tennis preferences // atp players

15. You're His Pre-Match Ritual

QOTP (Question of the Preference) - Do you play tennis? If so, what are your pre-match or match rituals?

AOTP - I have to have two balls in my pocket when serving, so in total three balls. There was a point where I could not throw a ball toss if I didn't. I would step up to the line, toss the ball and it would fly into the back fence on my side. It was soooo bad.

Let me know your answer in the comments :)

Alexander Zverev:

It is essential that before a big match, especially finals, you and Sascha go out for breakfast that morning; just the two of you and no one else. You are his way of getting the pressure or nerves out of him, by expressing how he feels or just talking about nonsense to keep his mind off of what's to come. It's the main reason why he seems to be so calm when playing in finals, being because the beginning of the day had already gotten him into a good headspace.

Alex De Minaur:

You always try to make him crack a smile or make him laugh before he goes on the court for a big match, in order to make him less nervous and stressed out. As he walks towards his chair on the court, partly distracted by the mass amounts of people coming to match, he smiles, thinking back to the cheesy joke you made just before you gave him a kiss and he walked away.

Benoit Paire:

Benoit likes you like his company before he goes on the court. He might stand behind you as you scroll through your phone, with his arms around your waist, or maybe you both sit with his arm around your shoulders. It's usually quiet between the two of you before he leaves to go play, but the moments before are what really calms down the nerves on the big occasions.

Borna Coric:

Before a match, Borna always pulls you into a long embrace, thanking you for being with him and supporting him day in and day out. Sometimes, the bigger the occasion, the longer the hug is, but it doesn't bother you as you could stand there hugging him for days. After a match, it's also essential there's another hug, whether he wins or loses, just for good luck in the next game.

Casper Ruud:

The two of you often listen to the same music just before he goes on the court. The lip-synching, dance moves and hand gestures you create for every song, puts him in a good mood before he goes onto the court. He thrives off of your energy, and you hope that it will motivate him to play some inspirational tennis.

Denis Shapovalov:

You always help Denis warm up before a match, including the stretching, hitting and strengthening processes he goes through constantly. He feels that you being calm and collected, he can feed off of that before going on for a match, rather than be all nervous and stressed. He often feels uneasy when you weren't in the process of warming up with him, and will blame his losses on it, when they occur.

Diego Schwartzman:

The night before one of his matches, you write a handwritten note to him that he reads as he walks towards his court. Usually, it has some witty comment or an inside joke the two of you created throughout that day. It's a reminder that you're supporting him through his career, as well as a way to de-stress him before the mentally grueling two hours ahead.

Dominic Thiem:

Just before a match, you would spend your time with Dominic, keeping him warm and keeping his mind off of a big match. Usually, you'll practice reflexes with him (he runs on the spot, you throw a ball in a random direction and he has to catch it on the full and toss it back to you), to which you would often tease him and throw it a little further out of his reach than usual. He'll laugh, saying that you're cheating and that you should be nicer to him in the game. However, you still continue to tease him, keeping each other entertained whilst you wait for a long match to end.

Felix Auger-Aliassime:

You would always walk with Felix around the grounds, and he would ensure that he was holding onto you in some type of way. Whether that be holding your hand, linking arms, or even clutching onto his racquet bag as you carried it, he had to make sure that he stayed in close contact with you, in order to have good luck before a match.

Grigor Dimitrov:

Before every match, you hold Grigor's face in both your hands and give him a small pep talk. It hypes him up and inspires him to go out there and give everything he has, no matter the opponent, no matter what round it is. He always smiles about how determined you are to motivate him. The short talk is often followed by him passionately kissing you on the lips and telling you 'not to worry too much'.

Hubert Hurkacz:

When Hubert first walks onto a court and waves to the crowd, he'll immediately look for you amongst all the unfamiliar faces. The moment he sees you smiling for him and clapping him onto the court, he immediately destresses, refocussing on the match. It's just a way of making sure that you are there like you said you would be and that he can look to you during the match for encouragement.

Jannik Sinner:

Jannik will always play with your hair before a match. He had always found it fascinating, and it was definitely a way for him to keep calm before a match. He'll often try to style it in different ways, or just comb his fingers through it. It would always distract him from a big match, and wanted to spend as much time with you as possible, up until the very second he had to walk on court.

Jordan Thompson:

There's a special charm that dangles from your bracelet that Jordan just admires more than anything. You don't know why he's so obsessed with it, but he is always determined to have it around when he's playing a big match. Before he goes on court and as you wish him good luck with a hug, he always demands to have the charm in the pocket of his racket bag for luck.

Reilly Opelka:

Reilly would ramble all of his thoughts and all of his worries to you before a match. Usually, you would just stand and talk together while he nervously bounced around, listening to him talk for fifteen minutes straight. You would nod and smile at him, and try to be as comforting as you possibly could. At the end of his ramble just before he was about to walk on-court, you would tell him to breathe and that it would be okay, helping him feel immediately better.

Roger Federer:

Roger avoids talking to anyone before he goes on the court, so you aren't entirely phased by the fact that he doesn't do anything special for you before a match. Although, before he goes to warm up, he'll give you a soft peck on the lips and say goodbye, as a note to let you know he may not talk to you for the next couple of hours, which your fine with as long as he lets you know.

Stefanos Tsitsipas:

Stefanos is often very quiet before a match, consumed in his thoughts. However, every time you go and watch his matches, just before you go to sit in his player's box, you give him an old-fashioned kiss on the cheek and 'good luck'. Although you try not to distract him from staying with his game face, he can't help but crack a smile every time as you turn your back and walk to where you will cheer him on.

Taylor Fritz:

Taylor makes sure that before every one of his matches that you are wearing one of his chains, as a way that he is with you, more so you don't get too stressed out when watching him. You always hand it back to him afterward, although he won't go on the court until he knows for sure that you have his golden necklace around your neck.