Pushers - what do they get out of the game?

[JCF]

Just lost a really frustrating game to a pusher, had a good lead early on (we only played a set) and he just wore me down ..... everything hit back at a height and slow ....
so so mentally exhausting and frustrating, just waiting for me to make a mistake, which of course I do as I get so f*cking angry!!!

Thing is, how can they enjoy it themselves ?
Is it because it's the only tactic they have ??

I can't imagine a more lousy way to win, i'd rather lose 6/2 6/2 to some attacking player and be able to play well, then win 6/4 7/6 in some negative moon balling borefest!!

 

[Rosstour]

They are sadists. They really enjoy watching people self-destruct in a tornado of frustration. You are looking to the sky, throwing the racquet, and they are laughing to themselves, smirking at what they've brought out of you.

 

[travlerajm]

 

[Curious]

It’s clear that you wanted to win, otherwise you wouldn’t be angry now. Well, the pusher is better than you at winning.

 

[Topspin Shot]

I'm not a pusher, but if I'm playing someone in a men's open who I know I can beat and who has something against pushers, I'll totally push just to mess with him.

 

[Mark-Touch]

It’s clear that you wanted to win, otherwise you wouldn’t be angry now. Well, the pusher is better than you at winning.

Just think of Gilles Simon, probably one of the most famous pushers of all-time.
I think he won around $15,000,000 in just prize money. So it can be quite lucrative.
Or the talkative Brad Gilbert, he didn't do too badly either just pushing the ball around!

So on a pro level, one thing they get out of the game is lots of money.

 

[Daniel Andrade]

It’s clear that you wanted to win, otherwise you wouldn’t be angry now. Well, the pusher is better than you at winning.

The pusher is better, period. There's no excuse to hitting balls out or at the net in tennis. If you don't want to lose the point, they should go in.

 

[Hit_The_Fence]

What do they get out of the game?

They get to beat people who think they play better than them.

 

[megamind]

They are sadists. They really enjoy watching people self-destruct in a tornado of frustration. You are looking to the sky, throwing the racquet, and they are laughing to themselves, smirking at what they've brought out of you.

Am I a sadist for enjoying watching ppl struggle to manage / get to my hard hit, well placed aggressive groundstrokes?

 

[Daniel Andrade]

OP is angry and salty because he lost, if u would prefer to lose a match than being a pusher, that's fine, others do not agree with that feeling. But instead of coming here to vent, do the right thing and IMPROVE, otherwise you will keep losing to players like that. Stop complaining about others' game plans, you control yourself. BE A BETTER TENNIS PLAYER.

 

[Hit_The_Fence]

The goal in tennis is keeping the ball in play, not hitting winners. If the pusher can do this but you can't. How are you the better tennis player?

BTW, I'm not a pusher by any means. My UE count speaks for itself. I'm just past the point where I tell myself that "I should have won that one" just because my strokes look cooler on tape.

 

[Mark-Touch]

Just lost a really frustrating game to a pusher, had a good lead early on (we only played a set) and he just wore me down ..... everything hit back at a height and slow ....
so so mentally exhausting and frustrating, just waiting for me to make a mistake, which of course I do as I get so f*cking angry!!!

Thing is, how can they enjoy it themselves ?
Is it because it's the only tactic they have ??

I can't imagine a more lousy way to win, i'd rather lose 6/2 6/2 to some attacking player and be able to play well, then win 6/4 7/6 in some negative moon balling borefest!!

Reminds me of the time a dude came here and made a post something along the lines of:
'Bashers - what do they get out of the game?'

He was basically lamenting losing to a guy who did nothing but bash winners from the baseline.

 

[nyta2]

beats running a 5k, which is boring AF
i get a great work out, and satisfy my ocd chasing/hitting a ball
if beat my basher opponent in the process.... bonus.

in football terms, some people like being a strikers, others like being goalie.

 

[Curious]

Maybe there are different types of pushing. Choosing to hit high percentage but “normal” shots all the time vs annoyingly hitting slow high balls in the middle. The second could be a mental test, for sure. If you can’t find a way to pass that test, well it’s your fault, not the pusher’s. It’s just a strategy and everyone is free to choose their strategy.

 

[Alexh22]

Someone was beaten by a pusher and comes on a forum to cry. LOL. Improve your game and stop looking for lame excuses.

 

[S&V-not_dead_yet]

Just lost a really frustrating game to a pusher, had a good lead early on (we only played a set) and he just wore me down ..... everything hit back at a height and slow ....
so so mentally exhausting and frustrating, just waiting for me to make a mistake, which of course I do as I get so f*cking angry!!!

Thing is, how can they enjoy it themselves ?
Is it because it's the only tactic they have ??

I can't imagine a more lousy way to win, i'd rather lose 6/2 6/2 to some attacking player and be able to play well, then win 6/4 7/6 in some negative moon balling borefest!!

The question is pointless. That's like, for example, you, who doesn't like Italian food, asking someone who does why he likes Italian food. Does it matter what the answer is? Will it help you enjoy Italian food? Probably not.

The difference is you can avoid eating Italian food [your loss]. But you can't avoid playing pushers unless you avoid sanctioned play. So the question you should be asking is "how do I beat pushers?". Trying to understand what a pusher gets out of the game will probably not help you defeat that style.

 

[chetrbox]

I can only speculate what pushers get out of the game, but I'm very glad they exist. Your outcome against a pusher totally depends on your own game and not theirs. They win by exposing your weaknesses, so there's no better measure of your progress in tennis than winning against a pusher you've always lost to in the past. If I were you I'd be happy to have such an opponent.

 

[tonylg]

if I'm playing someone in a men's open who I know I can beat and who has something against pushers, I'll totally push just to mess with him.

Fair enough, it's a legit tactic.

I'm not a pusher

Yes, you are.

 

[tonylg]

Just think of pushers as ball machines that pick up half the balls .. but are less interesting to talk to.

 

[Morch Us]

Wait another pusher thread? Ohh well... it is about time.... almost passed 3 weeks without a new pusher thread.

 

[Morch Us]

Wait.... so he hit shots which are tough for you to handle.
So what do you want him to do? Hit balls to you at your comfortable height, depth and pace?

some negative moon balling borefest!!

 

[Curious]

Just think of pushers as ball machines that pick up half the balls .. but are less interesting to talk to.

I rarely talk to my ball machine. Well, swearing that is.

 

[AnyPUG]

Just lost a really frustrating game to a pusher, had a good lead early on (we only played a set) and he just wore me down ..... everything hit back at a height and slow ....
so so mentally exhausting and frustrating, just waiting for me to make a mistake, which of course I do as I get so f*cking angry!!!

Thing is, how can they enjoy it themselves ?
Is it because it's the only tactic they have ??

I can't imagine a more lousy way to win, i'd rather lose 6/2 6/2 to some attacking player and be able to play well, then win 6/4 7/6 in some negative moon balling borefest!!

I can see that you are upset and angry. What do you plan to do next? Not play pushers? Find a way to beat them ? Find a way to beat them using your preferred style? It takes skill and patience to generate pace and spin on your own.
As to why someone becomes pusher? It does not really matter, they exist and others need a plan and execute.

 

[Daniel Andrade]

I can only speculate what pushers get out of the game, but I'm very glad they exist. Your outcome against a pusher totally depends on your own game and not theirs. They win by exposing your weaknesses, so there's no better measure of your progress in tennis than winning against a pusher you've always lost to in the past. If I were you I'd be happy to have such an opponent.

THIIIIIIIS.

With them I get to practice serve and volley and feel like Federer seeing how I have improved that part of my game!

 

[Shroud]

Oh dear. I think I just retired

 

[Morch Us]

@JCF you might want to go and read the older threads about pushers. There are tons of them, since it is not new that someone will come and start a thread about pushers (mostly after a bad match against one), especially with the intent of looking down on their game style in an effort to soothen their pain/frustration.

The key points are same in all of them. The answer is always same. The first step is always to respect their game style, and accept the defeat. Then work on your weaknesses revealed and learn to defeat them. Mindset is the key, and it is infact very enjoyable to play pushers with right mindset. They do provide you the maximum workout and provide you maximum balls to hit within a match (compare that to a basher who almost never allow you to work on your own game or shots).

 

[Curious]

I suspect OP is talking to TT admin to get the thread deleted.

 

[anarosevoli]

Just lost a really frustrating game to a pusher, had a good lead early on (we only played a set) and he just wore me down ..... everything hit back at a height and slow ....
so so mentally exhausting and frustrating, just waiting for me to make a mistake, which of course I do as I get so f*cking angry!!!

Thing is, how can they enjoy it themselves ?
Is it because it's the only tactic they have ??

I can't imagine a more lousy way to win, i'd rather lose 6/2 6/2 to some attacking player and be able to play well, then win 6/4 7/6 in some negative moon balling borefest!!

Up to a surprisingly high level it's the other way round: There is a choice and the superior strategy is to let the other make the mistakes. It's always the unfit or even fat who complain, otherwise they would adapt automatically and not complain after the match. Even asking the question shows that they are not fit enough, otherwise they could at least imagine that long rallys can be enjoyable for others.
It's really simple: You are not good enough for the strategy you choose. But at least you are arrogant enough to believe you are better than the players that you lose to.

 

[TagUrIt]

I think most people understand your (OP) frustration, but as many have already said, if you're the better player you will win. Being able to make adjustments in a match are the keys to successful tennis. You may go in with all the best strategy and tactics, but if your opponent figures out a way to neutralize that, then what?

"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth"
~Mike Tyson

 

[Curious]

It’s not their fault that they can keep going but you miss it after 3 shots!

 

[Rubens]

 

[S&V-not_dead_yet]

Is that Dr. Evil before he lost his hair?

 

[SinneGOAT]

I love the bell chime in the background like someone’s gonna die lol, so true about playing to win, but pushers don’t get my respect.

 

[dominikk1985]

Just think of Gilles Simon, probably one of the most famous pushers of all-time.
I think he won around $15,000,000 in just prize money. So it can be quite lucrative.
Or the talkative Brad Gilbert, he didn't do too badly either just pushing the ball around!

So on a pro level, one thing they get out of the game is lots of money.

Maybe he is sadist because he is french. I heard in a documentary that French people come to the tour de France not to see a race but to see people suffering when riding up a big mountain

 

[blablavla]

The goal in tennis is keeping the ball in court limits, not hitting the fence / net. If the pusher can do this but you can't. How are you the better tennis player?
If you can do that while scoring winners - good for you.

let me try and re-phrase you

 

[sredna42]

The pusher is better, period. There's no excuse to hitting balls out or at the net in tennis. If you don't want to lose the point, they should go in.

That's not what OP asked.
He asked what they get from defeating rec players with under developed strokes (while not caring to develop their strokes or game a single bit) And its a pretty fair question.

 

[blablavla]

That's not what OP asked.
He asked what they get from defeating rec players with under developed strokes (while not caring to develop their strokes or game a single bit) And its a pretty fair question.

let me try and ask you an alternative question.
what do the ball bashers get from their ongoing quest in destroying the net / fence?
one doesn't need a human opponent for this, just go to the wall and hit as hard as you can till the wall falls down.

 

[FiReFTW]

I dont have anything against pushers. However I also dont get how they can enjoy that type of tennis.
For me tennis is all about building points, opening the court, using your creativity and shot selection to outplay the opponent, using tricks like deopshots, pulling him to the net, using combinations... its almost like chess, a thinking and creative game.

So I really dont understand what the point is to not do any of that but just push the ball in play point after point after point after point..

The only thing that makes sense is that they dont really play for fun and enjoyment of tennis but their sole and main goal and purpose of playing is to win matches nothing else, doesnt matter how or if they enjoy or have fun doing it.

 

[Tennis_Hands]

They are dead inside and want others to also die inside, so that they have someone to talk to.

 

[AnyPUG]

I dont have anything against pushers. However I also dont get how they can enjoy that type of tennis.
For me tennis is all about building points, opening the court, using your creativity and shot selection to outplay the opponent, using tricks like deopshots, pulling him to the net, using combinations... its almost like chess, a thinking and creative game.

So I really dont understand what the point is to not do any of that but just push the ball in play point after point after point after point..

The only thing that makes sense is that they dont really play for fun and enjoyment of tennis but their sole and main goal and purpose of playing is to win matches nothing else, doesnt matter how or if they enjoy or have fun doing it.

Maslow's Theory of Human Motivation.

The most basic needs must be met before they become motivated to achieve higher level needs.

1. Physiological – the player needs to survive in the point.
2. Safety – security of staying in the game.
3. Belonging – the need to stay in the set
4. Esteem – the need to feel respected by other players by hitting great shots
5. Self-actualisation – the desire to achieve the most that you can be.

Some players are stuck in 1-3 levels for far too long. They are struggling to stay in the point because of lack of refined strokes, and just put the ball back in - survive and stay alive. Winning is a byproduct - not the primary focus.

 

[sredna42]

let me try and ask you an alternative question.
what do the ball bashers get from their ongoing quest in destroying the net / fence?
one doesn't need a human opponent for this, just go to the wall and hit as hard as you can till the wall falls down.

Don't ask me. If anyone, ask OP. It's his thread.
But as usual though, pushers having to engage in hairsplitting and rhetorical questions to deflect from answering OP's pretty simple question.
And your analogy to ball bashers is weak, as these "inappropriately aggressive" 3.5's are at least TRYING to improve and learn.

 

[Bobs tennis]

Here we go again. Complaining about a pusher is just another way of saying you lost. The game is to put the last ball in the court. If you want to be judged on form become an ice skater or a gymnast. I played several times with a player who was actually younger then me and every time he lost he complained your a pusher. I said , excuse me. , I'm a winning pusher. I do love the beauty of a technically struck backhand but if I use your pace and return a drop shot that wins the point is over. I can't see the beauty in some of these big " REC" servers or baseline bashers that aren't thinking while on the court. JUST SAYING

 

[Hit_The_Fence]

I don't know what kind of pushers you are facing, but the ones around here are usually pretty well conditioned, and they have better tactical understanding of the game and ball placement than your traditional basher. There are plenty of skills to develop when power is not there.

 

[blablavla]

Don't ask me. If anyone, ask OP. It's his thread.
But as usual though, pushers having to engage in hairsplitting and rhetorical questions to deflect from answering OP's pretty simple question.
And your analogy to ball bashers is weak, as these "inappropriately aggressive" 3.5's are at least TRYING to improve and learn.

I really don't think that the vast majority of people who go to internet boards to complain that they lost to a pusher are at least trying to improve and learn.

Myself, I often play a pushing style, because this is what brings me wins, and tennis as any other sport is about winning.
Do I enjoy winning ugly? NO.
Do I train to hit winners and change my actual game style in competitive environment? YES
Do I try to hit winners in actual competitive environment? YES
Will I keep hitting as hard as I can if I make mistake after mistake? NO

sorry, but as many folks already pointed out, tennis as a sport is about hitting the last ball into the court.
as I say to many of my pals, there are largely 2 ways:
1. if you like the highlights reels and want to play like players from highlights, all you need is to settle with yourself that you will be losing more often than not to players whom you might classify as "lesser", "pushers", etc.
2. if you want to win, then you actually have to start collecting points, which transform into games, which transform into sets, which transform into matches, and it doesn't matter if your opponent is "better", "lesser" etc., only the result remains in the history.


P.S.
I actually received feedback from some pals that such advise turned to be a deal breaker, and once they became fed up enough with losing in style, they just shifted to the other side and won "ugly" by not gifting too many UEs.
the definition of improvement is in the eye of the beholder

 

[Curious]

I was so pissed off one day after losing to a friend badly that I told him it was no fun playing him as he slices everything back and he smiled and said ‘ ok I won’t slice as much next time’. A good guy. I still feel very embarrassed.

 

[JCF]

beats running a 5k, which is boring AF
i get a great work out, and satisfy my ocd chasing/hitting a ball
if beat my basher opponent in the process.... bonus.

in football terms, some people like being a strikers, others like being goalie.

Yeah this never happened ...

 

[JCF]

I think most people understand your (OP) frustration, but as many have already said, if you're the better player you will win. Being able to make adjustments in a match are the keys to successful tennis. You may go in with all the best strategy and tactics, but if your opponent figures out a way to neutralize that, then what?

"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth"
~Mike Tyson

100% agree, he won fair enough ... just seems a very unsatisfying way to win.
I have lost games 2, 1 and felt better after cos I played better, it was close last nigtht 7/5 but what is annoying was the nature of it ...
I remember about 10 years ago meeting a pusher and he was really frustrating, I kept playing him till I learned patience ... and then beat him 6/2 6/2 or similar (looked easy on paper but wasn't) ... played him again and result was similar, I got over it in my head and learned just to keep calm and could beat him - never played him again cos it was no fun and was satisfied that I had beaten him twice.

I am 42 now with a family, I have no time to play this new pusher again as it's no fun, i'd rather play faster attacking lads - even if they lash winners past me it's a lot more fun.

 

[JCF]

It’s clear that you wanted to win, otherwise you wouldn’t be angry now. Well, the pusher is better than you at winning.

agreed ... but It's more a mind game, I know if if if .... but IF i could lose the nerves and stay calm, I am 100% sure I could beat this guy.



But yes I know, if my auntie had bollocks she'd be my uncle...

 

[Hit_The_Fence]

Don't ask me. If anyone, ask OP. It's his thread.
But as usual though, pushers having to engage in hairsplitting and rhetorical questions to deflect from answering OP's pretty simple question.
And your analogy to ball bashers is weak, as these "inappropriately aggressive" 3.5's are at least TRYING to improve and learn.

I disagree. I would argue that they (mostly) are only working on improving one aspect of the game, having nicer looking strokes. If they are losing to a pusher, the pusher clearly dominates other aspects, and can translate those skills into a win. One could be humble and ask "how did he beat me?" rather than "why did I lose?", and one could find learning opportunities into things that are often overlooked, like how to properly play a defensive shot, when/how to go for a winner, when to change directions/pace/height.

 

[user92626]

That's not what OP asked.
He asked what they get from defeating rec players with under developed strokes (while not caring to develop their strokes or game a single bit) And its a pretty fair question.

If that's what the OP is asking then his question is pretty lame.

He's doing the same thing: trying to defeat his opponent with very under developed strokes and everything else. It don't get more under developed when one makes errors against easiest pushing shots.

So, why is he asking others that question when he should know the answer. Weird.