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Christo Buchner
Johannesburg – South Africa’s top women’s tennis player is using the same sports psychologist tasked with getting the Sharks mentally prepared before they run on the field.
Chani Scheepers (26), who is among the world’s top 100 players after reaching the third round of the Australian Open, puts her recent success down to the work that she has done with sport psychologist Kirsten van Heerden from KwaZulu-Natal.
Scheepers is 80th on the world rankings – her best position to date.
Her coach, Roger Anderson, said that they had worked hard in his home town of Pietermaritzburg over December, rather than take a holiday. The hard work was aimed at getting Scheepers mentally right for the Australian Open and the rest of the tennis year.
“We tried to simulate situations that she could expect in big tournaments – like playing in a packed stadium and exposure to a noisy crowd during points. Chani has to get out of her comfort zone on the court and be prepared to take more risks,” he said.
“Most of the girls are happy to do what they are used to doing. Chani knows she has to do something else – she has to go to the net more often and play more aggressively. She has to transfer the pressure onto her opponent and force her to make more errors.
“She is prepared to make that mental shift, and it has yielded success over the past year,” said Anderson.
Scheepers, who hails from Harrismith in the Free State, said her success in last year’s French Open, where she reached the third round, had given her a lot of confidence.
“I can compete against the big names and am no longer afraid of them,” she said.
“South Africans take longer to develop than players from other countries.”
Johannesburg – South Africa’s top women’s tennis player is using the same sports psychologist tasked with getting the Sharks mentally prepared before they run on the field.
Chani Scheepers (26), who is among the world’s top 100 players after reaching the third round of the Australian Open, puts her recent success down to the work that she has done with sport psychologist Kirsten van Heerden from KwaZulu-Natal.
Scheepers is 80th on the world rankings – her best position to date.
Her coach, Roger Anderson, said that they had worked hard in his home town of Pietermaritzburg over December, rather than take a holiday. The hard work was aimed at getting Scheepers mentally right for the Australian Open and the rest of the tennis year.
“We tried to simulate situations that she could expect in big tournaments – like playing in a packed stadium and exposure to a noisy crowd during points. Chani has to get out of her comfort zone on the court and be prepared to take more risks,” he said.
“Most of the girls are happy to do what they are used to doing. Chani knows she has to do something else – she has to go to the net more often and play more aggressively. She has to transfer the pressure onto her opponent and force her to make more errors.
“She is prepared to make that mental shift, and it has yielded success over the past year,” said Anderson.
Scheepers, who hails from Harrismith in the Free State, said her success in last year’s French Open, where she reached the third round, had given her a lot of confidence.
“I can compete against the big names and am no longer afraid of them,” she said.
“South Africans take longer to develop than players from other countries.”
