Christian Alshon may be one of the more polarizing figures in pickleball, but he’s still among the best in the sport.

Coached by a legend in Leigh Waters, his strategy and tactics are always something to pay attention to.

Alshon recently posted a video on his YouTube channel that features six tips for staying mentally strong during matches.

“Pickleball requires a lot of mental strength and stamina,” he said. “You’ve got to be able to perform for a long duration mentally.”

1. Be Prepared

Alshon began with a quote from Benjamin Franklin: “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.”

From studying film to hydrating and getting proper sleep the night before hitting the court, preparation is crucial. 

“Being prepared is everything you do,” he insisted. “When I step on a court and I know that I’m fully prepared and I know I’ve done everything that I can do to prepare me for that match, there’s very little pressure and questioning about my mental game because I know I’m ready. You’re going to be so much more confident because you’re prepared.”

2. Not Getting Upset

Alshon admitted he struggles with this one. But the idea comes from a book by Trevor Moawad called “It Takes What It Takes.”

“The entire book is about one key principle that stuck with me. It’s about ‘staying neutral.’ When you’re playing a match, you can be happy or sad or somewhere in between. But it’s not realistic to be happy 24/7, nor should you be happy if you’re down 0-7. But you can’t be mad or upset because it will affect your performance negatively. Negative internal emotions are going to have a negative external effect,” he said. 

3. Take Emotion Out of Play

To help stay neutral, Alshon suggested that you ask yourself these three questions, which take emotion out of the equation. 

• - What happened?
• - What is happening?
• - What is going to happen?
  
  

The questions can help calm yourself down in the middle of a tense match and get you back into a logical, grounded, and strategic state. 

4. Breathe

This may be an obvious one, but Alshon found that sometimes the tried-and-true advice is the most powerful. 

“When you are stressed out, you don’t breathe because your body freezes and tenses up. When you’re in a match, you’re stressed, and now you’re breathing abnormally, your body has to deal with the stress and your irregular breathing,” he said. “If you take a minute to breathe deep, it will help your body recover and gain energy. Additionally, it’s going to help your mind calm down, too.”

Alshon demonstrated taking a full, deep breath in for four seconds, pausing for two seconds, then exhaling for four seconds. 

 5. Take Your Time In Between Points

At any level, players are allowed to take a few seconds to regroup between points. This is something the pros take full advantage of. Those few seconds to go to their towel and shake off their emotions gives them the opportunity to reset.

“If you lost a point, you don’t want to start the next point super quickly. You’ll want to take a little bit of time before the next point to breathe, get neutral, and ask yourself the three questions,” said Alshon.

6. Shot Selection & Discipline

Discipline is a key element in mental toughness. But discipline goes hand-in-hand with strategic shot selection. 

Alshon gave an example from earlier in his pickleball career where he got lost in a rut of continually losing matches against better opponents even when things were close.

“When it’s 9-9, instead of going for some crazy shots, simplify and maintain what is working. It’s in these big moments where you play points with discipline. Be selective with the shots you hit at these crucial moments,” he advised. 

Mental toughness is one of the trickiest elements of the sport, but it’s a strength that continually proves to be as valuable as hitting a great serve. So train the mind, be disciplined, and try a few of these strategies the next time you hit the 20x44. 

For more tips and tricks from the pros, follow Pickleball.com on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).