Tennis

Winning the Mental Match

By: Allen Fox

Narrated by: Richard Petherbridge

This is a book about the mental aspects of tennis.

Tennis is more difficult mentally than most other sports. It feels more important than it is, has a diabolical scoring system, drawn out competitive matches are highly stressful, and losing can be very painful. During competition emotions get out of hand, fears and nerves are hard to control, and confidence comes and goes. This book attacks these and other issues faced by players of all levels. Dr. Allen Fox’s solutions are logical and straightforward and, most importantly, they have been tested on the court and they work.

About the author:

Allen Fox, PhD won the NCAA singles while earning his BA in physics and was named All-UCLA and All-University of California Athlete of the Year. He remained at UCLA to earn a PhD in psychology, and as a graduate student was a three-time member of the US Davis Cup team, reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals, and won titles including the US National Hardcourts, Canadian Nationals, and Cincinnati.

Dr. Fox coached the Pepperdine University teams to top-five NCAA rankings for 10 consecutive years. He presently coaches Igor Kunitsyn (career high of number 35) on the ATP tour and has consulted on strategic/psychological issues with players of all levels, including pros Dinara Safina, Sam Querrey, and Dimitri Tursunov, elite juniors, and recreational players. He is on the staff of the Weil Tennis Academy in Ojai, California.

Other books, writings, and speaking by Dr. Allen Fox:

Allen Fox has authored two other books on tennis, If I’m the Better Player, Why Can’t I Win? and Think to Win, and a book on generalized achievement, The Winner's Mind (USRSA, 2005). He is an editor of Tennis Magazine and is a sought-after public speaker, having appeared at the national conferences of the USTA, USPTA, and PTR, and on the Tennis Channel with his popular One-Minute Clinics on psychology.

©2013 Allen Fox (P)2022 Tryana Audio Books

Critic reviews

"Allen describes problems that are real for players of all levels. His solutions are simple, honest, and most importantly, useful." (Jose Higueras, director of coaching for the USTA)

"I have long respected Allen Fox's ideas and sound judgment. His unique and insightful book on the mental game is simple, practical, and will certainly help you play better." (Tracy Austin, two-time US Open winner and former world number one)

"Allen is one of the most widely-respected people in the country on the mental game. I have worked alongside him at elite USTA junior training camps, and his ideas are straightforward and practical. I highly recommend his book to players of all levels." (Jay Berger, USTA head of men's tennis and former world number seven)

Tennis

I didn’t get as much out of this book as I did from the Inner Game. However, it might resonate for others.

Meh…good, not great

In the compendium of tennis related book, this one is pretty mediocre. There are a few scattered pearls but overall the book is meandering and lacks a clear thesis. I also left the book feeling more fatigued and annoyed about playing tennis, rather than having a sense of joy. Yes, tennis is a stressful game - but the author emphasizes that point to a degree that it makes me question if it is even worth playing.