March 2002 -- Question: In my opinion, it seems that today’s players do not have as much fun as they used to a couple of decades ago. First, is it really important to have fun in the heat of competition and, secondly, what role does humor play in competition or for the athlete?
Answer: I don’t believe I am the person to say whether today’s players do or do not have as much fun as players of yesteryear. Having said that, however, let’s first define fun so we begin on the same page together. I would describe fun in tennis as true enjoyment of the game or the situation one is in during the match. It is not necessarily all out laughter (although it could be in some circumstances), but it definitely involves feelings of enjoyment, fulfillment, challenge and gratification.
Fun comes in many different forms. We have all seen a big name player break into a big smile in various situations. Gustavo Kuerton is a great example of an athlete who, in most cases, has a lot of fun on the court. He will applaud his opponent’s great shots and he has the ability to laugh at himself. Players who learn how to have the most fun in the heat of competition are the ones who can usually access all of their talents and skills on demand. These are the pushers who are delighted that the rally is in its 24th ball strike, whereas the pusher’s opponent is often in dire straights because of the same fact. There are players who enjoy playing when it’s windy and often for the sole reason that they know their opponents hate playing in the wind. There are athletes who thrive on that early morning match (some of you are saying, “where are they?”), while others don’t want a start time before noon. And there are players who have no trouble laughing at themselves when they “mess up.” The key point to all this is that there are two basic responses an athlete can have to a stressful situation: challenge or threat. The challenged athlete will have a greater chance at enjoying “the moment” more than the threatened athlete.
The concept of fun can get complicated when you discuss athletes who hate to lose. How many coaches have said, “Show me an athlete who doesn’t mind losing and I will show you a good loser.” This is where a fine line comes into play. While I am saying that the ability to have fun is key to accessing all of your talent and skill, I am not saying you should accept losing just like that. You certainly can have high standards for yourself, but use losing a match to grow and improve for the next day.
When I refer to the ability to enjoy yourself, I am speaking about that certain “in the heat of the moment” time when things are tough and you are concentrating with all your might. Are you enjoying that moment? If you are, it is easy to laugh at situations and truly have fun. But, if you hate losing to the point that you hate everything else around you, it will be extremely difficult to enjoy the moment and the odds are against you being able to summon all of your talent and skill “at that moment.”
What do humor and laughter do for an athlete? It will lower heart rate, help you recover in stressful situations, energize you, and keep positive and negative hormones in check (you will want to fight more often than give in to flight). What a tremendous psychological state for an athlete – to have feelings of being energized, yet remain calm and relaxed. We call that the “ideal performance state” and it is more accessible when you enjoy the situation you find yourself in.
At this point, I am often asked how some athletes throughout the history of the game have definitely seemed to not have fun; in fact, they seemed to dislike greatly the situation they were in. Yet, these athletes (and there are very few of them by the way) hit an ace on the next serve and go on to win the match. First, I should say that athletes like this are very rare. For most of us, when our emotions are negative, so is our physiology. Heart rate goes up and we usually have little control over the physiological factors noted previously. Often, athletes who are able to play well in a “seemingly” negative state (I word it that way because it is possible they are having fun; you just can’t tell) have learned how to control their physiology. They may seem to get angry, but their physiology is totally in check. Now, again I must say the following statement because all of us have worked with players who say they play better when they get upset: Anyone who can be in a negative state and control his/her physiology is extremely unique.
The next time you recognize that one of your players is not having fun (because it is easy to tell once you know the person), ask him what is wrong? Often, students will not be able to tell you that anything has triggered the response. In other words, players will learn to have fun or not have fun on the court and the positive or negative attitude may just be how they learned. The key is that the ability to be challenged in tough situations, to enjoy the game and its various unique situations is a learned response. Yes, much can come from home, but a lot can also be learned directly on the court.
In summary, I have attempted to address a very complex topic in a small column. There is so much that has been done in this arena. I have not even tried to cover how important it is that a person have fun on the court in lessons, from the day they are a beginner all the way to tournament status. However, I encourage you to really look at your athletes when they are in the heat of battle and determine how much fun they are having. I believe it is yet another area where tennis can be the game for a lifetime.
Send questions to jgroppel@LGEPerformance.com.
