DR. DAVID COX has been helping elite athletes to perform at their best for years. He’s worked with the Vancouver White Caps, the Canadian Olympic Basketball team, and, of course, Canada’s Davis Cup athletes (among many others). We had a chance to catch up with Dr. Cox recently. What follows are just a few of the insights he shared with us. We hope you find them useful – on court, and in your life.
Eye on the Ball Focus on process, and outcomes take care of themselves
What do you think makes for a strong mental game? What role do emotions play? Tennis is a sport that requires you to be focused emotionally, and to keep your emotions under control. You make a lot of errors in tennis. Keep in mind, most of the points that even elite players lose are lost on an error – not a winner by their opponent. Emotions can be your ally, or they can be your enemy; it depends how you use them. Anger need not be a negative emotion – it can be a positive energy. It’s important to accept the emotion, and use that emotion to your advantage. This positive use of emotions – to help you stay energized – is important, and it overlaps with your ability to stay focused on the task. What are some specific techniques that players can use to stay focused and on track? You need to focus your attention on the court, and not be distracted by things that are irrelevant to the task of actually playing the game. For example, just focus on the ball – on hitting the ball. Players think, “I have to get this serve in.” I say, “No, you don’t. You have to hit it.” If you focus on getting it in, that’s an outcome. You need to stay focused on the process of executing the serve. That’s why people often get tight (and sometimes choke) at the end 30
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of matches. They’ll be playing well and then they say “Okay, now it’s set point. I have to get my first serve in.” What they’re now focused on is the outcome rather than the process. They tighten up, and the serve that was flowing so beautifully now becomes an awkward experience. Again, focus on the process, and the outcome will take care of itself. If you think about not missing, you run into problems. If you tell someone “Don’t think about white bears,” what do they think about? So stay focused on the process, on things like moving your feet, taking your racket back, following through, watching the ball, etc. instead of getting it in, which is an outcome – a “white bear.” When you combine emotion, and focus, or attention, you get what I would call intensity. We often don’t know what’s happening, mentally, until it’s too late. How can we monitor our state of mind? After a match you can find yourself saying: “What happened? How did I lose that match? At what point did I lose control?” That’s where strategies like routines between points come in. They help you to slow things down when you lose your focus and rush your game. You can use your breathing to relax the body and refocus your mind to the task.
You can use key phrases or scripts to manage your self-talk. Tell yourself to “breathe”, to “refocus”, to “punch” your volleys, Good players will often write down a game plan, and they refer to it during changeovers. Little phrases that get you back on task will help to re –focus and monitor what is going on during a match. For the average recreational player, do you have any little known tips on how to improve? Players at all levels need to understand that practice is useful for competition to the extent that practice is like competition. In order to improve you need to push yourself out of your comfort zone when you practice. Drills are useful in this regard as they can help to expose a weakness that you want to work on. It creates an emotionally charged climate which allows you to prepare for the emotions you will experience in competition. For example, if you have problems with opponents who serve and volley, practice against players that serve and volley. If you dislike playing lefties, find a lefty and play him as much as you can until you become comfortable with it. You look to deliberately practice in the areas in which you want to improve. If you really want to get better, you have to push yourself in practice.
Burnaby Tennis Club 3890 Kensington Ave, Burnaby Tel: 604 291 0916 Email: burnabytennisclub@gmail.com burnabytennis.ca
Kennedy Park Tennis Club (Men’s Leagues Only - Virtual Club) 12171-90 Avenue, Surrey Tel: 604 999 8140 Email: kennedyparktennisclub@gmail.com
Richmond Tennis Club 6820 Gilbert Rd, Richmond Tel: 604 273 3631 Email: info@richmondtennisclub.com richmondtennisclub.com
Campbell River Tennis Club Willowpoint Park off Penfield Road Campbell River Tel: 250 923 8134 Email: joany@shaw.ca
Langford Tennis Club Royal Roads University, Langford Tel: 250 478 7936 Email: langfordtennis@shaw.ca members.shaw.ca/langfordtennis
Saanich Tennis Club 4810 Elk Rd, Victoria Tel: 250 727 9338 members.shaw.ca/saanichtennisclub
Capilano Tennis Club 2500 Capilano Rd, North Vancouver Tel: 604 980 0417 Email: capilanotennisclub@gmail.com capilanotennisclub.com
Lloyd Tennis Club (men’s leagues only Virtual Club) Tel: 604 985 7554 Email: wingwong62@hotmail.com
Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club 4300 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver Tel: 604 266 9165 Email: jfournier@shaughnessy.org shaughnessy.org
Merritt and District Tennis Club Juniper Dr, Merritt Tel: 250 378 5805 Email: merritt.tennis@gmail.com merritttennis.wordpress.com
Sportstown 4991 No. 5 Road Richmond Tel: 604 273 7366 Email: tennis@sportstown.com sportstown.com
Tennis Yukon Mt. Mac Recreation Centre Sumanik Drive, Whitehorse YT Tel: 867 393 2621 Email: tennisyukon@gmail.com tennisyukon.com
Stanley Park Tennis Clubs 2099 Beach Ave, Vancouver Tel: 604 685 8835 Email: mysptc@gmail.com sptc.ca
Chilliwack Tennis Society 53694 Dyer Rd, Rosedale Tel: 604 794 7515 Email: gudrunanderson@shaw.ca Comox Valley Tennis Club Corner of Stewart and Balmoral, Comox Tel: 250 334 4014 Email: info@cvtennis.com cvtennis.com Global Fitness and Racquet Club Kelowna 1574 Harvey Ave, Kelowna Tel: 250 860 6900 Email: info@globalfi tnesskelowna.com globaltenniskelowna.com
Tsawwassen Tennis Club 286 English Bluff Road Tsawwassen (South Delta) Tel: 604 943 5695 membership@tsawwassentennisclub.com tsawwassentennisclub.com
Murdo Frazer Tennis Club 3285 Canfield Crescent, North Vancouver Tel: 778 786 1263 Email: mudrofrazertc@ymail.com
Great West Fitness and Racquets Club 2550 Yale Court, Abbotsford Tel: 604 854 3284 Email: aoziewicz@yahoo.com greatwestfi tness.ca
North Shore Winter Club 1325 Keith Rd E, North Vancouver Tel: 604 985 4135 Email: info@nswc.ca www.nswc.ca
Hazelmere Golf and Tennis Club 18150 8th Ave, Surrey Tel: 604 538 1212 Email: admin@hazelmere.com swaneset.com/tennis_hazelmere.htm
Oak Bay Tennis Club 2506 Bowker Ave, Victoria Tel: 250 477 0636 Email: ngillett@shaw.ca oakbaytc.com
Hollyburn Country Club 950 Crosscreek RD, West Vancouver Tel: 604 922 0161 Email: membership@hollyburn.org hollyburn.org
Peninsula Tennis Club 1885 Forest Park Dr, North Saanich Tel: 250 656 9288 Email: sandyggalloway@hotmail.com peninsulatennis.ca
Jericho Tennis Club 3837 Point Grey Rd, Vancouver Tel: 604 224 2348 Email: membership@jericho.ca jericho.ca
Queen Elizabeth Tennis Club (Ladies Leagues Only) Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver Tel: 604 257 8130 Email: qetennisclub@hotmail.com qetennisclub.ca
Kamloops Tennis Centre 758 Front St, Kamloops Tel: 250 372 1783 Email: info@kamloopstennis.ca kamloopstennis.ca
Richmond Country Club 9100 Steveston Highway, Richmond Tel: 604 277 3141 Email: info@richmond cc.org richmond cc.org
Vancouver Lawn Tennis & Badminton Club 1630 West 15th Avenue, Vancouver Tel: 604 943 5695 Email: info@vanlawn.com vanlawn.com Vancouver Tennis Association (VTA) (Gay & Lesbian Club) Stanley Park Tennis Courts 2099 Beach Ave. Vancouver Email: info@vatennis.ca vatennis.ca Victoria Tennis Club Kinsmen Gorge Park on Gospel Pl, Victoria Tel: 250 590 8503 Email: petrajanusas@shaw.ca victoriatennisclub.ca West Vancouver Tennis Club 821-21st Street, West Vancouver Tel: 604 922 9733 Email: sandy@wvtc.ca wvtc.info
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