Tennis IQ Podcast

In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss the 2022 US Open. Iga Świątek defeated Ons Jabeur 6-2, 7-6(5) to win the women's singles championship while Carlos Alcaraz defeated Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-3 to win the men's singles championship. The co-hosts reviewed various sport psychology themes and talked about how the finalists and champions exhibited certain mental qualities that helped them achieve success in the 2022 US Open.

Iga Świątek post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=179904

Ons Jabeur post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=179905

Carlos Alcaraz post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=180065

Casper Ruud post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=180064

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

For this milestone episode, Brian and Josh answered various questions from listeners of the podcast and shared feedback from listeners in different parts of the world and tennis community. Additionally, they reflected on the origins of the Tennis IQ Podcast, discussed what it means to reach the 100th episode of the podcast, and talked about how athletes can move on and continue to grow after reaching and celebrating their milestones. Lastly, they introduced a program where listeners can help to support the podcast through a new Patreon page (link below).  

Tennis IQ Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/tennisiqpodcast/membership 

Timestamps from the episode: 

Question from Charlie Ferber about the increased prevalence of sport psychology over the past decades, and growing interest in tennis players pursuing mental training - 6:35

Question from John Kelly about how to continue to grow as a tennis player and develop your game regardless of your age - 16:51

Questions from Steve Gulla about how to avoid playing it too safe, and about how to change to a new surface successfully - 24:50

Questions from Racquel Montemayor about how to play your game when your opponent isn't giving you rhythm, and best practices to handle the most frustrating moments of a match - 40:25

Feedback from Joav Burger - 53:29

Feedback from Barbara Cilli - 55:23

Feedback from John Wilcox - 55:58

Feedback and suggestion from Ian Richmond - 57:13

Announcement about new listener support program through Patreon - 1:01:51 

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

Dr. Natalie Durand-Bush is a sport psychology professor in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa. She specializes in mental skills training and assessment, mental health, and coaching psychology. As a Mental Performance Consultant for the past 27 years, Natalie has helped athletes and coaches of all ages, sports, and levels achieve their performance and well-being goals. A relentless advocate for the field of sport psychology, she has co-founded and chaired the Canadian Sport Psychology Association. She has also served as the Vice-President of the International Society of Sport Psychology and as the President of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology. Natalie has always been physically active and played different sports throughout her life, favoring softball, curling, and martial arts. As the mom of a daughter living with a mental illness and as someone who has coped with the loss of her parents and husband to cancer, she knows firsthand the importance of mental health and the positive role that sport plays in the maintenance of well-being.

In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss taking a strengths-based approach to tennis. This episode was inspired by a paper titled “The Strengths-Based Performance Profile (SBPP): A Method for Strengths-Spotting and Application in Single-Session Consultations with Athletes” (link below). The co-hosts review the importance of having a clear understanding of one’s strengths and weaknesses as a starting point for adopting this perspective. Additionally, they discuss how tennis players can base their game around their strengths and win matches despite weaknesses or perceived weaknesses in their game.

The Strengths-Based Performance Profile (SBPP): A Method for Strengths-Spotting and Application in Single-Session Consultations with Athletes -

Universal Tennis Rating, more commonly known as UTR, has become ubiquitous in tennis over the last several years, and it has been especially prominent in the world of college tennis. In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss how aspiring college tennis players can handle UTR and the pressures that come along with it. The co-hosts review the challenges of expectations and pressure that can increase when tennis players are overly focused on results including rankings and UTR ratings. They also consider mindsets and perspectives, such as focusing on the improvement process and on controllable factors that will help an athlete perform at their best (rather than solely focusing on results), which can be helpful in overcoming the pressure of feeling like you have to constantly improve your UTR.

Resources:

Universal Tennis: Understanding The Algorithm - Complete Summary - https://support.universaltennis.com/en/support/solutions/articles/9000151830-understanding-the-algorithm-complete-summary

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

In this episode, Brian and Josh reflect on a quote by golf legend Jack Nicklaus: “The worse you’re performing, the more you must work mentally and emotionally. The greatest and toughest art in golf is ‘playing badly well.’ All the true greats have been masters at it.”  

The co-hosts discuss how this applies to all tennis players who will inevitably, at some point or another, have days when they are playing badly. Utilizing mental skills on the days when tennis players aren’t playing well is often the difference between a player giving themselves a chance to be successful, and not fully engaging or tanking.

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

In this episode Brian and Josh discuss how to handle playing an injured opponent. The co-hosts review various mental challenges related to playing an injured opponent including how to handle injury time-outs, how opponent injuries can cause a loss of rhythm, and how to handle distractions that injuries can present. Additionally, they consider how utilizing mental skills like self-talk, visualization, breathing techniques, and routines can give tennis players a better chance to handle the situation in an effective way.

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss how to integrate mental skills into practice. A number of strategies are covered that players and coaches can utilize in order to practice in a deliberate way and best prepare for matches. The co-hosts reviewed specific games and drills that can be used to enhance mental skills such as focus, hitting targets on the court, and building in-between point routines. Additionally, they discussed the type of mindset that is needed in order to get the most out of practice.

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

Howard Bryant is an award winning author and journalist who has been a senior writer for ESPN since 2007. Although he writes about a number of sports and topics within sport, he is an astute observer of tennis and he always brings a unique perspective with his analysis of matches and issues within the game. Howard also plays tennis and therefore has first-hand knowledge of how difficult the sport is mentally. As a professional observer of sport, he is uniquely qualified to discuss the mental and emotional challenges that tennis players face.  

For more information about Howard’s background: https://howardbryantbooks.com/about  

Howard’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/hbryant42  

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. Elena Rybakina defeated Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 to win the women's singles championship while Novak Djokovic defeated Nick Kyrgios 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3) to win the men's singles championship. The co-hosts reviewed various sport psychology themes and talked about how the finalists and champions exhibited certain mental qualities that helped them achieve success in the 2022 Wimbledon Championships.  

Ons Jabeur post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=178051  

Elena Rybakina post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=178050  

Nick Kyrgios post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=178045  

Novak Djokovic post-final press conference transcript: http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=178042  

To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com. If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis, email us at [email protected] or use the hashtag #tennisIQ on Twitter. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.