When I’m not active in tournaments I have more time to reflect.
For example, now, when I am injured a few thoughts cross my mind: how long will it take for me to regain my form? Some workouts? A few matches? Some tournaments? It will be probably a hard return, just like the one after the meniscus operation?

I hope it will be easier for me though, because I have been training physically every day, sometimes even twice a day. So it will only be a matter of time, patience, but also it will depend on how I will continue training and playing official matches. As I told you already, I put a lot of pressure on myself after the meniscus surgery.

But pressure is a constant presence in the players’ lives. How many of us can say that we often play without pressure?

The only moments when I felt less pressure were those when I got the most precious victories, that is, when I was considered an outsider (dark horse).

In those matches, the pressure was greater for my opponent. You know that when you meet a much better ranked opponent, in order to have a chance of victory, it is necessary to play your best game.

I remember the win against Sara Bejlek, a junior on the rise, better ranked than me. I didn’t go on the court to enjoy the game or the moment, although most sports psychologists advise us to do so. I entered the court focused, with a well-prepared tactical plan, with the attitude of not leaving her any game, any point and to make the most of the smallest advantage I’ve created myself. I knew I was well prepared, I just had to fight. And so I did.

Of course, when you are playing well, you win point after point, the joy of being on the court comes. But you perceive this only after the match. Because if you keep enjoying every small success during the match, things can quickly turn against you. After all, on the court, you are in a fighting ring, not a dance floor.

What exactly is pressure? Does it manifest differently for each player?

Pressure is a privilege. It is reserved for those who know how to acquire it,

said Billie Jean King, last quoted on Tuesday, this time by Novak Djokovic, who after qualifying for the 46th time in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament – thus equaling Federer’s record – completed the legendary champion at the interview from the court, with his own vision related to the subject:

Every player wants to be in a position where every opponent they meet wants to win. Pressure is an integral part of what we do, of our sport. Regardless of how many Grand Slam titles you have, how many matches you have won, how many years you have been playing on the circuit, the pressure is always at its highest, but at the same time it awakens the most beautiful emotions in me and inspires me to play my best tennis. I know they all want my scalp, they want to beat me, but it’s not happening yet.

You are under pressure when you play against a lower ranked or younger opponent. You can feel it when you have to defend a title or when you are seeded in a tournament. Or simply when you want too much the win.
It manifests itself by a certain stiffness of your hand and the ball no longer follows the path you desire. You start to think too much, you want to win all the points, you charge yourself negatively.

How can you best handle pressure?

The answer is a difficult one, because each player reacts differently or functions differently when he finds himself in this situation.

An important role do have the coaches, through the words they address to the players before the matches. If these are well chosen, they can significantly change the mood of the player and implicitly the outcome of the match.

I had many matches in which I put myself under pressure, because the desire to win and go as far as possible in the tournament was oversized. And this did me no good. I forgot to enjoy my achievements, I blamed myself for every mistake, and, consequently, I no longer judged clearly.
There have been tournaments where I entered the main draw as the first seed and didn’t win the title.
I remember a W15 where I reached the semi-finals after playing a very good W25 tournament before the 2020 one where I got injured. I was not happy with that result. The desire to win the tournament was too big.

But the highest pressure I felt after I became number 1 in the ITF ranking (the one in which only points obtained in W15 tournaments are counted). I knew I had to confirm in higher category tournaments as well, which didn’t happen as often as I would have liked.

This goal, only partially achieved, was the cause of the pressure that affected my results in the last two years.

I think the pressure that top 20 players feel doubles, maybe even triples.
Everything happens in the spotlight, in front of hundreds of thousands or millions of viewers. And if you make a mistake there, everyone will see your error.

But when you win, the joy you will feel is irreplaceable.

In conclusion, the most important thing in this whole process is to learn to find balance in everything you do. Compensating training with recovery and relaxation moments. Counterbalancing tournaments with days off. Enjoying every minute spent on the court, keeping your concentration and desire for victory, but within normal limits. Be satisfied with every little progress you make.

All that, in order to have a positive mental state, that is, to be satisfied with what you have accomplished, but to fight for acquiring even more.