The team I play for has just finished the winter season in 11th place in a 12-team division: we felt we played fairly well but lost so many games that went to the fifth end – and we blew it. I guess we need more consistency overall, but can you think of any drills that would get us over that fifth-end issue? I think it’s just learning not to tense up (so easy to say) and to play to our strengths but we could do with a bit of help! Many thanks 🙂
Jane – UK – Intermediate player
Tom’s response…
It can be very frustrating to keep losing in a deciding game. I’ve lost a few this season and it does hurt. But let’s look at the positives. Your team has clearly been competitive, even if you haven’t got as many wins as you would have liked.
It’s easier said than done, but the key to winning deciding games is to get your strengths into play and ideally expose your opponent’s weaknesses. What shots have been causing your opponent difficulty? What serves get passive responses? Where on the table is your opponent weaker?
In the deciding game you should have a clear game-plan about what tactics you plan to use. Here’s an article I wrote a few years ago about how I improved my success rate in deciding games.
In your training sessions, you can try to simulate the pressure of playing a deciding game. A really simple way of doing this is ‘top table’. Each table plays one game up to 11. The winners of each game move towards the top table. The losers move down a table. It’s quite fast and furious and really good for creating uncomfortable pressure. No one likes to be on the bottom table and there is a different kind of pressure for the players trying to stay on the top table. For each game you play in this format, you should try to bring your ‘A’ game and exploit your opponent’s weaknesses.
You can also approach this in a different way. When matches go to a deciding game, it means you are close in ability level. Between now and the next league season, you should aim to make a 2 point improvement in your game. This can make a big difference. With a 2 point swing, those games you lost 11-9, you would now win 11-9. Games which you lost 11-7, would now be 9-9 and you’d have a chance of winning. Matches which you lost 3-2, you might start winning 3-1 or even 3-0.
So the question becomes, how can you make a 2 point improvement? Which areas of your game are weaker and could be improved? What are your strengths and how can you make them even stronger? Maybe there is just one aspect of your game which could make a big difference to the amount of points you win and lose. Here’s some specific suggestions for making a 2 point improvement.
So don’t despair. I would be far more concerned if you were getting hammered 3-0 every match. But there is plenty to take away from a 3-2 loss. You are very competitive and it won’t take that much for the results to swing your way. Spend the next few months improving your game and simulating pressure situations and you next season you can get your revenge!
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