Have you noticed how anytime you return a serve that lands out, your return is almost always fast and flawless? We can do that because we're relaxed, and there's no pressure to win the point. On a deeper level, we don't doubt ourselves because we don't expect an outcome. The ball landed out, and we can just hit it without any consequence. So, the lack of doubt unlocks our ability to hit the shot we like. Isn't that a sign you can take steps to unlock your mind for any point you play?
The pressure you build on yourself to win makes you fear bad outcomes. So, consequently, your body and mind tighten, and you end up playing with inhibitions. It's normal at first, but you need to grow out of it. You do this by using tennis and life as a journey to reach enlightenment.
Your enlightenment is to fear nothing and be in the moment when playing in a state of relaxation and focus – that becomes your optimal performance. All players will tell you they play their best tennis without thinking about how to play. They're simply in the moment.
Here are two ideas you can use to gradually achieve that optimal mental performance:
(1) Learn to let go of controlling outcomes. The irony about wanting more control is that you'll get much less of it. The logic is quite simple. The world is full of variables outside of our control, and your mind is built to interact with this world. But when we're conditioned to focus on results that will take place in the future, our brain spends its resources on thinking about that future. I can predict when a player will miss an approach shot with 99% certainty – it's when their head moves to look to the other side before their racquet makes contact with the ball. It signals they're thinking about hitting a winner, so they move their head where they hope the winner will happen, and they suddenly become a spectator rather than the actor.
The future does not exist, and you have no control over it. Only the present moment exists. Accept that you have no control over the ball once it leaves your strings; so, focus on the moment.
(2) It's not so easy to stay in the moment. But you can practice that like anything else. Meditation, mindfulness, and equanimity are your three pillars to building mental strength.
• With meditation, you sit and spend a few minutes at a time focusing on your breathing and letting your attention stick with that. Without forcing thoughts out, you simply let them slide away as they appear.
• Mindfulness is the practice of observing the now. You pay attention and feel objects in your environment without distracting yourself with thoughts.
• Equanimity is the practice of being mindful without judging. You look at a cup, and you're not for or against it. You watch your opponent hit an ace against you, same rules apply.