When preparing for an upcoming tennis tournament - practice different scenarios:

1. Play some practice 12 pt tiebreakers; often times, we have not played one in so long that we are apprehensive or have the wrong mind set.

2. Start the set at different score situations and then play it out (example: you are serving at 5-4 in the first to win the set).

3. Play some situations where you are both up and down in the match.

4. The two most important shots in a tournament are the serve and the serve return; practice this and remember - just hitting groundstrokes is not preparation enough for returning serve; serves are v ery individualistic and have unique spins.

5. Practice serving into and with the wind and serving into the sun; be able to adjust your toss for varying conditions.

6. When working on something new (like serve and volley) play a whole set where every server must play serve and volley before the point can be won or lost.

7. When working to improve your second serve you may go through a period of more double-faulting than usual; stick with the new serve; your partner will appreciate you for it later.