-
The inner game
We have seen how Sharapova built her game around very few shots taken to the highest level of efficiency. At the beginning of her career, this was an advantage, because it’s easier to build a successful model with limited options, focussing exclusively on those. Her precociousness proves this: little variations equals great clarity and no confusion with the choices that need to be made. As a matter of fact, the opposite is true as well – the wider the array of shots that a player has at his/her disposal, the longer it will take to put it to a coherent use.
However, once Sharapova’s career became steady at the top, and once her opponents got to know her well, the Russian had to come to terms with two fundamental consequences, consequences that were linked and yet antithetic, like two sides of a coin.
The negative one was that she had no “Plan B”, meaning that she had no other options when a match was taking a down-turn.
On the other end, the positive consequence was that, having just a “Plan A” at her disposal, Sharapova didn’t have to elaborate much during her matches, and this allowed her to focus her mental energy solely on the competition. Her game required fearlessness and utter self-belief, because uncertainty and hesitation are the bane of a high-risk style, and, since there was only one strategy, no second thoughts were allowed.
This is one of the reasons why Sharapova was such an exceptional competitor, with a very personal spin. Her competitiveness was indeed peculiar, because it could communicate two apparently irreconcilable elements – iciness and heat.
Masha expressed iciness towards her opponent, conveying a degree of indifference that verged on contempt. At her most mature peak, she never failed to take a brief walk towards the back-wall between points, giving her back to her foe. That was her way to say that the only thing she considered to win was herself, because she was in charge of the destiny of her matches, while her opponent was ultimately fungible, and thus not worthy of much attention (with a few exceptions, obviously).
However, once the point was underway Sharapova turned into an indomitable and fiery fighter, because she poured her whole being into the competition, including her feelings, her loud grunts, and her celebrations. Maria loved to compete, and that’s when her heat emerged.
One final aspect needs to be highlighted vis-à-vis her mental qualities. As her game was deployed at the highest intensity, with no middle ground, her competitive fire worked the same way – constantly at the highest intensity, with no middle ground or moments of spleen.
Every point was approached with as much competitive energy as she could muster, and such an approach was grueling for her opponents. The weaker ones couldn’t hope for sudden distractions or gifts, and were thus condemned to heavy defeats. The stronger ones, on the other hand, lived in fear, aware that letting the foot off the pedal for a couple games might irreparably turn the tide of the match.
