Maria Sharapova Talks About How Confidence Helped Her Evolve as a Player

Published 10/03/2019, 2:21 PM EDT

Follow Us

Former world No.1 Maria Sharapova has been one of the top figures in the field of sports in the past 18 years. After becoming a pro in 2001, the Russian star has evolved as a player in her injury-prone career.

Maria Sharapova explained that physical training and warm-up played a major role in her success but her mental strength is the key. Sharapova also explicated that whether she’s playing tennis or doing business, confidence is really vital.

“I think a lot of self-care practices come from within. My routine before a match is very straightforward and boring. It’s more the mentality that you go into a big match or a big opportunity with. It’s the self-belief,” she explained.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Maria Sharapova revealed that her preparation is more about believing in herself and developing a comfort level and confidence in herself.

via Imago

She said: “You spend a lot of hours training for it, preparing for it, just like any other job. So, during that time the preparation is more about developing a belief in myself and a comfort level and confidence.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

The 5-time Grand Slam champion elucidated that there is no easy way out and no easy way toward a confidence booster. She also told that it takes a long time to get it and you can lose it very fast. I know that on experience.

Sharapova concluded with a quote that the ‘harder you work, you luckier you get.’

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

She continued, “Confidence doesn’t come out of thin air. It takes a lot of work and effort. They always say, ‘The harder you work, the luckier you are,’ and that’s kind of how I see confidence. The more you work, the more you put in the hours, the time and the motions of really dedicating yourself to that particular task, the more confident you’re going to get.”

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Varun Khanna

1,339Articles

One take at a time

Starting off as a tennis author in 2018, Varun Khanna has gone on to contribute to EssentiallySports in various capacities. After setting up interviews with the likes of Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou, Alizé Cornet, and Noah Rubin, Varun is now part of all major ATP and WTA press conferences and has gone on to pen more than 1300 articles for EssentiallySports. He now heads the tennis and NBA division of the organization.
Show More>