How to beat a better player
Introduction
In the game of tennis, players will often face opponents who are better than they are. As a player develops and moves up in playing levels, this will become more common. A good player is expected to beat a lesser-skilled opponent when better players will have more technical and tactical prowess to do so. What about when you need to beat an even better opponent? This blog post aims to provide some tips on how to prepare for and beat a superior tennis player.
You will often face a better player.
You will often face a better player. For example, you might play a friend who is just "better" than you. Or maybe it's someone at your club or in your league that seems to have you beat every time. If this is the case, here are some tips on how to beat a better player:
- Look at their serve. You can tell if they have a strong serve by watching them hit serves and see if they are able to get enough speed on their ball so that it doesn't bounce once before going out of bounds. If it does bounce twice or more, then chances are their serve isn't as good as yours (or perhaps even worse).
- Determine whether you're playing against someone with better footwork than yours. This one may seem obvious but often times players will assume their opponent has good footwork when really all they know is that the other person hasn't fallen down yet (which really doesn't count for much). One way of knowing for sure is by observing how quick each player moves during rallies; if one player seems faster than another then chances are good that you are moving slowly!
When playing, remain calm.
When you are playing against a better player, it is important to remain calm when facing them. Don't let the pressure get to you, don't let the crowd get to you and don't let your opponent get to you. You must also not let your mistakes get to you and not allow your own expectations of yourself affect how well or poorly you play against this better player.
Change your game plan from match to match.
The next time someone is beating you in a match, don't be afraid to change your game plan. Don't get stuck in a rut. Don't be afraid to try new things and experiment with different strategies.
Don't be afraid to fail and learn from it—and if anything, just go for it!
Do not get intimidated by a better opponent.
The fact is, you can't be intimidated by a better opponent. There's no point in getting nervous about how much better they are than you because it won't help your game at all. Instead of focusing on how well they play the game and what their skill level is like, focus on yourself and making sure that you're playing as well as possible. If someone is far more skilled than you but that doesn't hinder your ability to win games against them, then there's really no reason to get upset or frustrated about it!
Stay mentally tough and fight for every point.
The key to beating a better player is staying mentally tough and fighting for every point.
You must be focused on the game, positive, and aggressive in order to win. If you allow your opponent's intimidating presence or reputation to get into your head, it may cost you the match. Stay mentally tough by staying alert and aware of what's going on around you at all times. Don't let anything distract you from focusing solely on winning this match!
Give yourself the best chance to win.
In order to give yourself the best chance to win, you need to practice more than average. This is the life of a successful tennis player. What does that mean? Well, if you’re not a professional tennis player or even an advanced club player, then it means practising more often, playing with different types of players and even different weather conditions. If you can, playing in different courts or balls also help your long term improvement. Bottom line: The more you practice with more diverse conditions, the better!
Practice more than the average tennis player.
If you want to beat a better player than you, you will have to practice more than your opponent does.
The reason for this is that the best method to improve your game is by playing and practising over and over again.
The only way to get better at anything is through repetition and experience. Remember, Practice makes perfect!
You can beat any player with the right preparation and strategy in mind!
- Prepare for every match:
You should always be prepared for any situation that comes your way in a match. You don't have to look at every possible outcome but having some sort of game plan will help you with preparation.
- Practice makes perfect:
Practice makes perfect! Whether it's practice games or just playing against someone else online who doesn't know how to play very well yet since they're new players themselves - anything counts! Even if it seems like nothing is changing after practising all day long there will eventually come a point where suddenly everything becomes easier than before because now we're more comfortable than ever before when doing these things which means less mistakes overall too so try not giving up hope yet even though things may seem bleak right now because there's still plenty left out there waiting for us before we can rest easy again.*
Conclusion
So there you have it! These are just a few of the many important things to keep in mind when facing better opponents. It is true that sometimes you will lose, but if you have prepared your body and mind well for these matches, then there is no reason why you cannot beat them. Remember not to be intimidated by their superior skill or experience; instead of focusing on what they can do, focus on what YOU can do.
If you need any other tips or advice from us here at Vancouver Tennis, feel free to reach out to us!
With a successful coaching career at the NCAA Tennis Championship, Coach Ernesto Ponce uses the SISTEMA development system to help make all players as great as they'd be.
The program covers stroke techniques, strategies, skill development, physical and mental conditioning that can be applied to your game for long term improvement.