how to keep consistent performance in matches?

Hi Sougata,

It sounds like you are a very strong player and I see you are highly rated in India.

This is a common problem with players.  Firstly, think that everyone feels like you do during a match.  Everyone gets nervous and anxious.  It is trying to find ways to deal with that anxiety.

You will notice at times during the match that you start to get different feelings.  Some common things that will occur are that you will feel nervous in your stomach (butterflies). Your heart rate will increase, you will find your mind starting to think about the finish line and winning or losing. Your legs may feel heavy and you will find moving difficult.  Your shoulder will tighten and you will find it difficult to make your strokes the same way you do in training.

Firstly it is a matter of recognising these signs in yourself.  Once you see them you need to be strong enough to stop and do something about it.

A simple thing that you can do is to stop, take a deep breath or two aiming to relax your body.  Once you have done this focus on what you want to do in the next point.  Focus on your basic tactic, like where you are going to serve and with what spin, or what you focus is for the return.

As soon as you start to feel one of those signs, take a few seconds out to refocus yourself.  And always remember that no matter what the other player looks like, they are probably feeling similar feelings to you.

What you can do inbetween matches is practice your breathing and working on the relaxation i nyour body.  Do this also during your training sesisons.  It is like any skill, it needs practice.

In the future we will make a DVD on Mental preparation.  This is a big area of the game especially at your level.