We try harder. Smarter.
My personal ‘take’ on why Andy Murray has given hope, inspiration and training on what it takes
to go from number 2, perennial runner up to being NUMBER ONE in the world.
What’s the difference between world class talent and champion?
First of all let me say, as I say all the time, we have NO IDEA how truly great these people are.
Recently the Army Number 1, himself a truly stupendous tennis player played the world’s 959th
ranked player. World class. A South African as it happens. He had just come home because he
couldn’t scratch a living on the tour. The Army number one lost 6-0 6-1.
And so this scoreline get’s repeated time, and time and time …..and time again as tennis players
ascend the ladder to the top, one huge leap in winning effectiveness at a time (not incremental)
until they get to top 50, top 20, top 10, top 4 and then top 1.
My brain can’t even comprehend how effective these guys must be.
So Andy Murray has been world class for a long, long time.
Recently he won Wimbledon (again), The Olympics (again), The Davis Cup (a breakthrough, first
time), a multitude of ATP Masters 1000 ..and now ATP world number 1.
Years of so called ‘failure’. Losing Grand Slams in semi’s and finals.
In total in his life, Murray has spent 76 weeks (seventy six weeks!) at number two.
After 76 weeks as number 2 (that’s what ‘normal’ feels like), how do you make a
breakthrough to number 1?
So, not blessed with insider knowledge, what lessons can be applied to our Big Point Player
community.
Firstly, Andy had a goal. A big, juicy, compelling goal. It’s the fastest and most enduring way to
get somewhere. Achieve something. No goal. No direction. No purpose.
Want to know what your tennis future might be (apart from trying to flatten the downward spiral)
well look behind you…the last one, five, ten years.
From this goal he could then create a plan and a team to work the plan.
No goal means No plan hence No team then the almost probably result is No result.
The plan was multi-faceted including physical and mental fitness. The latter didn’t kick on until he
contracted Ivan Lendl. Just imagine bottling the genius of Ivan Lendl and distilling the ‘how to
guide’ of winning under pressure at critical moments, into a modular format so anyone at any age,
level or sex could learn the ‘secrets’
(delete Ivan Lendl and insert SAS, Top Gun Fighter pilots and extreme sports athletes, and you
have Big Point Player breakthrough)
Allowing for Djokovic mysterious slight drop in form, how has Andy improved his winning
effectiveness?
My ‘guess’ is the following.
Play better vs win better
Even allowing for the improvement in some shots notably the second serve particularly from the
‘ad’ court it’s got little to do with play ‘better’.
Simple. He wins more of the big points.
How has he trained, bringing layers of training together, so he wins an extra handful of points
each match? Turn a 50/50 into a 55/45.
Or how to hold points when looking down the barrel of defeat? Or kill off an opponent at the first
time of asking?
It’s all about the moment.
How does he win these?
The answer lies in the second coming of Lendl. And even in Lendl’s absence from courtside, with
the very capable Jamie Delgado, Murray still performs as though Lendl is still there.
Gone are the histrionics. The highs and lows of extreme emotion. In it’s place calmness, certainty,
BELIEF.
In the past Andy would have said to himself, this ‘emotion’ is who I am, it gives me energy, makes
me angry, I can fight to the best of my ability.
Lendl (like BPP honorary advisor, SIFU Matthew) would have counseled otherwise.
The emotions do you a disservice on three fronts.
Firstly, it gives your opponent leverage. They can see you are wounded. Hurt. Does a boxer ever
shout in pain when punched? Ouch you’ve hurt me. So unfair!
Secondly, even more importantly, the internal story is one of striving. Struggling against all odds.
Heroic. That’s the language of number 2.
At the highest level, that’s not the story of winners that know themselves as winners. That’s not
the internal dialogue of winners that EXPECT themselves to win. That back themselves, whatever
the odds.
That’s how the SAS are trained even under conditions of Mission certain death.
Again, as SIFU Matthew (Kung Fu master) says, winning or losing is like having a cup of tea.
Dispassionate. Relaxed. Playing with freedom. Focus on process not outcome.
What are the mental, tactical and physical processes?
The greats like Usain Bolt, SAS, Top Gun fighter pilots behave this way.
Thirdly, it takes something to be number one. It can be uncomfortable. Highly visible at the top.
The one everybody now wants to take a shot at. People can fear success as much as failure.
You can hide with failure. There’s no hiding place with being number one.
Murray now seems comfortable wearing the yellow jersey.
Still and calm under pressure at critical moments.
Believes he can win. Expects to win.
Wins.
Not only does Murray try harder. That requires time, effort and pain.
In addition, he now tries smarter. Quick. Elegant. No pain.
Winning at big points is a choice not chance.
CHOOSE.
Ps: I believe Murray will be at number one for a while yet. This isn’t a one week wonder.
