Hey Tennis Freaks!
Roland Garros is well into week two and the draw is a graveyard of big names.
Sinner cramped out. Seeds are falling. The clay is taking everyone down eventually.
The players still standing are not always the ones playing their best tennis. They are the ones who know how to win when they are not.
That is the whole theme this week.
Let's get into it.
🧠 R — REP
Watch the matches at Roland Garros closely this week and you will notice something.
The players winning ugly all have one thing in common. They know exactly what they are doing before they walk on court. They have a plan. And when the legs go heavy and the shots stop coming, they fall back on that plan.
Sinner had no plan for cramps. Nobody does. But the players who go deep at a Grand Slam in week two are not improvising. They have thought about every opponent. They know the patterns. They know what to do when it gets hard.
That is not talent. That is preparation.
🎯 A — ADJUSTMENT
I have had matches where I walked on court feeling like I had nothing. Legs heavy. Timing off. Every shot just a little late.
The matches I won on those days were not because I suddenly found my game. They were because I had a plan that did not require me to be at my best.
Hit to the backhand. Move them wide. Keep the ball deep. Make them beat me.
Simple. Boring. Effective.
The problem for most club players is they do not have that plan before they walk on court. They just show up and react. When they are playing well, it works. When they are not, they have nothing to fall back on.
🎾 L — LESSON
Winning ugly is a skill.
Most players think the goal is to play well. The real goal is to win. Those are not always the same thing.
The best competitors in the world have bad days. What separates them is they have a system for those days. A way to stay in the match, grind out the points, and give themselves a chance when the good stuff is not there.
Build that system before you need it. Not during a match when you are already struggling.
Preparation is what you fall back on when everything else fails.
THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT ACE IS FOR
Get a game plan before your next match, even on your worst day.
Tell Ace who you are playing and what their game looks like. Ace gives you a specific tactical plan in about 30 seconds — what patterns to use, what to avoid, how to win points when you are not at your best. Most club players have never had this before a match. Now you can.
If you have already tried Ace and run out of free sessions, this is the week to upgrade. $9/month gives you unlimited game plans, drill plans, and coaching between sessions. More coaching hours than a single private lesson.
📸 L — LIFE
The tournament video is out.
New racquet. Ace prep. The full story from the weekend. What worked, what didn't, and what's next.
If you are not subscribed to the MPTennis YouTube yet, this is a good one to start with.
👉 Y — YOUR MOVE
Before your next match, spend five minutes building a plan.
What does your opponent not like? What are you going to do in the first four games? What is your reset when things go sideways?
Write it down. Say it out loud. Walk on court knowing what you are doing.
The players still standing at Roland Garros this week are not the most talented ones left in the draw.
They are the most prepared for these conditions.
Be that player.
See ya next Friday,
Cade & Chris
Thank you to our sponsor who keeps this newsletter free to the reader:
Premier racquet stringers, official stringers at the National Bank Open. Your go-to online tennis store for top gear in tennis, badminton, table tennis, squash, and pickleball. Use "MPTENNIS10" for 10% off.
