Performance Psychology in Tennis

Performance psychology involves the process of facilitating the development of skills needed by the performer during his time to shine in a performance. Also, the process is almost entirely related to the events prior to the performance since they are the foundation of the desired result. This preparation involves practicing not only physically, but also mentally, psychologically, spiritually, and emotionally. In fact, the physical aspect of a performance has much less bearing than the mind and soul aspects. Tennis is a perfect example of this. No matter how much a player practices, if in the face of a match the player becomes too nervous, all of his body will freeze and will make unforced errors very easily. That used to happen quite often at the beginning of my matches until I managed to train my mind to stay focused on playing rather than winning. I also remember reading a book about tennis when I was about 8, and there was a question that said something like, “How much of a tennis match is technical, tactical, physical, and mental?” and several professional players answered by saying that the mental part contributes with just about the entire game. At first, since I had not experienced a real, challenging match before, I thought to myself, “No, that’s not right. It’s 25% each. It makes sense; it’s math”. Looking back I realize how silly my comment was because I had no idea what a true performance was like, and that the physical aspect although important, is more relevant in the preparation for a match. Any performance is made up of various smaller elements that each contribute to the big picture, just like the piece of a puzzle; however, each one has a unique placement that no other piece can fill in.

The variables that affect performance can be mostly classified into three major domains: motor active, affective, and cognitive. Some variables are internal, while others are external. The externalities, or outside factors that affect a performance, vary from situation to situation; nonetheless, they need to be dealt with in some way, so that the show can go on. The motor active domain is the one that is involved with the physical aspect of a performance; in tennis that refers to practicing all the shots that exist; synchronizing the bending of knees with having the right angle for a swing and hitting the ball a certain way (e.g: with topspin, flat, slice); as well as doing conditioning exercises to increase physical strength and endurance. The affective domain is the one involved with the emotional, mental, and spiritual aspect of a performance. In tennis, the way a player prepares himself in those areas depends solely on his style. I usually use self-talk and tell myself that I’m going to play great and going to have fun; I also take my mind off of tennis completely by doing something productive like homework for example so that I don’t think too much about the match to exhaust my mind, but I’m also doing something that requires my mind to focus on one thing. In fact, I’m writing this paper right now when I have a match in 5 hours. The cognitive domain is the one involved with the neurobiological aspect of a performance, or the changes that occur in the body as a result of the other variables. In order to deal with this domain, the player needs to deal with the variable that causes the change in the body. For example, if in a match I start feeling very tense and start sweating from being nervous, I might find out that instead of using positive self-talk, I was letting my mind worry about the people that are watching me rather than stay focused on playing. Biochemically, my brain is sending signals to cells that prompt them to make me feel tense and nervous. In order to reverse that, I’d have to convince myself that there is no real reason for feeling nervous and that there is no point in worrying about whoever is watching me. It’s all about perception in the end.

The motor active domain is like the frame of a puzzle when one has assembled the outside pieces first. The variables under this domain represent the individual pieces of the frame. At first look, since the perimeter of the frame is large, it appears as though it makes up a large part of the puzzle, but in fact, the frame is made up of only a small number of pieces. This is also true in a performance: the motor active skills appear to be the greatest factors, but the truth is, there is only so much one can improve physically. Practice improves skills and creates a technique, or a particular way of executing a task. In tennis, that is closely linked to the strategy, or plan, of a player’s game-style. For example, I’m more of an offensive player who likes to make the opponent run from corner to corner and then, at the right time, hit a powerful, well-placed shot that the opponent cannot get to; in simpler terms...

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...tremely well. It’s common sense to eliminate the thoughts and emotions that hinder my ability to play well. This is also an example of how life is 10% what happens and 90% how we react to it, or how we process that information based on our individual perception. Since we associate things after facts, it’s important to make the right associations; that, however, tends to be ineffective because of our personal, subjective views. This is why the cognitive and affective domains are just about directly proportional to each other. Also, the body’s performance is not the same year-round: it oscillates from poor to excellent, which is why there are peaks in a performer’s career where everything seems to be going right.

A great performer understands the externalities surrounding him, so he works on, with, and around them because he wants to keep getting better, knowing that preparation is crucial toward succeeding. By Coach Wooden's definition, success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you've done the best of which you are capable. That best refers to the preparation and hard work before the actual performance; it refers to doing a good day’s work. If the preparation is done right (quality over quantity) and gets the performer ready not just physically, but emotionally, cognitively, mentally, spiritually, and neurobiologically, then working hard during the week and trusting one’s preparation will lead to that success, because one can’t outperform his preparation and belief in himself. It’s common sense though, that in order to achieve a desired performance, there needs to be equal preparation. Often times, though, a performer will let the externalities ruin the moment or the love for the performance and will let obsession rob him from the joy of the journey, which is the reward in itself. The opposite could also happen; some people, for example, can bring a performer up, but others can bring him down; nonetheless, he should not let anyone tell him that he can’t do something. And instead of getting in his own way, he should be his best friend and critic at the same time, so he can spot errors and then fix them. A supportive environment could give him the freedom to realize his potential, or the capacity of developing his skills even further; however, that might not always be the case and a performer needs to learn how to deal with the situation at hand.