The psychology of rivalry and resilience with Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova is one of only 10 women to complete a Career Grand Slam in tennis, and was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2025. After retiring in 2020, she has also become a mother, an investor, and podcast host. In this episode, Adam talks with Maria about resilience, motivation, and the evolution of her rivalry with Serena Williams. Maria reflects on the moments in her career that forced her to take a step back and rethink her mindset, from hard losses and wisdom from coaches to relationships with her peers and opponents. Adam offers insight on two different kinds of winning in psychology, and why sports aren’t really as zero-sum as they seem.

Featured guest

• Follow Maria Sharapova on Instagram, YouTube, and X
• Subscribe to Maria's Substack Pretty Tough
• Buy her book Unstoppable: My Life So Far

Connect with the team

• Follow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/
• Subscribe to Adam’s Substack Granted
• Watch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDPods
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ReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.

For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts

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