Frank Giampaolo's Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible
Available through most online retailers!

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Opponent Profiling Checklist (“Paying Attention”)

(The following checklist is designed for the coach/parent to review with the athlete.)

• Paying attention to the opponent’s current style of play.

A top player won’t stick to a losing game for long. They’ll often shift to a different style of play known as their pre-developed plan B. They may lose the first set with plan A but win the match with plan B or C.

• Paying attention to the opponent’s stroke strengths and weaknesses.

Don’t stop attacking the weaknesses until they have proven repeatedly that they have solved the problem. Stick with the same old boring winners.

• Paying attention to the opponent’s movement and spacing likes and dislikes.

Some opponents are terrific from behind the baseline yet pitiful when pulled forward into the forecourt.

• Paying attention to patterns of play (theirs and yours).

If a particular serve pattern of yours works like a charm, revisit it on game points. If the opponent is killing you with a particular pattern, expect it on big points and shut it down early.

• Paying attention to the opponent’s negative emotional cues.

Remember, not all forms of communication are verbal. Watch between points for the opponent’s negative facial expressions and body language. Whatever caused their negative reaction, plan on repeating it.

• Paying attention to where the ball is landing on both sides of the court.

The court zone in which the ball lands dictates shot selection. For example, if you hit a short ball, weak into their service box, that ball has landed in their attack zone. Preparing your defensive skill sets early is court awareness.

• Paying attention to the opponent’s court position and strike zone at contact.

For example, an opponent who is drifting back 15 feet beyond the baseline and meeting the ball at a head level strike zone, is most likely in a defensive position. You should be moving inside the court preparing to execute an offensive reply.

• Paying attention to the ball you are giving to the opponent.

“Think like a baseball pitcher versus a baseball batter.” Yes, you are hitting a ball but your stroke is their incoming pitch. Are you throwing the same 67 mph fastball, 2 feet over the net directly into their wheelhouse over and over again? You then walk away from the match saying, “They were too good! I had no chance!”   The reality is you made them look good.

• Paying attention to the speed of play.

This includes ball speed as well as between point and changeover playing speed. If the opponent prefers an aggressive, quick pace of play, slow it down. Controlling the pace of the match is called rhythm disruption and it is very much a part of high performance tennis.

• Apply proper changeover rituals.

Use the allocated 90 seconds to design or modify the next two game’s plan of attack instead of simply getting a Gatorade stain on your new shirt while watching the players over on court #6.

• Apply proper between point rituals.

The proper between point rituals are just as important as change-over rituals in implementing a successful plan of attack. Defeating a top ranked opponent is a complicated affair. It may require a bit of mental warfare to outsmart a seasoned champion.

A top NCAA award winning coach told me that he doesn’t teach strokes…he teaches “paying attention.”  The art of winning requires opponent profiling under stress. This is part of the essential mental component applied in high performance tennis.

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible
Available through most online retailers!

 Click Here to Order

TIPPING POINT TENDENCIES

Experienced champions have developed seemingly hidden skill sets I call, Tipping Point Tendencies. To the untrained eye, as the athletes warm up, opponents may appear to be equally matched with similar physical abilities. It is during match play that tipping point tendencies become apparent. The game is on and “playing catch” is over and playing “keep away” begins. These pre-developed skill sets are the critical factors that tip a close match in ones favor.

The tipping points are those hidden moments in each match when an emotional energy shift is about to happen.

“In close tennis matches, positive and negative energy and attitudes flows back and forth.”

Most intermediate athletes and their parents don’t even realize that this critical struggle for power is taking place. That is… until now! Mental readiness is required to control the positive energy.

Think back to the last few times your athlete lost tight matches. Chances are you blamed the losses on bad luck, or the opponent cheated, or your kid just did not have the “feel” that day, or for you superstitious types… you went to Quiznoz’s instead of Subway. Those re-occurring close defeats are most likely due to your child’s incomplete training and not lunch meat. Tipping point tendencies are essential learned behaviors that athletic royalty must master.

An athlete that shifts focus to the following tipping point tendencies, accelerates the learning process and a competitive warrior is born. Close matches are often decided by a handful of points. Let’s look a little deeper at ten of the top “hidden” tipping point tendencies that can help tip your athlete’s matches in their favor. Once again, these are terrific conversation starters for your athlete and their coaches.

Top Ten Tipping Point Tendencies:

1) Pay attention to the energy flow throughout the match. Who’s cranky and negative, who’s eager, hungry and positive? If you’re negative, apply your triggers and steal the energy back.
2) Monitor your state of mind. Is your mental and emotional state in the under arousal state of mind, in the optimal peak performance state of mind or in the over arousal state of mind?
3) Learn to spot the mental and emotional signs of choking (over-thinking) and panicking (under-thinking).
4) Manage the score to manage your adrenaline. Different points have different psychological values. Pay attention and get pumped up before big points.
5) Note that tennis scoring isn’t numerically fair: You can win more points than the opponent in the match and still lose the match. Winning requires spotting tipping points.
6) Spot the mega points (game winning points) and run the appropriate pattern that you’ve trained to death versus going rogue.

7) Spot mini-mega points. A 30-15 lead isn’t the correct time to relax. Winning that crucial point earns you a 40-15 advantage, lose it and you’re staring at a 30-30 tie.
8) Spot mini-mega games. These games in a set hold crucial building blocks. A 4-2 lead isn’t time to relax. Winning that mini-mega game earns you a 5-2 lead. Lose is and the sets a 4-3 dog fight.
9) Opponent profiling is crucial. It’s the flip side to running your Top 7 Patterns. Competitors who pay attention not only spot the opponents preferred patterns but actually shut them down on these big occasions.
10) Self-chart both sides of the net. Witness where errors and winners stem from and problem solve accordingly.

In regards to higher learning, I’m amazed at how often very young intermediate athletes understand this type of mental and emotional training. It is not reserved for the older advanced group. Parents and coaches, please remember, their world isn’t remotely like ours at their age. With Google on their smart phones, they are accustom to collecting and quantifying data at lightning speeds.

Have you ever witnessed your child on their phone with one friend, doing their homework, skyping another friend, snap-chatting, while eating and watching TV?  Children can multi-task. Asking an intermediate tennis player to improve their mechanical stroke components while improving their mental components is a piece of cake!

Mastering the tipping point tendencies is the art of winning under stress. Those seemingly “little things” are actually the extremely “big things” that make all the difference in tipping the odds in your favor.

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible
Available through most online retailers!

 Click Here to Order

CULTIVATING LIFE LESSONS THROUGH TENNIS

Choosing to embark on this journey has lifelong benefits. It is widely known that the participation in the game of tennis cultivates life lessons. Tennis is an individual, elite sport that breed leaders.

“Congratulations for developing leadership qualities in your child.”

Communicating the important life lessons gained through tennis is a critical part of the tennis parent’s job description.

The Game of Tennis Inspires the Following Leadership Skills:

1. Time management
2. Adaptability and flexibility skills
3. Ability to handle adversity
4. Ability to handle stress
5. Courage
6. Positive work ethic
7. Perseverance
8. Setting priorities
9. Goal setting
10. Sticking to commitments
11. Determination
12. Problem solving skills
13. Spotting patterns and tendencies
14. Discipline
15. Understanding of fair play and sportsmanship
16. Development of focus
17. Persistence
18. Preparation skills
19. Dedication and self-control
20. Positive self-image

Without these important character skills, success on and off the court, simply won’t happen.  You see, achieving results requires thousands of hours of deliberate customized practice.  Without the above life skills, a deliberate developmental plan doesn’t happen.

Life skills à Process à Results

My favorite life lesson of the top 20 is persistence. As a coach, to see a talented player without persistence or the willingness to sacrifice and work hard is my worst nightmare! That is why at the junior levels it is often the slightly less talented who are willing to pay the price with smart work that earn all the trophies.

“Nothing is more common than unsuccessful tennis players with tons of physical talent.”

Finding a way through a tough opponent even though you’re having a bad day is persistence. Staying in the correct side of your brain even when things are clearly not going well is persistence. Staying engaged until the very last point is persistence. Now you know my favorite life lesson. What’s yours?

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible
Available through most online retailers!

 Click Here to Order

Preparing an organizational blue print will save you thousands of dollars annually.
It will also save your child thousands of wasted, unproductive hours, sweat and tears.

Your child was born with a unique genetic predisposition and is pre-wired with a specific brain and body type. Consider it carefully as you and your athlete’s coaches (your entourage) nurture your child’s talent and identify their genetic predisposition.  Individual brain and body type play a very influential role at all levels of the game (not to mention the lifelong benefits as well.)  Let’s have some fun right off the bat and jump into applying personality profiling.

So, what’s the key to maximizing success in the shortest period of time? Is it to purchase the latest equipment? Maybe it’s hiring a great local pro? What if I said… neither.

“The first and most important tool you will ever apply is discovering your child’s personality and brain design.”

Let’s look at the typical old school tennis teaching scenario. The local pro Jose Gonzales came to the United States from Chile. He was a terrific collegiate player earning a full scholarship to Virginia Commonwealth. Jose even played a few ATP pro challenger events. He found success by being extremely patient. He had a natural gift with his quick feet and he enjoyed running. He took delight in being a steady counter puncher 15 feet behind the baseline. Jose’s shot tolerance was a 20-ball rally!

As a teaching professional, he demands that each of his students abide by his playing style, disciplines and logic. Your thinking, boy that guy sounds pretty experienced, let’s hire him as our child’s coach. So, is this the right mentor for your child?

The answer is, not likely. Why? Because Jose demands that each student plays his style. The style of tennis that your child needs in order to thrive is based on his or hers own unique design. (AKA: brain and body type.)

“Asking your child to play tennis in a style that opposes their skill sets, beliefs and temperament is a recipe for disaster.
This is especially true at the beginning levels of player development and is a major factor as towhy so many of them leave this great game.”

One of the quickest ways to ensure that your child will quit the sport is to demand that they play a style that opposes their brain and body type. Understanding brain and body types is one of the first steps to becoming a world class parent and/or coach. Hold on tight because I am about to rock your world.