The Match Always Exposes the Practice

For years, I thought players struggled in matches because of pressure. Now I think something else is often happening. The match simply exposes what practice never prepared them for. Clay court season makes this incredibly obvious. Longer rallies.More uncertainty.More movement problems.More decisions. Players can no longer rely on rehearsed patterns. And suddenly coaches say: “Why can’t they do it in matches?” “They do it perfectly in practice.” “They just need confidence.” But confidence is...