As an athlete it is very important to win games to progress. But just winning a game isn’t enough. The way you win it is the most important aspect. Before going into a game an athlete has to prepare themselves mentally. The mental battle is the most important thing before a game. A sports person has to be strong mentally to be able to compete in an actual competitive game. Before winning the game it is very important to win our mental battles. In a competitive scenario, the competition is very high and the athletes has to be mentally strong to be able to compete. If an athlete is not mentally strong then they would lose the game even before it begins.

To win a game in a competitive scenario an athlete has to be committed to the game, they have to maintain their composure and be completely focused on the game. The consistency and the confidence level of the athlete should be high so that the athlete can perform according to their potential. The first important step for an athlete to perform in a game starts with commitment. Players must be fully committed so that they can work hard, practice properly for a good outcome and focuses on improving their skills. In other words, commitment means that the players play with passion and provides an intense competition for their opponents. In today’s time, unfortunately, commitment is hard to get by in an athlete. For the trainer that are training the athletes, the very important for them to think ahead of the time. It is important for the trainers to show their players, what they can achieve ahead in their careers. When the players examine the kind of careers they want to have, the trainers can begin to discover their reasons and motivation for playing the game. This will let the trainers know that what drives his/her players to succeed and the trainers will also get to know the key points to motivate his/her players.

To perform in a high intensity game or a competition, the athletes must maintain their composure. When we take a look at the international competitions, we can see that the players knows how to handle high pressure situations and how they avoid being afraid or tensed. Composure means that getting the player to be in a clear headspace before the games for their practice sessions. This means making sure that the athlete is calm and composed and are not distracted by pressure or any criticism coming their way. Concentration is another key factor for an athlete. It is very important for an athlete to concentrate on his/her training sessions and during the game. If we take an example, in golf it is very important for the player to be completely focused on the ball and the area where he/she wants to hit it. If the athlete loses concentration then the shot won’t be what the athlete was hoping for. While skills are an important aspect of the game of golf, it is generally the lack of concentration that leads the athlete to lose the game. How many times have we seen that in a high pressure game, the athlete has lost the game just because of the lack of concentration. While the trainers spend countless hours in practice fields and trying to help his/her player to perfect the swing, more often than not a weak mental game is the cause of a poor swing or a poor shot. What an athlete chooses to focus on during or before the game is very essential.

In sports, we have seen lot of times that a match is on the line. At those times, believing that you can be successful is more than half the battle won. For example, the match winning goal of Sergio Aguero in the season 2011-2012 against QPR. We saw in that match how Aguero maintained his composure in the dying seconds of the game to score the title winning goal for Manchester City. What’s important about that match is that Manchester city was about to lose the title to Manchester United. Manchester City had to win the game to win the title. The team kept their confidence and kept believing in themselves and finally Aguero had scored the winning goal to go on to win the first premier league title for Manchester City.