Reading your opponent

Reading the game, and in particular reading the opponent, is one of the most nuanced and important parts of the sport. The ability to anticipate not just where the ball is going, but what your opponent is about to do, creates huge opportunities. By moving early to the ball, you position yourself one step ahead, gaining an advantage that compounds throughout the match.

Two Core Areas of Attention

When your opponent is about to strike, there are two key areas to focus on:

What options do they have available – understanding the possible shots they could play from their position?
What their body is telling you – subtle cues in movement from parts of their body

While both are critical, it is often the second that separates the very best players. The ability to read an opponent’s body reveals layers of information that words cannot describe but are sensed through intuition and perception.

To truly sense what your opponent is about to do, three further factors come into play:

Three Factors for Reading the Opponent’s Body

Being Present
When we are completely absorbed in the moment, our senses are heightened and fully available. This allows us to notice the finest details in our opponent’s movement and positioning.
Relaxation
A body and mind in a state of relaxed alertness unlock a kind of “sixth sense.” In this state, we can sometimes predict an action before it actually happens — sensing the movement before it occurs.

The Deeper Sense

In order to access this deeper sense of anticipation, we must first cultivate presence, relaxation, and awareness. When these elements align, the game slows down, clarity emerges, and we find ourselves not just reacting to the ball but connected to the flow of the opponent’s body and mind, the rhythm of the rally, and the shifts in energy and intention of the opponent.

Feeling the Opponent’s Body
Through years of playing and coaching at the highest level, I have witnessed how the greatest players in the world can sense their opponents’ body. They are in tune with the other person’s movement patterns, to the point they can sense it in your their own body. This requires a heightened state of awareness which enable our nervous system to operate at its full potential in these detailed moments in the game.

Here are three steps to help cultivate this heightened state of awareness:

- Practice mindful breathing and body scans to improve your own ability to connect your mind and body.
- When you play practice matches, set the intention to achieve a relaxed and alert state when on the T and watch for clues in your opponents body. With practice, this will become easier to see.
- Learn to visualise rallies in your mind and see yourself reading your opponent, see their hips open slightly before the cross court comes, for example.

Please post and questions or feedback in the comments.

Reading your opponent

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