Junior tennis players who compete play a LOT of tennis.

They focus on the technical. They focus on strength and conditioning. They focus on the tactical.

My question for you today is this… how much time do they spend focusing on the hugely important mental side of the game?

How do you play at your best when it matters most?

How do you deal with a perceived injustice? Out? Are you sure?

How do you go again and again when things aren’t going your way?

How can you see a defeat as a learning opportunity rather than a disaster?

My hunch is that your player spends less time working on the mental side of the game than they do on the technical, tactical and physical sides. Ask them. See if I’m right.

I hope listening to today’s episode, and hearing the wisdom and approach of Nicole Discenza, might make you think about that. Maybe the mental side of the game will move up the priority list a little.

Nicole Discenza hails from Venezuela. She started playing tennis aged three and rose to a junior ranking of No.1 in her country. Nicole then moved to the States where she played D1 college tennis — an experience she describes as the best of her life.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Nicole realised her passion lay in the mental side of the game, and she has dedicated herself to helping junior players in this area ever since.

In today’s episode, we focus on why the mental side of tennis matters so much, what parents need to understand, and how they can help their players become mentally stronger.

I hope you enjoy listening to Nicole as much as I did.

If you’d like to find out more about Nicole’s approach please do take a look at her Instagram.

Music Credits

Earth by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden

Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0