Well, he said. The gap between the player you are today and the player you want to be I want to be the greatest tennis player in the world, I said. That gap is not big. We are talking about that vital half-percent improvement. And thats not found in changing your strategy. Its in shortening the nanosecond of time between getting to the ball and slicing it across the court. It is going to be found in the minute change you make to the angle of your serve. The details are fine, and they are going to get finer. It is going to be nearly imperceptible, the ways we need to change your game. No one will be able to see it from the outside, but Stepanova is going to feel it. Every time she loses to you for the next ten years. I could feel my pulse in my ears; my face felt hot. Okay, I said. How do we do that? Are you cross-training? he asked. I run and do drills. Lars laughed. Thats not enough. Stepanova is right about one thingyou need to lose at least a couple pounds. We need you doing sprints, lunges, weight training. You can jump higher to hit overheads. You rarely doits a weakness in your game, in my opinion. I want to see what happens when you blast off the court into the air. Take out some of Stepanovas lobs before they hit the ground. We start there and see where we get. No, I said, shaking my head. If we are doing this, I need to know right now that you believe I can bury her. That I can be number one. If I am your coach and you do not become the number-one-ranked player for the year, he said, I will be disgusted.

Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid