I was down 4 to 6 in a final set tiebreaker, the championship point of the US Open, against my number 1 rival, in what might be the most meaningful game of both of our careers. My legs trembling, heart racing, and my palms covered with a thin layer of sweat from the 80 degree sun. I served the ball and it flew to the other side of the court a million miles per hour. I stood there amazed to see that I stole the point with an ace, with my opponent shocked at the brilliance of the serve. The next point started off with a frustrating shot into the net, time for my second serve. As I stood there on the verge of losing this important game, my whole life flashed before my eyes, I recalled the plethora of hard work I put myself through to earn a chance
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During summer break I participated in some tournaments to put my skills to the real test. “Rafael Nadal,” I heard my name being called at the front desk. My opponent stood at a towering 6 foot, a strong guy with brown hair, we were given three tennis balls. I fought hard in the match but I was nothing compared to the guy I faced, I realized I would have to work a lot harder in order to win matches, and tournaments. I had 1 month until my next tournament and I used every single second on honing my skills and becoming stronger, and all my work paid off because I earned my first win. I kept consistent with my training and tournaments and found myself having a lot of …show more content…
I heard a shout from the crowd as I was about to hit the second serve. Thinking of my journey up to the US open finals motivated me to take advantage of the moment, and that I did. I tossed the ball up, raised my racket up, loaded my legs, and swung at the ball, it was hands down the best shot I even hit. We were all tied up 8 to 8 and it was now my opponents turn to serve, and now the pressure shifted to his side of the court. He took his time while I stood in position, preparing to return a bullet serve. I leaned toward the left expecting the serve there. He served it, the ball barely clipped the right corner of the box. With my momentum taking me the other way, I had to jerk my whole body to the other side to barely hit the ball over the net. I dashed all the way to the other side of the court to hit the next ball and lob it up way high having no other option. My arch rival set up for a powerful smash, the ball made contact with his racket, Pow! He slammed the ball and it unfortunately tipped the net and bounced back on his side. I somehow regained the lead, 7-6 one more point for me would win the game. At that particular moment I felt the pressure of the moment like a 500 pound boulder on my shoulder. I had no idea of how to handle the pressure but there I was well aware of someone who did, Pete Sampras, my idol. I took a second and praised Pete Sampras, asking him to help me, for he always handled the
During summer break I participated in some tournaments to put my skills to the real test. “Rafael Nadal,” I heard my name being called at the front desk. My opponent stood at a towering 6 foot, a strong guy with brown hair, we were given three tennis balls. I fought hard in the match but I was nothing compared to the guy I faced, I realized I would have to work a lot harder in order to win matches, and tournaments. I had 1 month until my next tournament and I used every single second on honing my skills and becoming stronger, and all my work paid off because I earned my first win. I kept consistent with my training and tournaments and found myself having a lot of …show more content…
I heard a shout from the crowd as I was about to hit the second serve. Thinking of my journey up to the US open finals motivated me to take advantage of the moment, and that I did. I tossed the ball up, raised my racket up, loaded my legs, and swung at the ball, it was hands down the best shot I even hit. We were all tied up 8 to 8 and it was now my opponents turn to serve, and now the pressure shifted to his side of the court. He took his time while I stood in position, preparing to return a bullet serve. I leaned toward the left expecting the serve there. He served it, the ball barely clipped the right corner of the box. With my momentum taking me the other way, I had to jerk my whole body to the other side to barely hit the ball over the net. I dashed all the way to the other side of the court to hit the next ball and lob it up way high having no other option. My arch rival set up for a powerful smash, the ball made contact with his racket, Pow! He slammed the ball and it unfortunately tipped the net and bounced back on his side. I somehow regained the lead, 7-6 one more point for me would win the game. At that particular moment I felt the pressure of the moment like a 500 pound boulder on my shoulder. I had no idea of how to handle the pressure but there I was well aware of someone who did, Pete Sampras, my idol. I took a second and praised Pete Sampras, asking him to help me, for he always handled the