What I Learned To Lose As A Tennis Player

I’ve played tennis since I was 7 years old, not by choice but out convenience. Being dragged to the courts was a daily childhood occurrence. Hitting backhands and forehands my dad would stand behind me. I would rarely see him, only hear him, yelling. “Hit harder. Hit Harder. More topspin. Not in the net. Never in the net.” Nothing made him more upset than hitting the ball in the net. Hitting it long he tolerated, hitting it wide he disliked, but there was nothing he hated more than hitting it in the net. I hate tennis, hate it with everything inside me, and still I keep playing, keep hitting all morning, and all afternoon, because I have no choice. No matter how much I want to stop, I don’t. This contradiction between what I want to do and

I started playing tennis when I was about 12, not knowing much about the sport or how it would affect me. However, Tennis taught me how to succeed in everything else. Tennis forces me to accept responsibility for my actions and manage my mistakes. Tennis forces me to cope with pressure and adversity. I am forced to make thousands of crucial decisions in a small amount of time. Through high school varsity, I learned sportsmanship and the meaning of teamwork. Through coaching tennis over the summer, I have learned to advertise my skills and how to communicate better with kids and adults. I have enhanced my discipline, developed a work ethic and learned to compete.

I chose this particular memoir because tennis has become a major part of me. I started to play tennis when I was a freshman. Still remember the feeling of entering a tennis court through the revolving gate, a feeling of trying something new. When I first play, my coach always told me that tennis is such a mental game. To be honest, I wasn't that good when I first started. I have lack of solid swings, there’s time where I’m not even fast enough to hit the ball back, and I twist my ankles quite often. Then I realize that in tennis, I would have to be controlled, consistent, and know where to  place myself on the court. These three concepts that I learned instantly improved my skills in tennis. Speaking of how this experience shaped me, I

“Oh no, please don’t tell me this is happening. Mom, can I just skip this tournament?” I pleaded, “There is absolutely no hope for me.” Being the dramatic person I am, I lamented the imminent end of my tennis career. I went into the tournament with an expectation of failure. I started the match by accidentally whacking the ball over the fence, tripping on my own feet rushing to end the point. The little confidence I had when going into the match dissipated within a few minutes. I continued the match pondering how to angle my racket to put spin on the ball. Every time I failed, I blamed it on the high skill level of my opponent. Unsurprisingly, I lost in an hour. When looking back on that match, I realized that it could have gone differently had I not brought myself down before. My lack of

All eventually-successful tennis players know the difference between a good and a bad loss. Each year, they set the ludicrous goal of beating a seemingly infinite number of equally determined people. They aren’t looking for opportunities to win, they are looking for the select few people who can beat them. Resist as they may, at some point, a more experienced player will get the better of them. Faced with this inevitable failure, they do what any successful person would, they learn. A loss reveals more about the chinks in a warrior’s chainmail and the stutters in a programmer’s code than a win could ever

The most significant challenge I’ve faced is making tennis a serious sport. It was here in Desert Hot Springs High School, we won one match, every team considered us an “easy win.” We didn’t have as many followers as basketball, football, and soccer. We weren’t much of a team to the school, although we were just as athletic--statistics even show that we run more than football and basketball. Next season comes, we get a new coach, Hannah Erickson. We were struggling already, having the minimum for the starting team before she arrived, and it was her first year coaching. The returners from last year decided to scout friends to join tennis. Greatness began there because we wanted to prove everyone wrong.

Losses invites a change of strategies, and in the process of recovering from a loss, you learn how to avoid the mistake you have done in the future. For example, in baseball,

“Life is like tennis, no matter how many times you try, if you keep doing the same mistake and don’t practice to get it right – you will never get better,” women’s tennis graduate assistant Zorica Djuric said. “That’s what we try to teach our players – try to get better every

“I think you’re a really good player, but I think you would be a better fit for varsity reserve this year.” “Is he serious? This can’t be real’ he’s joking.” He was not. I had just been cut from varsity tennis. Having played tennis since I was five and competed at two singles on varsity my freshman year, I had just assumed I would easily make varsity at my new school as a sophomore. However, I certainly paid the price for my hubris. I briefly considered quitting altogether, embarrassed. Taking time to reconsider my choices, I realized the importance of settling for varsity reserve. Taking it as a challenge, I evaluated my own game to determine the weaknesses which led to my being cut. Next year I would make the team.

When I found myself in a different area of life was when becoming emotional over petty things began to go away. Choosing to pursuing tennis taught me the value of discipline and hardwork. Like Gandhi because I learned how to fight for what I believe in I continue to exceed the average (141). Tennis is a game of mentality. On the court you have no one but yourself to blame for your mistakes. I know that it is my choice to make sacrifices in order to succeed. Instead of staying out late with my friends on weekends I decide to take care of my body and sleep. Instead of going to several camps in the summer, I choose to practice. Instead arguing with my coach I am open to corrections (429). And when it comes time to play, when people are watching

There is many lessons to learn in the game of tennis, some of which are small and others are big. I have learned plenty of lessons throughout my tennis life, and have much more to grasp and understand. Through all the lessons I have learned one sticks out to me. That lesson was that character matters. This to me is such a big part of the game of tennis. Without good character, whether it's you or your opponent, the game just becomes less fun. I started out playing tennis as a little seven year old girl not knowing how to even hold a racquet at Mcadams Tennis Park, but looking back at that time I remember always seeing smiles. One of my tennis coaches Alex Lee was so helpful he taught me how to first hit a ball, but other than tennis technic

I stay positive, even when facing challenges. I have been playing tennis for seven years, and I have almost always played people better than me, like my sister Annabel. At practices and tournaments, despite hard effort, sometimes I am not in the right condition, and I keep making unforced errors. Instead of getting frustrated, like most others do, I try my best to stay positive and laugh it off, which in turn makes me more confident, and makes my opponent nervous. Tennis is like life; you're not always going to win. When I fall behind, I will stay optimistic and keep on trying.

I soon came to realize tennis was more than just a swing and hit. Swinging the netted racket relentlessly and smashing the ball left and right was not the goal of tennis. Learning how to control yourself and learning your own playing style was a step in advancing to a higher stage in performance. Adapting to different situations was key. An adaptation with a will to experiment swings and hits created a player, created a man. Was learning how to control myself first on my agenda, not at all, but overtime precision, control, and practice was focused on and adapted on the tennis court and high school

I started playing tennis since I was in elementary school and I have been playing competitively in high school in my schools’ teams. Playing tennis has not only benefited me in term of fitness and health, but it has also taught and allows me to develop my interpersonal skills. Some of the valuable skills I’ve acquired are responsibility, non-verbal communication, and problem-solving.

I was taught from a fellow friend who plays - “you never want to plant your feet on the ground, try to use the balls of your heel with your knees bent.” Tennis, also has a mental and psychological aspect to the fundamentals. Instructor Veeder, as you mentioned in class, I remember you gave a talk about being decisive with your movements which would lead to what should be done before the point starts in order to commit to a shot. You also mentioned that a player should be using their own strength to exploit an opponent’s weakness as much as you possibly can. Also, you should be minimizing your exposure of you own weakness to avoid playing against your opponents strengths. All in all, tennis is frustrating and I learned a lot throughout the course and had my fair share of fun with the class, learning something every week and also getting to meet and play with different