PATIENCE!
June 2026
PATIENCE!
What do you think of when I mention the name Raphael Nadal? When I ask that especially of the players I coach they tend to say huge swing, huge shots, great forehand topspin, lots of winners. Except for a great topspin forehand most of that is in my opinion misunderstood. While he does have likely the most iconic forehand in the history of the game he is far more compact and disciplined with his swing that the average fan realizes. And in his mental approach to the game one of the prominent comments he makes is that he did not win 22 major singles titles by hitting winners. He won those by forcing errors. Now he certainly hit a lot of winners but if you look at his mental plan it was to hit good strong balls and take winner opportunities at realistic times. In short, go for winners when presented with the right opportunity - short balls or other opportunities that were there for the taking. About 6 months ago I watched a match here in the Dallas/Ft Worth area between the number one players of two local colleges - competitive contrast of styles - one very aggressive and pushed the play, the other more defensive and relied more on opponents errors. The aggressive player was certainly the stronger and more talented player but he fell behind quickly 5-2 in the first set because of errors he was making while attempting to hit unrealistic winners from 5-10 ft behind the baseline. He turned the match around and won in three sets when he started hitting a couple more balls on each point and going for winners when he forced shorter balls that offered a more realistic opportunity.
Learn to be Patient and watch your success rate increase!
Go hit ‘em good and most important HAVE FUN!