Match Day Preparation

Understanding Opponents

Posted on June 9, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation

The following post is an excerpt from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Looking Past Strokes

Player A has great stroke components but flawed mental and/or emotional components.

Player B has average looking stroke components, but an incredible proficiency in spotting and attacking mental and/or emotional flaws. (This is an example of profiling an opponent during play.)

During the warm up, the uneducated player/parents/coaches may think Player A has the match in the bag. But what they do not realize is that Player B often wins because of their ability to identify and execute a game plan exposing their opponent’s weakness.

ASSIGNMENT:

List 3 reasons why knowing an opponent’s preferred patterns of play is a critical mental component necessary to tip a close match in your favor.

(One example: Spotting and shutting down the opponent’s “go-to” preferred shots /patterns and force them into attempting to beat you with an un-grooved, unproven and un-sure style of play.)

Common Question: “Is it ok to look at the draw or not?”

The answer depends on what you do with the information! Looking at the draw is a terrific way to use the above opponent profiling tools. This information will assist you in organizing your performance goals and game plans. But if looking at the draw only pulls you and your entourage into an outcome oriented frame of mind, it can be detrimental to your game.

Ignorance is not an excuse. Knowledge is power!
(That is why your parents bought you this book.)

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
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OPPONENT PROFILING

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation

The following post is an excerpt from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Opponent Profiling(*)

Top competitors are continually seeking an advantage. One of the best strategic (mental) and calming (emotional) advantages comes from scouting an upcoming opponent. Casually observing is one thing, but profiling the opponent is a skill set. Each playing style has an inherent group of strengths and weaknesses. Opponent awareness is an important part of match day preparation. Player profiling involves looking past strokes.

NOTE: Opponent profiling prior to match is not always possible.

Answer the following questions with a simple Yes or No.

Scout an upcoming opponent beforehand? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s primary style of play? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s preferred serve patterns (especially on mega points)? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s preferred return of serve position and shot selection on both first and second serve returns? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s favorite go-to rally pattern? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s dominant short-ball option? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s preferred net rushing pattern? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s stroke strengths and weaknesses? (Advanced players should also consider the strengths and limitations of strike zones)? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s movement, agility and stamina strengths and weaknesses? Yes/No
Scout opponent’s frustration tolerance, focus, and emotional stability? Yes/No
Do you continue to scout (pay attention to) these critical clues during the match? Yes/No

(*) Opponent profiling should continue from the pre-match phase, all the way through the actual match and into the post-match. A smart player is continually looking for a crack in their opponent’s game. This includes the physical, mental and emotional components of the game.

Contact: Frank Giampaolo

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Periodization Training

Posted on June 7, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation

The following post is an excerpt from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Periodization Training

Players need to balance their preparations for short-term goals—such as an upcoming tournament—with their long-term improvement schedule. Managing these training phases is called periodization. When preparing for an upcoming match, a player’s plan for training to reach a peak level at the event should be customized to the player’s current comfort and ability level. Trying to perform skills that have not yet been securely ingrained is a recipe for disaster. Following are examples of both poor and intelligent pre-match preparations through periodization.

Poor Pre-Match Preparation:

Changing fundamental grips or strokes, this leads to not having the old stroke any longer and not having the new stroke ready for match play.
Cramming for the event by overloading the practice schedule, this leads to drained, low batteries on match day.
Overdoing the off-court training, which leads to soreness, fatigue, and injuries come match day.
Adding unfamiliar things to routines, this leads to physical and mental confusion.
Playing only superior competition in practice matches, which leads to low self-esteem and zero confidence.
Warming up past the point of diminishing returns, this leads to less confidence.

Intelligent Pre-Match Preparation:

Repetition of primary and secondary strokes, which grooves the timing and increases confidence.
Repetition of proactive patterns, which leads to fast cognitive processing speed and faith in the patterns.
Performing light off-court training, this leads to strength and stamina.
Presetting mental protocols, this leads to dependability in the problem-solving skills.
Presetting emotional protocols, which leads to self-assurance and trust under stress

Players who are unfamiliar with periodization often unknowingly sabotage their performance. They think they’re preparing properly by practicing hard and challenging their game, but this actually hurts their chances of playing at their best.

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
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PRIOR TO MATCH DAY

Posted on June 6, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation, Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Prior to Match Day

Success in tournaments is directly related to the quality of preparation. Champions become champions because they’re the few who are actually willing to put in the grueling hours of pre-match preparation. Spectacular achievements are preceded by spectacular preparation. This section of your book is dedicated to proper preparation. Remember the old saying “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. Make today be the last day that you go into an event under prepared.

PERIODIZATION TRAINING

Players need to balance their preparations for short-term goals—such as an upcoming tournament—with their long-term improvement schedule. Managing these training phases is called periodization. When preparing for an upcoming match, a player’s plan for training to reach a peak level at the event should be customized to the player’s current comfort and ability level. Trying to perform skills that have not yet been securely ingrained is a recipe for disaster. The following are examples of both poor and intelligent pre-match preparations through periodization.

Poor Pre-Match Preparation

Changing fundamental grips or strokes– Changing fundamental grips or strokes often leads to not having the old stroke any longer and not having the new stroke ready for match play.
Cramming for the event by overloading the practice schedule. This behavior often leads to drained, low batteries on match day.
Overdoing the off-court training– Overdoing the off-court training, often leads to soreness, fatigue, and injuries come match day.

Adding unfamiliar things to routines– Adding unfamiliar things to routines could lead to physical, mental and emotional confusion.
Seeking out only “Up” practice matches– Seeking out only “Up” practice matches breeds low self-esteem and zero confidence.
Warming up past the point of diminishing returns-Warming up the same strokes too long often leads to your mind playing tricks on you. A seemingly solid stroke may appear to be flawed by over analysis.

Exception to the Rule: Often players and/or parents do not want to get off the tournament trail due to the ranking race. In this situation, changes must be made to improve while on the tournament trail. Players/parents will have to accept the fact that losing a battle or two may be in order to win the war. In other words a player may have to lose a minor tournament or two in order to improve enough to be able to win Major tournaments in the future.

Intelligent Pre-Match Preparation:

Train repetition of primary and secondary strokes, which grooves the timing and increases confidence.
Train repetition of proactive patterns, which leads to fast cognitive processing speed and faith in the patterns.
Perform light off-court training, this leads to strength and stamina.
Preset mental protocols, this leads to dependable problem-solving skills.
Preset emotional protocols, which leads to self-assurance and trust under stress

ASSIGNMENTS:

Review the above Poor Pre-Match Preparation actions and list the actions you have regularly included in your pre-match regime (if any) and how you will change these regimes.

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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IDENTIFY YOUR PERSONAL PLAYING STYLE

Posted on June 5, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation, Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

To identify your personal playing style, let’s begin by self- profiling your game. Answer the following questions based on what best describes your game.

SELF PROFILING QUESTIONS:

Primary style of play? (Hard hitting baseliner, All-court player/Net rusher, Pusher/Retriever or Drop shot artist)?
Preferred serve patterns (Especially on mega points)?
Preferred return of serve position and shot selection on both first and second serve returns?
Preferred return of serve position and shot selection on both first and second serve returns?
Dominant short-ball option?
Preferred net rushing pattern?
Stroke strengths and weaknesses?
Movement, agility and stamina strengths and weaknesses?
Frustration tolerance, focus, and emotional stability?
Preferred length of points? (Do you like to elongate points?)

ASSIGNMENT:

Tipping close matches in your favor requires a player to run their best patterns at crunch time. Do you think pattern rehearsal would help you perform better under pressure?

List 3 reasons why knowing your preferred style of play will improve your confidence on court and get you better results.

(Example answers: If you know your style of play you will conserve energy versus waste energy; you will expose your strengths while hiding your weaknesses; you will be proactive instead of reactive and control the match dynamics.)

Plan on entering every match whether it is the first round or the finals, Miami or Moscow, hard courts or clay courts, with your favorite style of play and your time tested patterns. Starting each match with what you do best…is a recipe for success!

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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Parental Match Time job Description

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation

The following post is an excerpts from Match Day Preparation. Thanks for visiting, Frank

PARENTAL MATCH TIME JOB DESCRIPTION

Charting or videotaping your child’s match provides valuable insight for future training. It also is provides an opportunity to positively channel parent’s/coach’s nervous energy during a match. (Players are very adept at reading their parent’s/coach’s emotions (nonverbal communication) while playing.)

Benefits of Match Analysis:
Strengths and weaknesses in stroke production
Implementation of strategies and tactics
Actual causes of errors
Dissecting the opponent/opponent awareness
Movement, spacing and fitness
Emotional control
Focus control such as lapses in concentration
Between point and changeover rituals

PARENTAL POST MATCH JOB DESCRIPTION

Assist your child in their static stretching, nutrition and hydration requirements.
Wait an appropriate amount of time before discussing the match.
Begin match analysis with an over-view of their positive performance goals with an optimistic tone of voice.
If not present- replace “Did You Win?” with “Did you hit your performance goals. Did you execute the correct shots at the right times?”
Remind your child to complete their match logs.

Education begins with you! Thanks for visiting, Frank

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
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Posted on April 29, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Customized Organizational Plan, Match Day Preparation

MATCH DAY PREPARATION

There is often a very fine line between competitive success and failure. A poor start, an initial lack of focus, or a bout of wavering confidence can cause a seemingly winnable match to quickly slip away. The will to properly prepare for competition usually makes the difference. For players to achieve consistent positive match results, their preparation must include ritualistic, inflexible routines.

The Mental Emotional Tennis Work Book series are designed for the player to read and take the proper steps to accelerate their game. Match Day Preparation contains information to help players of all levels find this state of readiness that enables them to transform from a normal person into a tennis warrior.

The below blog introduces the match day parental role.

“Research shows that for better or worse…parents are the child’s greatest influence in life.”

PARENTAL MATCH DAY JOB DESCRIPTION: The Parent’s Primary Role is to De-Stress their Child

Stress Increases Muscle Contractions
Stress Decreases Fluid Movement
Stress Impairs Judgment
Stress Reduces Problem Solving Skills

Parents, remember that athletes perform best in a calm relaxed mental state.

PARENTAL PRE-MATCH JOB DESCRIPTION

Equipment preparation & nutrition/hydration requirements
Warm up routines (Primary/Secondary Strokes) and imagery
Keeping the player away from other players and parents
Discuss styles of play, strengths and weaknesses instead of the opponents past success
Emphasize the importance of executing the correct shot the moment demands
Quality preparation is a life skill. It is the foundation for success.

As you can see, education begins with you!

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
MaximizingTennisPotential.com
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Attaining Tennis Excellence

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation, Maximizing Tennis Potential, Tennis Specific Training, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following post is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible.
Thanks for visiting, Frank Giampaolo

Top Ten Tools Needed to Attain Tennis Excellence

The mental and emotional strength of being a fierce competitor and a respectful human being is a learned behavior. Building mental and emotional muscle takes time and effort.

The way you think and feel effects how you perform. Rafa Nadal is a prime example of player that has built mental and emotional strength through hard work.

If your player truly believes in his or her game as a result of proper training and hard work he or she is bound for greatness.

No one can outperform their self-image. Due to their discipline, athletes like Rafa, have inner strength and inner excellence. They truly believe in themselves and their abilities because they’ve earned the belief.

Top Ten Tools Needed to Attain Tennis Excellence:

Hit the gym to gain strength.
Commit to improving with unrelenting determination.
Develop the mental side of shot selection to master offense, neutral & defensive skills.
Schedule time to strengthen their speed, stamina, and agility.
Revise between point rituals to enhance “clear headedness” of shot selection on big points.
Improve your ability to apply spin.
Cultivate the competitive attitude. Do this by adding simulated stress with every drill. We call them “stress buster drills”.
Perfect the ability to live in the moment (producing precisely what the moment calls for) by rehearsing closing out sets.
Replace the need to win with the love of the battle.
Reform calmness under stress, by simulating those intense moments.

For more information read The Tennis Parent’s Bible– hundreds of hours of lessons for less than a half hour lesson!

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
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Why Does My Child Play Great In Practice But Horrible In Matches?

Posted on February 8, 2015 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation, Maximizing Tennis Potential, Raising Athletic Royalty, The Tennis Parent's Bible

The following is an excerpt from The Tennis Parent’s Bible. Thank you for visiting, Frank Gimapaolo

Why Does My Child Play Great In Practice But Horrible In Matches?

It’s Friday, the day before a local junior event, John the young hitting pro carefully feeds balls waist level, in the perfect strike zone for your little Nathan. Nathan doesn’t have to move and hits like a champ. On the way home, Nate says, “Man, I’m on fire! Tennis is easy! Forget the open tourney, I’m going pro!”

Saturday morning rolls around and little Nate’s opponent is playing “keep away” from him. He’s wisely keeping balls above Nathan’s shoulders out of his primary strike zone. Nathan goes down in flames. After the match Nate says, “I don’t get it, I was famous yesterday.” Practicing in the manner in which you are expected to perform is a battle cry heard at my workshops daily. There is a totally different set of skills that provide “competitive” confidence or confidence under stress versus simply hitting.

It is important to understand that the essence of a champion doesn’t simply lie in their strokes but in their head and heart. The ability to stay comfortable when things get uncomfortable is undeniably a skill. Mastering their emotions may be just the ingredient your child requires to break through to a higher level. In typical private lessons, clinics and academies around the world the primary focus is on stroke mechanics. The attention is placed on bending your knees, change your grip, toss higher and run faster.

No question, developing sound fundamentals is a critical element of success. However to improve your child’s ability to perform under stress, it is in their best interest to switch from 100 percent stroke repetition practice to the following five practice solutions:

Practice Solutions:

Stop hitting without accountability

Hitting without accountability is like spending money with an unlimited bank account. Juniors perceive they hit better in practice because they are not aware of the sheer number of mistakes they are actually making. They remember the 10 screaming winners they hit, but forget about the 50 unforced errors they committed in the same hour.

Change the focus in practice sessions

Concentrate on skill sets such as shot selection, patterns, adapting and problem solving, spotting the opponents tendencies, tactical changes and between point rituals.

Quit being a perfectionist!

Trying 110 percent promotes hesitation, over- thinking and tight muscle contractions. Remember this topic in the blunder section?

If you must worry about winning, focus on winning about 65 percent of the points. Yes, you can blow some points and allow your opponent a little glory and still win comfortably.

Turn off the fear of failure

Top players lose almost every week. Take for example one of the ATP stars I worked with as a teen, Sam Querrey. He has been on tour full time for years. He is well adjusted, rich and famous and yet he understands that he is not going to win every tournament – which means he’s ok with the fact that he will most likely lose almost every week.

Replace some of the hours spent in clinics with actual matches!

Do you want your child to learn how to play through nervousness and manage their mistakes? Do you want them to get better at closing out those 5-3 leads? Do you want them to actually beat that moonball pusher in the third set?

Well, they have to overcome these issues several times in dress rehearsal first before you can expect them to win under pressure. Playing great under stress is a learned behavior. Practicing under simulated stress conditions is the solution.

FUN FACT: Most junior players spend hours upon hours hitting in academies and zero hours a week in full practice matches. They’ve become solid ball strikers but weak competitors.

The challenge is to get comfortable being uncomfortable. Rehearse doing what you’re scared of doing. Take the tougher road less traveled. One of my favorite sayings is

“If you want to get ahead of the pack, you can’t hang in the pack.”

This goes for parents as well. Obviously dropping your child off at the group lesson then going shopping for shoes is way easier than finding practice matches, charting and /or paying a college hitter to play sets. But ask yourself, is taking the convenient way out keeping your child from winning national titles?

Contact: Frank Giampaolo
FGSA@earthlink.net
RaisingAthleticRoyalty.com
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Tennis Parent Communication

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Frank Giampaolo in Match Day Preparation, Maximizing Tennis Potential, Parent Player Communication, Tennis Parent Education

Let’s assume you are not a high performance tennis coach, but a loving tennis parent just the same. As a tennis parent, your role is critical in the overall development of your child on and off the court.

Below I’ve listed ten important communication skills essential for the Tennis Parent:

1. Teach character building and not stroke production or strategy. Encourage life skill development, such as being optimistic, time management, emotional composure, perseverance/work ethic, proper nutrition, hydration and sleep requirements and organizational skills. With proper life skills your child will succeed on and off the court.

2. Communicate your match observations to the coach (and not to the child). Email your tournament notes to your primary coach – asking them to focus their training on your child’s actual match flaws. The coach will then take the appropriate training steps. This will add harmony to the often stressful parent player relationship.

3. Google positive motivation techniques. Don’t force success…motivate success. Motivation is achieved through rewarding your child’s efforts and not by punishing their failures. Punishment discourages growth – the exact opposite of motivation.

4. Set process goals such as a developmental plan, as well as outcome goals such as rankings. Yes, there are two completely different sets of goals. Process goals include nurturing many game components simultaneously, they may include: off court training, primary and secondary stroke skills as well as mental and emotional protocols. Outcome goals may include: the USTA/ITF tournament schedules, ranking rules and regulations as well as college placement process.

5. Manage proper match day preparation. Spectacular preparation precedes spectacular performances. Practice makes permanent….practice doesn’t make perfect. This goes for pre-match warm ups as well. Sadly, most parents and players have horrific preparation routines and yet expect spectacular performances. See the Match Day Preparation eBook for more in depth discovery.

6. Apply positive, non-threatening post match communication. Consider your child’s preferred intelligence (How individuals relate best to the world around them.) Some brain types enjoy discussing post match “chalk talk” immediately after the match, others simply need a little distance before discussing the match and still others may never want to discuss the match. (FYI: If your child never wants to discuss the match- you may have a hobbyist on your hands because they are not interested in growth) However, after a match, you may only have one hour before the next match to discuss performance issues. Be positive and reinforce what they did well. You may consider asking: “What did you do effectively today?”, “What did the opponent do that made it tough for you? What would you do different?” VERSUS discussing your laundry list of their failures!!!!

7. Train Independency. One of the most important character traits of a champion is independent problem solving skills. If your child is 16 and you are still finding their shoes, packing their bag, carrying their water jug and racket bag to matches you are developing dependency. At 5 all in the third set, the independent problem solver is more likely going to find a way to win. The dependent child is going to be looking to you with tears in their eyes.

8. Manage your child’s entourage. Top nationally ranked player have an entourage. This group consists of teachers, paid hitters, trainers, sparring partners, physical therapists …etc. If your coach insists that you only train with him/her…be aware that they may be looking after their best interest and not your child’s best interest. Bottom line- Do not assume one singular coach is doing everything your child needs. If you are only paying a coach to hit balls, you are mismanaging your child’s complete developmental plan.

9. Remember communication isn’t just verbal. Studies show over 70% of communication comes from tone of voice, facial expressions and body language. In my opinion, kids key in on the tone of voice and ignore the actual words being spoken. How do you expect your child to play calm, relaxed and positive tennis under stress, if you are pacing on the side lines with your arms folded in a knot and shaking your head in disgust? If you are wound tighter than a drum, sit somewhere so that they cannot see or hear you.

10. If you’re going to have an attitude…make it gratitude. The real junior contenders I train week in and week out work harder than most adults. Though many adults may be going to a job 40 hours a week, how many of them are giving 100% effort even 10 hours a week? Continuing to obsess about your child’s flaws will deflate their desire to even try. Replace the non-stop discussion of their flaws with your true feelings of being thankful for their hard work. Show appreciation for your child’s effort and you will be motivating greatness!

“A tough realization for most tennis parents is that you can’t be a part time hobbyist parent and expect your child to be a champion. If you truly don’t want to “get involved” please don’t expect your child to be great.”

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Frank Giampaolo's Maximizing Tennis Potential

Understanding Opponents

OPPONENT PROFILING

Periodization Training

PRIOR TO MATCH DAY

IDENTIFY YOUR PERSONAL PLAYING STYLE

Parental Match Time job Description