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- Say It With Me: "Realistic and Challenging" — SS #2
Say It With Me: "Realistic and Challenging" — SS #2
Stop wasting your time on the tennis court.
Last week, we spoke about how changing how you practice might be the real key to addressing your issues with match play rather than dealing with any mental demons you might have. (I actually turned this into a YouTube video—check it out below if you want a more fleshed-out understanding.)
So in today's issue, I want to delve deeper into how you should be setting up your sessions to benefit from the right kinds of practice. This isn't the same as "just play more matches," so if that's what you thought from last week's issue, I want to set the record straight here.
If you just continue down a path of creating comfort in your practices and mostly spending time in blocked and variable practice, then don't be shocked when you cannot perform in random scenarios. Many players linger in the safety of blocked and variable practices because it feels good to hit perfect shots. But comfort doesn’t equal preparedness.
These conventional methods often fail to prepare you for the spontaneity and pressure of real matches, where no point plays out exactly as planned. This is why even players with great technical skills can flounder under the unpredictable pressures of competition. We need to solve this problem for you and with that in mind I'm going to offer you some concrete ideas and parameters that you can tinker with when designing your random/open practice scenarios.
Here Are 3 Ways
High-Pressure Drills with Scoring: Include drills that mimic match pressure, such as playing out service games where you start with a disadvantage (e.g., down 0-30) to train your resilience. Another example: If you're playing baseline games where the point is open after the feed, don't just play until you run out of time. Play sets against your opponent to 7. The first player to win 3 out of 5 sets wins. I know it sounds simple but you'd be surprised how many players I speak to who just hit back and forth through the middle for 30 or more minutes.
Decision-Making and Planned Scenarios: These are my favorite kinds of drills. Set up situations that require quick decisions, similar to those you would face in matches. This helps improve decision-making alongside your physical reactions. An example of this can be where one player starts on the baseline, while the other is a few feet inside the court. The player on the baseline feeds a short ball and the approaching player can hit it wherever they want and then you play out the point. Play out Fast 4 sets with just a feed instead of serving and returning.
Practice Serve +1 Combos: You will have heard about Serve +1 as a strategy by now, but you should also be practicing specific patterns in with your serves and returns. For example, one of my favorite strategies is to serve out wide and come into the net to put the volley away into the open court on the deuce side. It's a bit risky—because if I can't get the ball away from my opponent's forehand, I'm often dealing with a tough volley. Which is why it's important I practice the serve... and also putting away the tough volley! Including serve and returns in your practices is essential to having you feel more comfortable and confident when you step onto the match court.
These are just three—but there are many ways that you can make your practices more realistic and challenging. Keep those two words in mind: realistic and challenging. Tatoo them across your bicep! (Maybe a temporary tattoo is best.)
By incorporating high-pressure drills, decision-making scenarios, and Serve +1 combos, we're not just hitting balls; we're preparing for what actually happens in an open scenario. Embrace these changes in your practice philosophy, and you'll find that the unpredictability of real matches becomes less daunting. Keep challenging yourself—realistic and challenging practices will help you to feel more confident.
And If You'd Like
Think about working with me! Have a forehand that you can't seem to get right? Need to meet face-to-face to get my opinion on your game or strokes? Or want a personalized, science-based process designed to truly improve your level? I can help. Just navigate to “Work With Me”
My best,
Malhar
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