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Petr Korbel: Setting Your Mind for Success
Regardless of the level, every player shares a single objective: to deliver their peak performance and overcome the opponent.
Petr Korbel: Setting Your Mind for Success
To perform at your full potential, or at least come close to it, you need good technique, fitness, and tactics—but above all, you need a clear mind. I call this "setting your head." It’s about organizing your thoughts and reflecting on the upcoming match and your opponent. But most importantly, it’s about not letting your head get clogged with thoughts that will negatively impact your performance.
It could be a single negative thought that keeps creeping into your mind, looping over and over. Or it could be a tangle of several overlapping thoughts, where your inner self fights a battle tougher than the one against the opponent across the table. If your head isn't working, it will always affect your performance, even if you are physically well-prepared.
I have selected the five most common negative thoughts that you must get out of your head:
1. "It’s just not my day."
Whether you had a bad night's sleep or you’re out of sorts after an argument with a spouse or a mother-in-law, you must realize that this is only about you and your inner feeling. How to fix it? Try to imagine that on the other side of the table stands an opponent who might feel even worse than you do.
2. "I never play well in this hall."
You know the feeling—when you’re winning, nothing rattles you. But as soon as things go south, everything starts to bother you: the lighting is bad, the floor is slippery, the balls are lopsided and don't bounce, the teammates are cheering too much or too little, the opponent is lucky, and so on. Try to take three deep breaths, calm down, and distance yourself from these external influences.
3. "What will people think of me if I lose?"
Anxiety over the result is the most common negative thought among athletes. The fear of defeat is the worst thing that can happen to any sportsman—and it happens to everyone at some point. The only solution is to get used to it, learn to live and play with it, and try to push that thought away. How? Ask yourself: "What is the worst thing that can happen if I lose?" It’s not a matter of life and death. My friends and teammates won't stop liking me. I won't lose my job or my livelihood. It's important to keep a perspective on table tennis and admit that it is just a sport.
4. "If I miss this easy shot, I can't win..."
During a match, you might hit a slump and miss an easy ball. In that moment, something snaps inside, and you think: "I can't win this match!" My advice? Never let your opponent break you. Tell yourself it was just one point in the match, and it’s already behind us. There’s nothing I can do about it now. It is the past, and I cannot change it. We can learn from it, change our tactics or technique, but it must not negatively affect our future performance or the course of the match.
The ideal example of an athlete who never gives up is Rafael Nadal. He fights at every score and for every single point. He gives his opponent nothing for free. That is why he is so hard to beat—because you know you have to overpower a player like that yourself.
5. "I always struggle against this player; I can't beat them..."
This thought is usually triggered by a poor head-to-head record against a specific opponent, or perhaps their style or rubber combination doesn't suit you. How to handle it? It’s important to make a few notes after a loss to someone you struggle with. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What serves do they use? How do they return my serve? In fact, it’s good to keep such statistics on all players so that even an opponent you usually beat doesn't surprise you with something new next time. If you have a negative record against someone, you need to set your mind to the fact that it doesn't matter and that today is my turn to win. I always found extra motivation in "repaying" the opponent with interest. No one is invincible, and everyone can have an "off day."
Never go to the table discouraged and defeated in advance. As Bohumil Váňa once said: "Only that match is lost which is lost in our mind."
Wishing you many victories,
Petr Korbel
