Growth Mindset and Giving Back: Catching Up with Pam Shriver
5/12/202627 min
Patrick McEnroe catches up with friend and Hall of Famer Pam Shriver from Rome, where she's coaching as part of Yonex's Mindset and Performance Program. In a wide ranging chat, Shriver reflects on her meteoric rise from a 16-year-old US Open finalist to one of the greatest doubles players in history.
She dives into her new "startup" coaching role with Yonex, emphasizing the critical importance of a growth mindset in today’s power-driven game. From navigating the locker room of the Original 9 era to her recent advocacy for player safeguarding, Shriver shares candid insights on how tennis has evolved. Plus, don’t miss a spirited "rapid fire" round covering her toughest rivals and favorite tennis cities.
Pam Shriver is a 21-time major champion, former world No. 1 in doubles, No. 3 in singles and Olympic gold medalist. Alongside fellow Hall of Famer Martina Navratilova, the duo are the only women's doubles team in history to complete the calendar Grand Slam (1984). She continues to lend her voice and deep tennis insight as a broadcast commentator and coach.
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsPam Shriver· Guest0:00
[upbeat music] So I guess somewhere around that 12, 13 mark, and then it happened back in my day, it happened pretty quickly to go from juniors to the, to, you know, being a contender in the, in the pros. Now it's much longer journey. Once I, I think turned 14 to 15, I started to get r- really comfortable with my height. I started to utilize my serve as a weapon at a really young age, and I played my first pro tournament at 15 and a half. And I never could have imagined, um, that six months later I'd be in the finals in my first US Open as an amateur. I think the last amateur finalist.
Patrick McEnroe· Host0:36
What would the Pam Shriver now say to the 16, 17-year-old Pam Shriver if you, if you could coach yourself back then?
Pam Shriver· Guest0:44
I would have told myself to have more of a growth mindset, to be open to changes the way, uh, I, I felt like Navratilova did a great job, my partner of 10 years. Novak Djokovic in the last 20 some odd years has had this incredible growth open mindset, and it's something that I kinda look for.
Patrick McEnroe· Host1:02
[upbeat music] All right, we welcome you everyone to another edition of the Tennis Worthy podcast, brought to you by the International Tennis Hall of Fame. I am Patrick McEnroe, proud to be the president of the Hall of Fame, and very, very happy to have on someone who, um, has not only done it all, but continues to do it all in the world of tennis. In addition to being