Strategy over sweat: Applying Business Tools to Win

2026-01-25 - 22:38

In the high-stakes arena of modern sports, the difference between medaling and also-ran results is not just about raw talent or natural ability. As the gap in physical conditioning narrows, the competitive edge has shifted toward strategic intelligence. For athletes, teams, coaches, trainers, and technical personnel seeking to break through performance plateaus, applying business planning tools such as SWOT and PESTLE is ineluctable. A SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) forces an athlete to engage in honest self-assessment. Strategic planning frameworks significantly improve self-efficacy by allowing athletes to visualize their path to success (Dixon et al., 2020). Knowing one’s strengths, weaknesses, potential, and threats can stimulate the necessary course of action to achieve desired goals. Australian batter Phoebe Litchfield, speaking about her approach to spin bowling, said, “I have got to work on the conventional sweep because it’s got me out every ODI innings hit so far. The reverse is a strength of mine, and I practice it a lot on the nets and just work on my wrist speed. I think that’s an important factor. And just sort of controlling it.” https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/phoebe-litchfield-i-ll-play-the-reverse-sweep-whether-it-spins-or-not-1415274 In another interview during the 2026 WIPL, Litchfield revealed her strategic understanding of the extent of her physical power and her creativity to be productive, especially in T20 cricket. She said, “The T20 format has definitely been a work in progress. I can’t really hit the ball as strong as Ash Gardner or Grace Harris in the Aussie team. So, it’s purely about finding my way to score, and it probably doesn’t look as conventional, but I know how to manipulate the field, and I’m finding scoring quicker and easier each year with just a bit of power that’s growing naturally as you grow up, but also decision-making.” https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/wpl-2026-phoebe-litchfield-s-mantra-for-hit-sixes-a-nice-relaxed-swing-and-timing-the-ball-1519035