3 of the Best Ways to Improve Your Confidence on the Court
It's the first time you are playing pickleball and you don't feel confident on the court because you've never played a sport. You arrive at the courts and a group of better players need a fourth so they can have a game. You agree to play but don't feel very confident and it shows in your play. You are playing in a game with your friends and you cannot seem to get a third shot drop over the net. Your confidence plummets and you spend the rest of the match unsure about your game. I believe most pickleball players have times when they are not confident on the court. So what can you do when you feel unsure about your game and want to get back your confidence?
The first thing is don't beat yourself up if your lack of confidence is impacting your game.
Athletes can say negative things to themselves when they are not playing well. Rather than berating yourself for making a mistake, you really need to change the language of your self talk. Be positive and tell yourself you can do it. You can hit that third shot drop over the net and in the kitchen so it doesn't give your opponent an offensive opportunity. Using positive affirmations on and off the court will help your game as you rid yourself of negative self-talk.
Another method for improving your confidence on the court is to use visualization.
If you hit an overhead out of the court immediately picture yourself successfully hitting this shot as you walk back to serve or return. It just takes a couple of seconds and it reminds you of your past success in hitting this shot so there is no reason you cannot get the ball in the next time.
One other thing I will do if I am not feeling confident about my game is to play with a different group of people who may not be quite as good as my normal opponents.
I get a chance to practice a third shot drop without worrying so much about how I hit it since there is less chance my opponent will be offensive. Then once I feel confident in my third shot again, I can go back with the higher level players and know I can execute on the shot.
