The question of changing a losing game is a very serious thing.It is hard to say just when you are really beaten.If you feel you are playing well yet have lost the first set about 6-3 or 6-4, with the loss of only one service, you should not change.Your game is not really a losing game.It is simply a case of one break of service, and might well win the next set.If, however, you have dropped the first set in a 2 out of 3 match with but one or two games, now you are outclassed and should try something else.
Take chances when you are behind, never when ahead.Risks are only worth while when you have everything to win and nothing to lose.It may spell victory, and at least will not hasten defeat.Above all, never lose your nerve or confidence in a match.By so doing you have handed youropponent about two points a game--a rather hard handicap to beat at your best.
Never let your opponent know you are worried.Never show fatigue or pain if it is possible to avoid, since it will only give him confidence.Remember that he feels just as bad as you, and any sign of weakening on your part encourages him to go on.In other words, keep your teeth always in the match.
Don't worry.Don't fuss.Luck evens up in the long run, and to worry only upsets your own game without affecting your opponent.A smile wins a lot of points because it gives the impression of confidence on your part that shakes that of the other man.Fight all the time.The harder the strain the harder you should fight, but do it easily, happily, and enjoy it.
Match play, where both men are in the same class as tennis players, resolves itself into a battle of wits and nerve.The man who uses the first and retains the second is the ultimate victor.
I do not believe in a man who expects to go through a long tournament, going "all out" for every match.Conserve your strength and your finesse for the times you need them, and win your other matches decisively, but not destructively.Why should a great star discourage and dishearten a player several classes below him by crushing him, as he no doubt could? A few games a set, well earned, would be a big factor in encouraging that rising player to play in tournaments, while it would in no way injure the reputation of the star.
Never hurry your opponent by serving before he is fully set to receive.This is a favourite trick of a few unscrupulous players, yet is really an unfair advantage.Do your hurrying after the ball is in play, by running him to unexpected places in the court.Should anyone attempt to work the hurried service on you, after several attempts, proving it is intentional, let the ball go by and say "not ready." The server will shortly realize that you will take your time regardless of him, and he will slow up.
I do not advocate stalling--nothing is worse.It is a breach of ethics that is wholly uncalled for.Play the game naturally, and give your opponent full courtesy in all matters.If you do, you will receive it in return.
Take every advantage of any and every weakness in your opponent'sgame; but never trespass on his rights as regards external advantages.
Personally I do not believe in "defaulting" a match.To "scratch" or "retire," as the term goes, is to cheat your opponent of his just triumph, and you should never do this unless it is absolutely impossible to avoid.Sickness or some equally important reason should be the sole cause of scratching, for you owe the tournament your presence once your entry is in.
Match play should stimulate a player.He should produce his best under the excitement of competition.Learn your shots in practice, but use them in matches.
Practice is played with the racquet, matches are won by the mind.J.C.Parke is a great match player, because he is not only a great player but a great student of men.He sizes up his opponent, and seizes every opening and turns it to his own account.Norman E.Brookes is the greatest match player the world has ever known, because he is ever ready to change his plan to meet the strategy of his opponent, and has both the variety of stroke and versatility of intellect to outguess the other the majority of times.Brookes is the greatest court general, and, in my opinion, the finest tennis intellect in the world.His mind is never so keen and he is never so dangerous as when he is trailing in an important match.He typifies all that is great in mental match tennis.
A great star is always at his best in a match, as it stimulates his mental and physical faculties to the utmost.
