Marcus was losing.

Not because his opponent was better.

Not because of the wind.

Not because of the balls.

Marcus was losing because he stopped asking the only question that matters during a match and while under pressure.

What do I do about this?

Four players. Four exits.

The Blamer redirects energy into building a case. Zero effort goes toward finding a solution. The match is already lost — the scoreboard just hasn't caught up yet.

The Sulker scans the sideline. Looking for someone to witness the suffering. Validation is the goal now. Winning has quietly stepped aside.

The Anger Merchant ignites. Racket swing. Muttered frustration. By the next point, they're competing against two opponents — the one across the net, and the fury inside them. Anger feels intense. It isn't focus.

The Resigner does nothing dramatic. Just… accepts. Still hitting shots. Still on court. But the result has already been written in their head. What follows is a performance of inevitability.

Here's what all four have in common.

The moment the match became a problem, they stopped trying to solve it.

Different personalities. Different emotional signatures. Same outcome.

They redirected — into blame, into comfort-seeking, into anger, into acceptance — and the redirection cost them far more than the original problem ever did.

Tennis is chaos management.

Every match is a puzzle. Heavy topspin. Gusty crosswind. A slow surface. A scoreline that suddenly feels impossible.

The players who compete — really compete — look at those puzzles and ask what do I do about this?

The tennis court is brutally indifferent to how you feel. The only response it rewards is action

No technique session develops this skill. You cannot drill your way into a problem-solving mindset. You can only build it by requiring players to practise it.

Variable conditions. Unpredictable situations. Deliberate discomfort. Then the question —What do you notice? What will you change?

The protocol your players are missing.

Every player has a behaviour pattern. Most don't know which one.

The work is to help your players recognise their pattern; then redirect it.

Okay. Now what's your solution?

That's the question. In practice. In matches. In the moments when everything is going wrong and your player is about to mentally leave the building.

One question. The only question.

What's my best option on the next point?

The gap between practice and competition isn't physical.

It's this.

My latest blog articles give you ways to train your players to respond better-to problem solve.

​Read the blog ‘Why problem solving is the most…’​

Until next time,
​Paul D.