Does anyone else have this problem and how have you overcome it? Lately everytime I play I lose the first set and don't even compete in it! In fact the last 4 times I've played I've lost the first set to love. 2 out of the 4 I've gone on to win the match but all 4 have gone to 3 sets. It's like I get on the court and can't hit a thing. This is new to me because I used to start a match so positively. HELP!
I Just Can't Win The First Set!
- Thread starter Owen0501
- Start date
It sounds like there are a couple possible problems. First is maybe you are not warming up enough before a match. Your shots still may be a little stiff if you haven't fully prepared, leading to worse play in the begionning of the match. Another possibility is that you spend the first set trying to figure out how to best play your opponent, then can exploit their weaknesses and use a more effective strategy in later sets.
ceejay
Semi-Pro
I hardly ever win the first set either. Its solely down to not warming up and preparing in my case though. The first set is usually part of my warm up unfortunately.
The last time I won a first set I spent the whole day psyching myself up, and arrived early to practice hitting. That was the best match I ever played.
The last time I won a first set I spent the whole day psyching myself up, and arrived early to practice hitting. That was the best match I ever played.
thanks for the responses. Perhaps as the weather is getting colder I need to warm up more. During the summer I used to cycle to the tennis club, now I drive - so I guess the cycling must have been an important part of my warm up. I have a match tomorrow evening so I'll let you know how I get on after a longer warm up.
fuzz nation
G.O.A.T.
Definately get your heart rate up so that everything is ready to go full speed on the first point, even if all you can do is run around in the parking lot a little bit. Typical pre-match warm-ups don't do enough for me to be ready to play out in top gear, so the first couple of games get me all jazzed on adrenaline because I know I have to speed up what I'm doing to move and hit right. Ideally for me, the start of the match should be a little bit of a downshift.
Well I got there earlier, warmed up longer (ran around the court stretching muscles, etc), but damn I still lost the first set! Although I lost the match the result was 5:7, 6:7 so I guess a positive loss for me! I still started slowly - I was 0:3 down so I guess I need to get my heart rate up a bit quicker! I also think there was a bit of not being focussed at the start - bad day in the office! My next match is Sunday morning and I've decided I'm going to cycle again - and kick some ass!
D
Dunlopkid
Guest
Conditioning might be the key for you. Many players think they don't need conditioning because they think they can do a "mind over matter" thing in the third set. However, studies have shown that it is impossible to be mentally tough and to make good decisions when one is physically tired. Hit the weights!
psamp14
Hall of Fame
i guess you should warm up more, prepare for the match earlier, get yourself more focused
i try to get to the match little bit early, already prepared and focused, not all smiles usually, and concentrate even more on watching the ball closely during warm up...
usually in my matches i win the first set convincingly, but then sort of let up in the beginning of the 2nd set...like one tournament i played, which i got to the final of, my first 2 matches i won 6-0 7-5 and 6-0 6-4
both matches i had a letdown in the early 2nd set...had to win from down 0-2...guess i got a little bored in the beginning of the 2nd, and then realized i've got to finish this or else it'll go three sets
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I have the same problem - often when just playing one set against mates I routinely find myself down 0-3 or 1-4 - but then often rally well to a good or at least acceptable position from there, and it all comes down to short warmup for me.
For tournaments, I'll get a mate to come along and warm up for half an hour. My serve takes 3-4 service games to warm up properly, to feel like my arm is swinging freely.
Sure - ride to the courts, but remember nothing will replace a few more minutes in the warm-up. Walls are great if there's no other option!
For tournaments, I'll get a mate to come along and warm up for half an hour. My serve takes 3-4 service games to warm up properly, to feel like my arm is swinging freely.
Sure - ride to the courts, but remember nothing will replace a few more minutes in the warm-up. Walls are great if there's no other option!
Nextman916
Professional
I take forever to warm up, i usually arrive an hr early to a match and find a hitting partner(someone who is usually sitting around)on any open court nearby. I find this to really improve my performance during the first set, craziest story was when there were no courts to warm up in my tournament, so i actually drove me and some random guy to a practice hard court 5 miles away!
TENNIS_IS_FUN
Professional
Same thing here...and the sad thing is that the highschool league i play in only hosts one set matches
I often lose the first set too, and partly it's because I'm not warmed up. But mostly it's because the first set doesn't matter as much as the second or third, so the stakes are lower. I personally play best when there is a lot on the line, and I find it hard to get motivated to give 110 percent early in the match when I know I can afford to lose games or even a set and still triumph in the end.
I hear you all and agree that:
a. I'm not warmed up enough
b. I'm not mentally into the first set.
I heard an interview with James Blake after he just beat Davydenko and he said in not so many words - "Davydenko played his best tennis and peaked in the first set and first half of the second. I peaked in the second half of the second and in the third - I would rather peak in the last set than the first."
So I guess I play like Blake then???!!!
I wonder what Federer's percentage of first sets lost is when he loses a set in a match. Roddick peaked to damn soon!
a. I'm not warmed up enough
b. I'm not mentally into the first set.
I heard an interview with James Blake after he just beat Davydenko and he said in not so many words - "Davydenko played his best tennis and peaked in the first set and first half of the second. I peaked in the second half of the second and in the third - I would rather peak in the last set than the first."
So I guess I play like Blake then???!!!
I wonder what Federer's percentage of first sets lost is when he loses a set in a match. Roddick peaked to damn soon!
BabolatFan
Semi-Pro
I normally try to warm up with my hitting partner 2 hrs prior to my match or sometimes I jump rope. Some light hitting to get my rhythm going. Owen0501, maybe you're not loose enough in the 1sst set. The part like you said would be your mental strategy.
CanadianChic
Hall of Fame
Just make damn sure you win the next two and you'll be all right. LOL.
Hey guys, the good news is I've broken the run - I won the first set in my last match (7:6, 6:1)! I decided to get to the club an hour ealry and hit with one of the guys from the club. We ended up playing a set for fun which I also won! So something is changing! Onwards and upwards!
Rickson
G.O.A.T.
That never happens to me because losing a set is as bad as losing a match to me. I'll lose points, that's inevitable. I don't even mind losing a few games, but losing a set is where I draw the line. Don't drop any sets, that's my motto.
And how's that working out for ya?
Hey Mr Federer, I saw you lose the first set to Roddick and Nalbandian last week - guess you're not sticking to your motto!!
Rickson
G.O.A.T.
How does 300 plus sets-1 in 2005 sound? Yes, I thought I'd go without dropping a set in singles for 05, but I played on a slow court with a pusher who retrieves a lot of balls on slow courts while I stuck to my net game. You'll be glad to know that he got crushed on the next set and btw, the 1 set I lost went to a tie break.
It sounds pathetic. Maybe you're goal for 2007 should be playing opponents at your skill level or better instead of running up the score against women and children.
That's the thing about tennis -- there is always somone out there better than you, and it sounds like a cocky fella like yourself is in dire need of a can of whup-ass opened on you to bring you back down to earth and make you realize how much your game, like most of the rest of ours, actually sucks.
Who the heck are you playing, 10 year olds? Look at Federer he doesn't have that kind've record, maybe because he doesn't play people 20 years younger and 2 rankings lower:roll:
