I started playing in a new racquetball doubles league last night and I played like shit. My partner and I lost to a team that we should have beaten, primarily because of me. It occurred to me afterwards how lousy my concentration was during the game. And since I’d like to play in a tourney next weekend, it was a good wake-up call for me. So this morning, I practiced at the club and instead of working on various strokes and shots, I worked on various concentration and breathing ‘rituals’ to do before serving or receiving. I also practiced watching the ball, and did some drills on planting my feet while my imaginary opponent hit the ball.
I was surprised how interesting and fun it was to practice this way. Maybe it was good for me to have played crappy last night.