Tennis and The Mind
Effective training involves both a mental and physical component.
Some experts say tennis or any sport for that matter can be as high as ninety percent mental.
Here is one simple philosophy anyone can use to improve today on the court ”Your next shot is more important than your last mistake” as said by Tom Veneziano .
Below is an article Tom wrote and gave us permission to publish enjoy!
Relax In Your Tennis Match
Play Automatic Instinctive Tennis Like A Pro
To relax and play automatic, instinctive and spontaneous tennis requires a new way of thinking. Playing “in the zone” is not conscious but subconscious. Why do players have trouble letting go and playing subconsciously? Because most players have not yet learned to shut off their anxious, racing mind. The mind that is constantly racing is the enemy of relaxed, instinctive and subconscious play.
Interestingly enough, players often achieve this mental state when they are tired. That’s right, tired! Why? Because players can become so tired that they stop consciously thinking and just play. They unknowingly shift from the conscious to the subconscious mindset, eliminating the anxiety. Voila! The ideal mental performance state.
Below is a video of one of my group lessons where I briefly explain this crucial concept of accessing the subconscious.
One of the critical points made at the end of the video was that you can have a relaxed mindset and miss, or you can have an anxious mindset and miss. Take your choice! You might as well choose the relaxed mindset and learn something from your miss.
You can begin to achieve this relaxed mindset by learning to shut off your racing mind just like you would shut off a radio. Just click your mind off and stop thinking! This is a big part of the Relax Technique, a mental system I have taught hundreds of players to use, and it works.
Once you have learned to shut your conscious, racing mind off and turn your relaxed, subconscious mind on, you will see the ball, the court, your opponent and the openings like never before. Everything seems to slow down! Your reactions improve, your accuracy improves, every aspect of the game improves because every aspect of the game is influenced by how you think!
On the other hand if you are anxious and your mind is racing, everything seems to speed up and you begin to miscalculate. The ball appears to be traveling at the speed of sound! You cannot find the openings, the court, where your opponent is positioned or even where you are on the court. Everything is a blur!
You must learn to master subconscious play in your matches. Stop trying to control every little detail. Let go! But take note, letting go and playing relaxed, subconscious tennis does not mean you will make every shot. Making the shot or missing the shot is not the issue. Thinking correctly is the issue. Do not “let go” in your match, miss a shot and then think, “well, that didn’t work!” and immediately abandon your correct mental attitude. Stay the course and you will be rewarded with a new level of thinking that few players experience. Relaxed, automatic, instinctive play that is the signature of a Champion.
Bruce Lee, the great martial artist, was asked in an interview what he did to react so quickly. He answered, “When the opportunity arises I do nothing…it just happens by itself.”
One of your goals is to let your situation on the court “happen by itself.” You can achieve this goal, but not if you insist on taking back conscious control. You must learn to lose control consciously in order to gain control subconsciously. -Tom Veneziano
Thank you Tom for your article!
I believe the mind plays the largest role in your success on and off the court. It only makes sense then that we spend the majority of our time here, which will help us develop into the Tennis Jedi within us all.
Tennis and the mind. In your experience how much has the mind played a role in your development?
