at the handle, that is the trigger that Im in the point. I use to just tap the racquet frame with my right hand but that's not enough. Now to make myself more feel fully prepared : For the return of serve I will twirl then split step and when I land I feel like I got full control with my right hand grip. When Im about to serve, i might have to twirl with my right hand only (rather than both hands as in my ROS), to get the right feel for my racket hand grip. I like to bounce the ball to get my toss arm involved particulary on the ad side serving. I been having issues bouncing properly on the deuce side serving, however , I will try to cup the ball at the end of the dribble to smooth out my rhythm. After my serve and ROS, I try to regrip by using my left hegu type grip and holding the butt end with my right hand so my right thenar muscles match up together , I pretty much direct my racquet with my left hand during the rally point rather than my right (which I use for my serve and ROS) The twirl action is opposite direction of that for my serve and ROS grip. Last edited by dlam : 02-21-2013 at 10:20 AM.

02-21-2013, 03:36 PM	#10
luishcorreia Professional Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Lisbon - Portugal Posts: 1,147	I can recommend a great book called "mindset" look it up on amazon. Great read. It can help you with feeling positive __________________ MY BLOG ---> http://online-tennis-blog.blogspot.com

02-21-2013, 03:57 PM	#12
Relinquis Hall Of Fame Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: On the courts; hard & clay ... Posts: 4,321	in tight situations i just focus on the ball and what i want to do to it... in a way, that thought, erases everything else. __________________ Disclaimer: I'm NOT a coach... Real tennis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDqnkLJ9BtM