Ep. 249 - Understanding First Round/Match Anxiety

Ep. 249 - Understanding First Round/Match Anxiety

From Tennis IQ Podcast by Tennis IQ Podcast

April 9, 2026 · 41 min

About this episode

This episode discusses first match anxiety in tennis and offers practical steps to manage it.

The first round of a tournament or the first match of a league/conference championship weekend can lead to more anxious feelings for tennis players. In this episode, Brian and Josh discuss research on first match anxiety to help you understand it better, and take practical steps to handle it better. Psychophysiological stress in tennis players during the first single match of a tournament: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030645300800228X To learn more about Josh and Brian's backgrounds and sport psychology businesses, go to TiebreakerPsych.com and PerformanceXtra.com . If you have feedback about the show or questions on the mental game in tennis you can email us at tennisiqpodcast@gmail.com . If you’re enjoying the show please rate us on your favorite podcast platform including Apple Podcasts and Spotify and write a review. Don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or your podcast platform of choice (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.) to stay up to date on future episodes.

People in this episode

Hosts: Brian, Josh

Topics covered

  • first match anxiety
  • tournament stress
  • psychology in tennis
  • mental game
  • performance improvement

Keywords

  • first round anxiety
  • tennis psychology
  • tournament preparation
  • mental health
  • performance anxiety

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: TiebreakerPsych.com, PerformanceXtra.com, Tennis IQ Podcast

Books & works: Psychophysiological stress in tennis players during the first single match of a tournament

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