NewTennis.com - Juniors! Want to be a Pro?

THIS ARTICLE WAS "TENNIS TIP OF THE MONTH" IN FLORIDA TENNIS MAGAZINE

                               Juniors! Do You Have What It Takes To Be A Pro??
                                                                            By Dale LePrevost

                           IT TAKES DELAYED GRATIFICATION & HAVING THE CORRECT PRIORITIES

You've got to execute your shots correctly even though it may initially cause you to lose points, and even matches. If you do, you'll be rewarded with a much better tennis game later on. That's why it's called delayed gratification.

I've worked with a lot of juniors, and some of them became ranked in the top ten in the nation. I could tell immediately which juniors had the most potential. They just seemed to automatically understand the correct priorities. They knew that learning to execute their skills correctly was the foundation needed to ultimately play their best tennis. When I showed them how to prepare the racket correctly, that's what they did from that point on. They didn't seem to care about winning the immediate point as much as they did about preparing the racket. They knew that if they didn't get the racket ready correctly, there was no hope for the rest of the shot to be good from that point on. In two weeks or less, these students could learn the correct execution of a skill and use it consistently in their competitive matches.

The juniors who didn't improve nearly as fast, just didn't seem to get it. Instead of always trying to execute their shots correctly, it was more important for them to win the immediate point no matter how they did it. They would try the correct execution in practice, but they just didn't seem to have the correct priorities in match play. Consequently, their shots didn't improve as quickly as needed.

IT TAKES AN UNDERSTANDING OF EXECUTION

You've got to understand exactly how to execute your shots so you can practice them correctly. Execution begins with seeing the ball leave your opponent's racket and reacting as quickly as possible. Right after you see where the ball is going, your first priority is to immediately prepare the racket while you're moving to the ball. This early racket preparation will actually help you get into the best position for your shot. If you're hitting groundstrokes, quickly get the correct racket preparation that's designed to meet the ball in front of your body. If you're hitting an overhead, quickly create the correct racket preparation designed to hit that shot.

Try to make the racket preparation so quick that you're ready to hit the ball at the moment when it passes over the net. If you don't, your shots will be sloppy and you'll be too late when you play better players who hit the ball at a faster pace.

Once you've prepared the racket and moved into position, you've got to understand and execute the correct swing. This swing should be scientifically designed to not only hit the ball aggressively, but also limit the distance the ball travels. This understanding is crucial, because it enables you to be consistent and still have the confidence to hit your shots aggressively.

Once you've used the correct swing to control the ball, you're still not done. The execution of your shot is not complete until you've moved back into position, ready for your next shot. My words of advice are "Recover quickly". It's easy to get into the habit of slowly getting back into position when you're not playing points. Don't let that happen!!! Make it a habit to always recover quickly.

IT TAKES MENTAL TOUGHNESS THAT NEVER QUITS

Now the tough part begins. No matter what your results are initially, you need to practice the correct execution over and over again. Make sure you're consciously focused on 1.) watching the ball leave your opponent's racket, 2.) immediately preparing the racket while moving to get into position, 3.) executing the correct swing that's designed to give you aggressiveness and control, & 4.) quickly recovering back into position for your next shot.

Work on this tirelessly until you can do it at least 50 times in a row. Some of my juniors in the past have hit solid, deep, well executed shots over 100 times in a row. Remember, you're goal is to break your opponent down by always being able to focus your concentration one shot longer than they can, on every point! Even though you may be very talented, you've got to become more disciplined than all your opponents.

Practicing this execution sequence will help you eliminate all the other unnecessary thoughts that tend to go through your mind. Thoughts about putting the ball away, hitting it hard, or just trying to keep the ball in play, only ruin the proper execution of your skills. You've got detach yourself from those things. Realize that the best way for you to hit winners is to focus on executing your shots solidly and correctly.

A good definition for mental toughness is "Being able to consistently eliminate all the unnecessary thoughts, and limit yourself to only the high priority thoughts that help you succeed the most".

IT TAKES A PERSON WHO ACTUALLY LIKES PRESSURE SITUATIONS

You need to enjoy the challenge and constantly seek competition that pushes your game to the highest level. The crucial points that require you to excel under pressure should actually be the opportunities you've been seeking. On those points you've got to learn how to focus your thoughts on transfering the pressure to your opponent. Those opportunities must be the reason for you being there.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT TAKES FAITH

You can't let losses discourage you. An opportunity exists in every set back. You've got to turn all the losses that seem to get in your way, into learning experiences that will only help you succeed more. Enter into your tennis career with the resolve that you're going to do your very best to succeed. If you can truly say that you've done your very best in every practice, and done your very best on every point in all your matches, the rest is out of your hands. You've done all you can do, and you need to have faith that somehow the forces of the universe will give you the strength you need to succeed.

One way of putting it is, "Do your best and God will do the rest". Some people think God wouldn't be interested in who wins or loses a tennis match, but it's more than that. It's you, showing the world that you're a role model for courage, honor and everything else that 's required to succeed. And it's you, putting yourself in a situation that enables you to give back to the world like Chris Evert, Andre Agassi and others have. If your desires are for other people too, the whole power of the universe will be behind you. That's what's important, and you've got to have faith that it will work for you.