Tennis or Mind Game?

For those of you who watched the Nadal vs Federer men's final at the Australian Open last night......what a game. There were ups and downs for both players from the start of the match, with 2 broken serves. We saw some amazing tennis, and both players proved to all who were watching that they really are the best 2 players in the world at the minute.

When it got to the tie break in the third set, the score stood at 1 set all, 6 games all 3 tie-break points all. I asked myself who would win this ferocious battle? Who had the better shots, who was fitter....who could handle the pressure.

That's the real key. Who believed in themselves and would not give up, no matter what their opposition threw at them? Our mind has an amazing ability to absolutely support us in our pursuit for our goals, and also hold us back if we let self doubt start to take its hold. This "defense mechanism" was critical in the evolution of humans so that we didn't injure ourselves by over believing in our abilities (such as our ability to fly!) Being aware of this, whilst striving for your goals is critical. You are the only one who has control over your thoughts and therefore you can determine whether you are going to dig in and overcome ANY obstacles, or simply give up if it gets too hard.

In the end Nadal proved to be the man. Despite his exhaustion following a 5 hour 14 minute semi final less than 48hours earlier, Nadal flung himself around the court and to Federer's frustration refused to give up. Nadal has an enviable ability to focus and do what was required, especially during pressure points. He overcame ALL the obstacles that got in his way, so that he could reach his goal of being the first Spaniard to take the Australian Open title.

Unfortunately for Federer the break of serve in the 5th set was too much, he lost his believe in himself and it was game over from there. Double faults and unforced errors followed. This is a perfect example of the internal sabotage that can happen if we allow self doubt to take control.

Will you allow self doubt to control you or will you overcome your obstacles so that you can be the champion of your game?

I think it will be the latter......