I have always enjoyed sports and in recent times, with the mounting work associated with IB, I have begun to appreciate the need for physical activity even more, in order to maintain mental strength and physical agility. Focus is another aspect of sport that tends to be overlooked, even though it is universally essential . Mental strength is an aspect of sport that is often neglected; however, its significance is extensive. Strategising is crucial to the game, to play to your own strengths and to your opponents weakness. In a sport like tennis this is very much a priority, after all, the size of the court, the heaviness of the racquet and the speed of the game hints that even the fittest will eventually run out of stamina. Hence, playing around this, in order to maximise energy and points, and gain a morale boost that is thereof is crucial to the game, and is something I have been working on, in recent times.

Further more, I have been on skill development especially in terms of using top spin on groundstrokes using both the backhand and the forehand. I have also been learning table tennis since grade 4 and as a result, my technique in tennis sometimes resembles that of table tennis. Although the two sports are similar in certain ways, the size of the court (or table in the case in table tennis) is drastically different. The weight of the racquet and ball is also very different. This causes the ratio of spin and power that should be optimally used, to differ. Table tennis relies more on spin, even in the fastest shots – however, if i attempt to use this technique all my shots would hit the net and they would lack momentum. Varying the force and strength i use, in these two different sports is therefore another skill i am working to develop.

Additionally I was initially not completely when I started tennis classes because it would be a one-to-one class. Although, this has innumerable benefits, like receiving personalised training to tackle my weaknesses in a more focused manner, I felt classes would lose what lies at the core of sport : collaboration.  Without collaboration, it is impossible to compete with others and truly get a sense of your own skill level. However, this is no longer a worry I feel, as my coach does give me to opportunity to sometimes play with his other students, or with the students of other coaches, who play in the neighbouring courts.

Tennis is a sport that is very popular in many places – hence I hope it is something I will be able to pursue later on in life as well.