“If I lose, I let everyone down.”

At a workshop, a coach shared that he felt that way as a junior player. 

Every match felt like it carried the weight of his coaches’ and parents’ expectations, time, and money.

This is something I often hear from young players. And I totally understand. 

When people you love are watching, you want to make them proud.

And later in their career, it gets even worse because of media and fan expectations.

Caroline Garcia once asked her husband: “If I lose, do you still love me?”

It shows that even the best players in the world have this fear.

His answer was, of course, yes.

It’s important to realize that your parents and coaches support you no matter what. 

They’re not there because they need you to win. They’re there because they care about you. 

The result doesn’t change that.

When you remove that pressure, your body relaxes, you play more freely, you stop protecting and start competing.

Talk to the people close to you and ask them if they care if you lose.

I hope that once you hear the answer, it’s a lot easier to go out and play. 🙂