"I am NOT Losing This One "

Imagine, you are an young,number one ranked tennis player of India, representing your country in a Davis Cup playoff , to earn your country a chance to be eligible to compete in the top 16 World Group ,a feat which India hasn't achieved in more than a decade time. You are in the middle of a match, trailing by 2 sets and you get your service broken in the first game of your third set.( For those who don't know much about tennis,it means you are at a point where you can see your defeat written on the wall,and with that, hopes of your nation also seem to be finished). You are sliding down towards defeat and badly.

Tired,demoralised, what would you do then? Giving in wont be a wrong option in this circumstance, ...just fifteen minutes more of the play and you loose the match..your country again gets deprived of a spot among top 16..again...so whats the big deal, its been going on since 11 years. ..India can wait another year for that chance to even enter that World Group,let alone compete for the title ! And moreover,since you are young, nobody will blame you for the defeat..they will say,"Oh..poor guy...wasn't all his fault! He didn't have experience!"

But Somdev Devvarman,Indian tennis player, had other ideas. And it was refreshing. Two sets down ,broke on the first game of the third set, sliding down ; down but not out, he went to his team mates on the corner of the tennis court and declared, "I am not losing this one ".

He kept his word. He didn't loose, not anymore. He refused to give in. He refused to read his defeat written on the wall in bold letters.He refused to slide down further. Instead, with courage and faith, he dug deep into his reserves of mental strength ,raised his game,did the basics right and came out victorious in that match of wills. At the end, the bottom line was - He wanted this win more than his opponent did.

That's will. That's belief. Lets summon that cast iron will which lies within us. Lets have that deep belief. And we can turn the tide ,in our favour.

I have a belief that words/thoughts take us nowhere if they are not acted upon.
So lets take a leaf out of Somdev's book and act upon it and make our own fate by choosing our attitude.

"We Reap What We Sow. We are the makers of our own fate. The Wind is blowing; those vessels whose sails are unfurled catch it and move forward towards their destination.. But those whose sails are closed and furled up, don't catch it and remain where they are. Is that the fault of the wind?...We make our own destiny." ----Swami Vivekananda

Lets not leave our cast iron wills to rust, Lets use it fellas !!

Anurag