The 20-year-old Serb’s work ethic will make her a Slam contender for years to come.

1. Find yourself
Pete Sampras likes to say that he lucked himself into the U.S. Open ? nal at age 19 because his big serve and big forehand were on for those two weeks. Essentially, Sampras was in the zone; he didn’t ? gure out how to be a consistent champion for a couple of years. I look at Ivanovic in a similar way. I’m not saying she’s about to pull a Sampras and dominate to the tune of 14 major titles, but, like a young Sampras, she’s ? nding herself match by match, tournament by tournament.

This is a dif?cult process that most pros and club players have to go through. Some days, everything works. For a player with a forehand like Ivanovic’s, a hot streak can put you in a French Open quarter? nal as a 17-year-old, which happened back in 2005. But top players and weekend warriors alike have to learn how to win when they aren’t in the zone. The bliss of being on a roll sometimes takes us out of a good developmental stage. We become a little numb and lose perspective.

The same thing happens when you’re in a slump. If you want to stay at the top of your game, you can’t afford to stop asking yourself, Why aren’t things going well? In the last year, Ivanovic has gained compo-sure and begun to play with more clarity. Rather than hoping for a good forehand day, she dictates points with her bread-and-butter stroke and isn’t afraid to move in for a volley when she’s in a position of strength (low volleys are not her forte).

2. Chip away
Ivanovic has played two major ? nals and lost them both, but she has walked away from each one with the right outlook. Against Justine Henin at last year’s French Open, Ivanovic was so nervous she could hardly get her second serve in. At this year’s Australian Open against Maria Sharapova, she put on a better performance but still didn’t play anywhere near her best. Based on her attitude, I think she’ll do better next time. She’s had a lot of chances to dwell on the negative aspects of her game, such as less-than-perfect footwork and a slice backhand that needs work. Instead, she has shored up these weaknesses and improved her strengths, mainly her fore-hand and ? rst serve. Whenever she loses, she talks about what she has learned and moves on. In tennis, that’s the best at-titude to have. The idea is to keep putting yourself in a situation where something important is on the line so you become more comfortable with the pressure.

3. Stay ?t
People have questioned Ivanovic’s ?tness in the past, but those concerns had more to do with her age than her work ethic. She’s moving much better these days, especially for a woman of her height (6-foot-1). Ivanovic is methodical when it comes to preparation. She’ll never be among the fastest or most agile women on tour, but she’s still trying to get a little more out of her body. That’s something you should do, too.