Today I'm playing a match... it's not bad, I'm in my match but my opponent is dominating...
My serves aren't disgusting but he returns them well... In the exchange I'm not disgusting either, I find good length I play on his backhand, I play on his forehand,
I'm relatively aggressive... I play my game pretty well but my opponent plays his game pretty well too...
And the games go by and I can't find the solutions: 2-0 then 3-1 and even he hit the nail on the head until 4-1... I have to say what it is, I'm off to a bad start...
And there psychologically speaking I am at an impasse,
internally I say to myself “you have to find a solution here…” but I say to myself “what can I do better than play well… play even better? yes, but then it’s overplayed?”
…
Then I think about the match analyzes that we often do with Elouan…. and something unlocks in my head and I say to myself “but yes of course: you play like a nag, you aim at the back of the course to the right and to the left since the start of the match… Play in the depth with shops and cut bullets”...
I completely change my strategy and my way of playing... finished my opponent has no longer scored a game I won 6/4 6/0...
As you can see, mentally, during the first five games of the match I was stuck in nag mode and no matter how much I thought, I couldn't come up with anything else...
Being stuck, no longer able to think, it's a common thing in life, especially in stressful situations, and this is often what we go through mentally when we are mistreated... The adversary puts us under pressure, the score puts us under pressure, we are stressed and our ability to think diminishes...
we lose lucidity and we are unable to find solutions.
My advice: try to ease the pressure, don't rush, take time between each ball, try to clear your head.
There are several technical memo methods for this:
- Towel on the head when laying down to isolate yourself,
- Take refuge in a thought, a soothing memory
- Breathe deeply and relax...etc
I also recommend that you have a sort of summary sheet of your strategies in your memory in order to remember them easily and help you make choices:
- Playing on your backhand
- Serve on your weak point
- Play rounded lift
- Play on depth and not just left or right (right Fredo?!)
- ...etc
Think about it: Then in game apply your strategy, concentrate on the exchange you are making: detach yourself from the score and the rest...










