Match Play Help?

iatennis

New User
Hey guys,

I've got a problem when I play matches, I tend to hit everything long or hit easy volleys into the net, and make many unforced errors, that I just don't make in practice/warm-ups too much. In practice, immediately preceeding the match, I can hit very well, with high pace a decently long rallies. My vollies are usually easy to drop in and hardly missed. But when I get to match time. I tend to fall flat. My question is what is the factor changing the way I play? Its obviously mental, seeing that I have the skill to hit the shots, but I tend to have many more unforced errors than winners. Any help?
 

mightyrick

Legend
Hey guys,

I've got a problem when I play matches, I tend to hit everything long or hit easy volleys into the net, and make many unforced errors, that I just don't make in practice/warm-ups too much. In practice, immediately preceeding the match, I can hit very well, with high pace a decently long rallies.

Um, practice/warm-ups is far different than a match. In my warm-ups, with an opponent who has good racquet control, I've hit 30 or 40 ball rallies. In warm-ups, nobody hits at 100% -- even 90%. Also, nobody usually shows everything they have in their arsenal.

You need to just keep playing matches and get experience. It isn't necessarily all mental.
 

Limpinhitter

G.O.A.T.
Hey guys,

I've got a problem when I play matches, I tend to hit everything long or hit easy volleys into the net, and make many unforced errors, that I just don't make in practice/warm-ups too much. In practice, immediately preceeding the match, I can hit very well, with high pace a decently long rallies. My vollies are usually easy to drop in and hardly missed. But when I get to match time. I tend to fall flat. My question is what is the factor changing the way I play? Its obviously mental, seeing that I have the skill to hit the shots, but I tend to have many more unforced errors than winners. Any help?

It's all about experience! It takes match play experience to play your best during a match. Having said that, IMO, the key to playing your best in any situation is to focus on your gameplan and on executing your shots, one shot at a time.
 

Wilander Fan

Hall of Fame
Hey guys,

I've got a problem when I play matches, I tend to hit everything long or hit easy volleys into the net, and make many unforced errors, that I just don't make in practice/warm-ups too much. In practice, immediately preceeding the match, I can hit very well, with high pace a decently long rallies. My vollies are usually easy to drop in and hardly missed. But when I get to match time. I tend to fall flat. My question is what is the factor changing the way I play? Its obviously mental, seeing that I have the skill to hit the shots, but I tend to have many more unforced errors than winners. Any help?

Your not really practicing when you hit the ball back and forth. Real practice helps tremendously in match play. This involves repetitive drills that are painful to do in contrast with just hitting back and forth which is very fun.
 

fuzz nation

G.O.A.T.
Think about what's not happening when you're on the practice court or hitting around in a pre-match warm-up. You don't have to defend your end of the court, mind your opponents' positions, anticipate and counter their attack, hit shots that are good enough to at least keep them neutralized in their end, or jump on opportunities to go on the attack... among other things. You get to hit in a mode where you can focus on yourself and what you're doing more than anything else. That's when it's much easier to produce consistent strokes.

If you work yourself hard on the practice courts, you'll build more ingrained habits that are easier to recall during a match while you're managing your points. I like to play an occasional tie-breaker during my practice grinds so that my match mode and practice mode of thinking share more of an overlap. You'll know you're doing something right on the practice courts if you find yourself gassed and needing a longer water break after only a half-hour.

Move and hit as deliberately during your practice sessions as you do for a match so that on game day, you'll simply use what you know. Eventually, your familiarity with the competitive settings will let your call upon a "business as usual" mode of play.
 
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