Resistance and Breakthrough Points

[johnyandell]

Share your thought's on Joey Johnson's article "Resistance and Breakthrough Points"

[bottle]

Where is this and the other stuff to which you're requesting response, please?

[johnyandell]

New issue!

[don_budge]

Theo loses 18-16 in Super Tiebreak...

Returned to the club today to see some real tennis...while Monfils defeated Nieminen in the finals of the Stockholm Open in three sets.

Theo lost the first set at love but battled back to take the second set 7-5. In our series we play a "Super Tiebreak" if the players split the first two sets...for all of the marbles. The first to ten and winning by two wins the match.

The two opponents battled back and forth in what turned out to be an epic struggle. Theo won the 9-9 point to go up 10-9 but could not capitalize. They went back and forth...until Theo's opponent took advantage of a short ball and placed it squarely in Theo's backhand corner where he could not manage to return it. Final score 18-16 in the Super Tiebreak.

Theo managed to stay composed on his way to the net for the obligatory handshake but when that little piece of business was squared away he collapsed sobbing into his hands...and he was unable to stop. I was watching from behind the glass partition behind the courts as his father trotted over to console him. After a couple of minutes I went over to see if I could shed a little light on the subject.

"Theo", I said to him...his face still buried in his hands. "It's Steve. I came all of the way from Stockholm to see you play." No response, more tears. "Theo, it's Steve. You're ok, stop crying, you're ok. I am proud of you. You tried your best. If you would of won one more point the other boy would be the one crying. You're ok...it's alright." No dice.

His mother came over and eventually...it was a good ten minutes, maybe even fifteen he managed to stop sobbing and the three of us went over to the other side of the court to sort things out. He's eleven. I told the mother that it was probably better for him that he lost. The other boy just gave it a big "Yeah!" went off to pound some lunch and that was that for him. Theo, on the other hand, had to process the fact that he was number one, exhausted...plus he had to process coming out on the short end of the stick in an 18-16 marathon tie-break. I have never played an 18-16 tie-break. Mumsy and I had a nice little philosophical discussion about what good training tennis is for life...it's not always a bed of roses, it's not always a trip to the beach. Theo had a couple of cookies and I saw him smiling and laughing with the other boys who were playing in the doubles about a half an hour later. Kids.

The whole experience sort of shocked Theo. He'd never been there before. He was in uncharted waters. The drama really piled up. All of us tennis players know what it is like to lose a close one. You survive. You find a way. Wouldn't it be funny if one day he is in the Wimbledon finals playing against the American number one...going the distance to five sets, finding himself in a marathon tie-break and winning. The smile on his face will bear just a bit of a pained expression when his memory of "that day at Skultorps" snuck its way back into his noodle.

[makhan67]

Resistance and Breakthrough Points

Share your thought's on Joey Johnson's article "Resistance and Breakthrough Points"

Great article to learn from.

It was fifth set (not fourth) when Roger Federer was 5-3 and 40-15 up on his own serve against Djokovic in this year's U.S. Open Semi-Final.

For me with that match the U.S. Open had "closed" . I feel that if tennis has any face it would look like Roger Federer. Roger Federer IS tennis!

[stotty]

Interesting article.

Like the author suggests, I think being in the zone is something entirely different from "resistance and breakthrough". Being in the zone is all about everything coming together and being detached from any kind of strong emotions. It's about pure concentration and achieving a kind of meditation while playing. Didn't Jim Courier most famously hit the ZONE in a Davis Cup final once? Yes, it's rare, and perhaps the opponent has to be subdued or off form to some extent for a player to hit the zone.

I think mentality is interesting. Should we try to be cool and contemplative like Arthur Ashe or Mecir.... or are we better of being fist pumping warriors like Connors and Nadal?

[worthytowin]

licensedcoach

Great question! The answer to this lies within the first chapter of my book. I share the story how when I was a kid I tried to model my on-court behavior and persona after Bjorn Borg. I realized after a couple years of this that his very reserved and calm on-court emotional demeanor was not entirely me. I need to have more emotion at key moments in matches and when John McEnroe came on the scene I decided that since I had repressed my emotions too long under the Borg mentality I shifted to try the McEnroe mentality. With this decision I felt a new freedom to uncork my emotions during match play and soon began to morph into a young version of Johnny Mac and that this was too much. Having tried both sides of the emotional scale I soon found that I needed to find out who I was on the court and allow my natural performance mindset to come out and learn how to use it more effectively in matches. In the end I began to trust my natural responses and learn to use those to my advantage and less about what others are doing out there.

[stotty]

I think Borg had it right. If you concentrate deep enough, emotions will fall away because is simply no room for them when you are truly focused on the task in hand. I think Borg concentrated better than anyone.

[worthytowin]

Great article to learn from.

It was fifth set (not fourth) when Roger Federer was 5-3 and 40-15 up on his own serve against Djokovic in this year's U.S. Open Semi-Final.

For me with that match the U.S. Open had "closed" . I feel that if tennis has any face it would look like Roger Federer. Roger Federer IS tennis!

You are right! It was the fifth set. Federer has been the face of tennis for quite some time and has done amazing things and will certainly go down in the history books. What is great about competitive tennis is that it is constantly evolving and here we are with Djokovic now setting the tennis world on fire with an amazing year!

[worthytowin]

Returned to the club today to see some real tennis...while Monfils defeated Nieminen in the finals of the Stockholm Open in three sets.

Theo lost the first set at love but battled back to take the second set 7-5. In our series we play a "Super Tiebreak" if the players split the first two sets...for all of the marbles. The first to ten and winning by two wins the match.

The two opponents battled back and forth in what turned out to be an epic struggle. Theo won the 9-9 point to go up 10-9 but could not capitalize. They went back and forth...until Theo's opponent took advantage of a short ball and placed it squarely in Theo's backhand corner where he could not manage to return it. Final score 18-16 in the Super Tiebreak.

Theo managed to stay composed on his way to the net for the obligatory handshake but when that little piece of business was squared away he collapsed sobbing into his hands...and he was unable to stop. I was watching from behind the glass partition behind the courts as his father trotted over to console him. After a couple of minutes I went over to see if I could shed a little light on the subject.

"Theo", I said to him...his face still buried in his hands. "It's Steve. I came all of the way from Stockholm to see you play." No response, more tears. "Theo, it's Steve. You're ok, stop crying, you're ok. I am proud of you. You tried your best. If you would of won one more point the other boy would be the one crying. You're ok...it's alright." No dice.

His mother came over and eventually...it was a good ten minutes, maybe even fifteen he managed to stop sobbing and the three of us went over to the other side of the court to sort things out. He's eleven. I told the mother that it was probably better for him that he lost. The other boy just gave it a big "Yeah!" went off to pound some lunch and that was that for him. Theo, on the other hand, had to process the fact that he was number one, exhausted...plus he had to process coming out on the short end of the stick in an 18-16 marathon tie-break. I have never played an 18-16 tie-break. Mumsy and I had a nice little philosophical discussion about what good training tennis is for life...it's not always a bed of roses, it's not always a trip to the beach. Theo had a couple of cookies and I saw him smiling and laughing with the other boys who were playing in the doubles about a half an hour later. Kids.

The whole experience sort of shocked Theo. He'd never been there before. He was in uncharted waters. The drama really piled up. All of us tennis players know what it is like to lose a close one. You survive. You find a way. Wouldn't it be funny if one day he is in the Wimbledon finals playing against the American number one...going the distance to five sets, finding himself in a marathon tie-break and winning. The smile on his face will bear just a bit of a pained expression when his memory of "that day at Skultorps" snuck its way back into his noodle.

Great story of a tough fight that has to unfortunately end up with somebody losing! The opportunity in this tough loss for Theo is that he can look back at the resistance and breakthrough points that occurred and learn from them. I believe that this post-match analysis is the gift that comes out of every loss and as you said a great lesson for life. A competitor who is hungry will make mental notes of how they will handle a similar situation in the future if confronted with it - and how they will be more prepared to handle it. It's this kind of persistence that creates champions in tennis and in life!

[worthytowin]

I think Borg had it right. If you concentrate deep enough, emotions will fall away because is simply no room for them when you are truly focused on the task in hand. I think Borg concentrated better than anyone.

Stotty,

What I have found in working with a lot of players over the years is that they are vastly different in how they emote on the court. Look at Nadal, arguably one of the toughest competitors to ever hold a racket - he uses his emotions at key points in matches to activate himself to further focus, energy and concentration. On the other hand you have players, like Borg, who need to have lower levels of activation in order to maintain focus. So the question is which one is better? I believe it depends on the individual and there unique make-up and getting to know themselves and how to focus and channel their natural performance mindset.

Joey J

[stotty]

Joey, I understand exactly what you are saying. I understand that all temperaments are different. But I also feel you misunderstand a key point. If you concentrate deeply enough and focus purely on the job on hand, emotions will filter away...and it's to greater benefit if they do. Getting emotional is a distraction.

Years ago, many remarked on how McEnroe always behaved impeccably when he played Borg. A lot of people put this down to Mac's respect for Borg, who had been invincible for five years pre McEnroe.

But for me, it had little to do with that. The reason Mac zipped up is because their matches were so tight there was simply no room for outbursts, since an outburst would likely cost him a break, a set, or even the match. Mac subconsciously knew this...he's no fool...he knew he had to shut up and concentrate...playing Borg wasn't like playing anyone else.

This sums up what I am trying to say: If the situation is intense enough, you can be forced to concentrate to a level whereby emotions will filter away, otherwise it will prove costly. I firmly believe many players can learn to control their emotions and focus more. Indeed, over time, most pros learn to do it...it's an asset.

Few people have the ability to concentrate very deeply. It's a huge benefit for any tennis player that can - Borg could.

[DougEng]

Interesting article.

Like the author suggests, I think being in the zone is something entirely different from "resistance and breakthrough". Being in the zone is all about everything coming together and being detached from any kind of strong emotions. It's about pure concentration and achieving a kind of meditation while playing. Didn't Jim Courier most famously hit the ZONE in a Davis Cup final once? Yes, it's rare, and perhaps the opponent has to be subdued or off form to some extent for a player to hit the zone.

I think mentality is interesting. Should we try to be cool and contemplative like Arthur Ashe or Mecir.... or are we better of being fist pumping warriors like Connors and Nadal?

I call them Warriors and Zen Masters. Which style should a player adapt? Best fit with type of player. Defensive counterpunchers tend to be Warriors; serve-and-volleyers and shotmakers are best suited as Zen Masters. The former require a high degree of energy and alertness. The latter require great court sense and feel for the ball.

[don_budge]

Exhaustion...mental or physical or emotional?

To me, in the end of the 3rd set, it looked like Murray is simply out of gas!
Looked like he just can't move anymore and was trying to finish the points as fast as possible.

You see nikae...Mr. Murray was depleted. He was depleted of energy or rather he was depleted of his will to compete. Mr. Djokovic exhausted him in more ways than one. First he took a bit of air out of his tires with the between the legs save off of the lob followed up with the dart to the heart with the dropshot.

Then he went to work further on the Murray psyche with a tough and grueling tie-break. All of this proved to be too much for Murray at this point in his career...or at the very least on Sunday. At this point in his development.

In this article by Joey Johnson he elaborates how Murray reached a point in his experience where he exceeded his ability to maintain his composure...much as my little Theo did in his 18-16 tie-break. Andy will come away from this defeat with a bit more experience and if he is a consummate tennis player and professional, he will glean from his experience and establish a new frontier to his limits.

Murray was as much demoralized as he was physically exhausted. This is a great lesson, by the way, as it usually is a combination of things that contribute to a win or a loss. But I am a big advocate of demoralizing your opponent by making him beat himself. I would much rather watch him hang himself or kill him with death by a thousand cuts. These are just my personal preferences. As Pacino put it in "Scarface" with his guttural Cuban accent..."I kill a commie for fun, but for a green card I'm gonna to carve him up real nice".

Break down your opponent emotionally as well as psychologically and physically. When you hit repeated winners by your opponent he can rationalize that you are just too good but if you make him beat himself with his own mistakes you truly defeat him. It is by far the worst way to make him go home...making him wish that his mother had never had him.

Andy probably felt quite disgusted with himself that he did not go home with the Shanghai championship trophy. He had it in his grasp, he was already rehearsing his victory speech in his head, but Djokovic yanked it out of his clutches and sent him home whining and with his tail between his legs. Djokovic not only took Murray's legs out from under him...he also broke his heart.

But you must also consider this sequence of events from the Djokovic point of view. He now has expanded upon his limits yet again and he knows in his heart that he is never out of a match until the last point has been played. I suppose that makes him some combination of a "Zen Master and a Warrior". Yeah...why not both?

*Stotty makes some interesting observations about the McEnroe vs. Borg rivalry in post #12 for those interested in more psychological warfare. It's amazing how apropos Joey's article is for the final at Shanghai...from both sides of the fence.

[GeoffWilliams]

The reason why Djoker is the best match point down player is: He is a master of the grind or the blast game under pressure. He is a serving master. He is an attacking return master. He is good at the net and knows how to approach. He can hit the lines under pressure. Now, who else can do that? Only the top guys are close.

To master the lull game, the jam game, and the finish game under pressure, you have to be able to master whole different sides of your personality.

There is the urge to win the point. The urge to hit hard. The urge to stop making mistakes. The urge to combat any psych going on. The urge to control the shots. The urge to control emotions. Etc. Lots going on at once. Those who play best don't think too much. They don't have to. It's already automatic.