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Jorge Capestany - TennisDrills TV Fighting Spirit
Understanding the importance of a fighting spirit is essential to becoming a great player. A strong fighting spirit is perhaps the most important attribute a player can have. Some players come to the sport with a very high level of fighting spirit while others start out with very low level of fight. Rafael Nadal is a great example of someone who exudes a strong fighting spirit. When he loses a point and slaps his thigh, it does not look like he is mad; it looks like he is even more determined. Rafa sends all kinds of signals to his opponent’s that he will not go away easy. In tennis, it is important to understand the fine line between showing a strong fighting spirit and behaving like a jerk. A fist pump to yourself will make you look like you are a fighter, but a fist pump at your opponent and will look like you are a poor sport. Get a reputation as a jerk and it will stay with you for a long time of not forever. I have seen talented young players be passed up by college coaches with scholarships because the player had developed a reputation as a poor sport. A fighting spirit self-audit should be taken by all players. Ask yourself what kind of temperament you exude on the court. Is your body posture poor? Do you even think about your body posture as being important? A great way to improve in this area is to consider that there are actually two performances you are making when you play a match. The first is your during the point performance, when you are running around and hitting the ball. The second, and perhaps more important performance is your between the point performance. You should consider this time another opportunity to perform as strive to have good body posture and exude a fighting spirit. This is a key skill that many club players would greatly benefit from if they just were aware of it. Lastly, it is also important to understand that not all players will be able to exude an obvious outer fighting spirit. Some players are naturally less expressive, but can still have a deadly fighting spirit that is more like a silent assassin. This is the case with players like Pete Sampras and Roger Federer, who while they do not show much outward emotion, have a strong fighting spirit burning just below the surface.
Jorge Capestany - TennisDrills TV Jorge is the Founder of www.tennisdrills.tv - a video based website that shows more than 700 videos of tennis drills and tips. Jorge is one of only nine people world-wide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. Jorge is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. |
