You can beat the player who has your number. Here's how.
Everyone has a nemesis. He or she is your equal in terms of skills, and you have similar records against other opponents. Somehow, though, your nemesis manages to come out ahead in your matches. There’s no way you should lose every time, but you do, and it makes you doubt yourself. Maybe you have some mental flaw, perhaps a character weakness? Soon you don’t want to play against this person, because both of you know who’s going to win, and it’s not you.
I’ve been there. The same thing happened to me in my junior year at UCLA, and it made my college tennis experience miserable.
I had ended the previous year as the No. 1 player on the team and No. 15 in the country. Then my best friend in tennis, Larry Nagler, joined the UCLA team. He was a year younger than me, and we were evenly matched. I had beaten him the only time we had met in a tournament. But he was a great athlete who also played basketball for legendary coach John Wooden. My game depended largely on cunning, determination and speed, but Larry, though not as crafty (in my opinion, not his), was even faster, a little stronger and just as determined.
Our next three tournament encounters, all very close, went to Larry. Our coach, seeing these results, promoted Larry to No. 1. Seething at No. 2, I instituted a fanatical practice program. We met in the final of the next big intercollegiate tournament, and though I had an early lead, he won in three sets. The next time we played, I became very fearful, especially on big points, and started to make boneheaded errors. I lost badly and decided I never wanted to see Larry on the other side of the net again.
Knowing the problem was largely in my head made it devastating. Fortunately, there was a solution. I realized that I had to replace my lack of confidence with emotional discipline. When we played the following year, I decided never to look at Larry, but rather to force myself to look at the ball continuously, and to divert my mind from the score by mechanically repeating, over and over, “Watch the ball.” It was mentally draining, but effective, and I won the match convincingly. Over the years, Larry and I played three more times, and I won two of them. He remained a nightmare for me to play, but with discipline I had learned to defeat him.
You can take a similar approach to beating the player who has your number. First, narrow your focus. Between points, keep your eyes on your strings, the ball, your feet or anything neutral nearby. The objective is to stop thinking about your opponent by concentrating on things that won’t trigger negative or distracting responses.
Second, vow to have no emotional reaction to a lost point, no matter how silly the error or great your opponent’s shot. This player makes you afraid and uncertain to begin with, so you’ll have a propensity to get emotional. Be wary and fight it.
Finally, force thoughts about the score and winning the match out of your mind. This is difficult, of course, but try to think of ways to execute your shots and game plan. For example, tell yourself to watch the ball, keep your weight forward, or stay loose. The rituals may vary, but it’s best to keep them simple and unemotional. When thoughts about winning or the score intrude, shove them aside and return to your rituals. Sticking to this tactic for an entire match will take discipline and effort, but the results will be worth it.
Former Wimbledon quarterfinalist Allen Fox, Ph.D., wrote The Winner’s Mind: A Competitor’s Guide to Sports and Business Success.
Originally published in the July 2009 issue of TENNIS magazine.