The mental game extends beyond the tennis court
A Yahoo Sports feature traces the influence of Tim Gallwey’s book on how athletes and coaches approach performance, expectations and wellbeing.
Tim Gallwey’s The Inner Game of Tennis, written more than half a century ago, has shaped approaches to the mental side of performance well beyond tennis, according to a Yahoo Sports feature.
The feature describes some professional players setting intentions before training or matches, calming their breathing between points and separating results from personal identity. These practices aim to quiet conscious thought and let players respond instinctively.
The book’s influence has reached coaches including Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors and football coach Pete Carroll, the feature reports. It says the book’s ideas are familiar across tennis and increasingly across other sports.
Gallwey, now 88, argues that athletes should acknowledge the strain created by their own expectations and those placed on them by others. He says taking a break to repair mental and physical wellbeing requires courage.
The supplied account offers no specific player examples or evidence on how widely the described methods are used. Gallwey’s comments on breaks and wellbeing are his own view.
