“Majority of my victories were because of my mind,” Maria Sharapova REVEALS her mantra behind a successful career


“Majority of my victories were because of my mind,” Maria Sharapova REVEALS her mantra behind a successful career

Maria Sharapova

Former world no. 1 and five-time grand slam champion Maria Sharapova left the field of tennis in 2020, dedicating all her time, effort, and happiness to herself and Sugarpova, the confectionary brand she created in 2013.

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The player has been living life hicking, cooking, and exercising ever since. On January 18, the Russian player joined Dan Schulman, the host of the Spotify podcast, ‘Never Stand Still.’ The grand-slam winner spoke of her childhood situation before getting into pro tennis and how she reached the top of the pyramid in women’s tennis.

Maria Sharapova talks about the power of mind

“I found so many connections and commonalities with people when I talked about tennis,” Sharapova loves tennis for the one reason that is all that was the love for the sport regardless of how good one was at it. “I could have been in the best shape, I could have been playing the best tennis, but if my mind wasn’t there, it didn’t matter,” she continued.

Maria Sharapova on her road to the world of tennis

Maria Sharapova on Never Stand Still
Maria Sharapova on Never Stand Still

Sharapova continued the post cast with her struggle and her family’s support when entering the tennis pro world. “Both of my parents are actually from Belarus, and because of the Chernobyl explosion and my mother was pregnant with me at the time, they moved to Siberia, so I was born there. At the age of two, we moved to Sochi, a much more comfortable city, and that’s where I started playing tennis.”

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“At the age of five, I went to this little clinic in Moscow that was held by Martina Navratilova and she told my father we need to get out of Russia. These circumstances for an athlete are much better in the US, particularly in Florida, and my father never looked back. He talked to my mom. She took a huge chance, and my father and I went to Florida on a plane without her,” she added.

She ended her history reminiscence by saying, “In hindsight, I think those are the years that shape your story. I was so lucky that I did fall in love with this sport with hitting forehands and backhands.”

Sharapova’s advice to all fellow players

Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova

She claimed: “When you get to a stadium court, of course, you are gonna feel the pressure. If I didn’t feel pressure, I’d be worried; you have to overcome the butterflies, those moments of uncertainty no matter what stage you are in your life, so having my feet on the ground, but because my Parents helped shape my mindset, it was really important.”

“My mom reminded me that no matter how successful I became, it was about entertainment for me, it was about the impact and the improvement that I was making every single day,” she said.

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She spoke of her change of line to business from tennis and how many people were very speculative about it. However, she said that she knew her limit and knew the reality and came to the conclusion that she couldn’t play tennis professionally all her life.

She ended the podcast by saying that “I believe that when you’re faced with adversities or challenges in your professional career or personal life, the way you handle them today, I can guarantee you will be able to handle them much better the next time around.”

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