THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF TABLE TENNIS

I. Play whatever style you want. Don't let others dictate how you have to
play, but listen to advices in order to improve. Your style could be an
extension of your personality. The more styles the game has, the richer it
is. Bring something to the game.
Be yourself.
II. Play whatever equipment you want, but it should not limit your tactical
options or shoot selection. Use stuff you can handle. Know how other
equipment plays.
Experimentation is the key.
III. Develop tactics and counter -tactics. To handle serves, points, matches,
opponent's equipment, opponent's styles, opponent's behavior, opponent's
tactics, anything. Think before, during and after playing.
Be smart.
IV. Respect others. Ask for being respected. Don't use tactics to upset, scare
or bother opponents, don't CHO! every point. Play if somebody asks you
to play. Try to have fun and let others have his share of fun too. Give
advices and help other players.
And be gentle.
V. Learn to win. Learn to loose. Accept your mistakes, limitations and defeats
and don't complain when you loose. You lost because you deserved it.
Be modest.
VI. There is no luck. Place your shots and you'll get nets and edges. Instead
of sobbing when your opponent gets a net or edge, learn to return those
balls.
Be focused.
VII. Improve your style and technique. Improving your weaknesses should be
easy than improving your strengths, and remember that a smart opponent
will capitalize on your weaknesses. First decide what to train, why and how
are you going to do it, then train.
Learn to rally.
VIII. Rules and equipment will change, so certain styles or equipment can be
favored. You can change yours anytime. You can also accept those
changes and play at certain disadvantage. Styles less favored, or even
harmed by rules can still win. It will be just harder.
Never whine.
IX. No unfair equipment exists. No styles are bad to the sport. No players are
inferior or superior athletes by any means, and of course you are not
entitled to judge nobody. Leave the sport if you think different than this.
Don't be a fuckin' nazi.
X. The only laws to respect are the rules of the game. This is the only mean
that shows you how the game is supposed to be played. Read it, obey all
the rules, and enforce them. Try to exploit rules to your advantage.
But be legal.
 EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT SPIN
(But were Afraid to Ask!)

By Larry Hodges
USATT Certified National Coach

(From July/August 1999 USATT Magazine and Winter 1999/2000 Paddle

Palace Magazine)

The biggest difference between a serious table tennis player and a basement
player is spin. Serious players use spin on both their serves and rallying shots,
both to control the ball and to force errors from their opponents. What we are
going to do is go over the types, effects and purposes of the various spins, how
to create spin, how to read spin, how to handle spin, and how spin actually
makes a ball curve in flight.

The Types of Spin

How many basic types of spin are there in table tennis? The most common
answer is four: topspin, backspin, and sidespin in both directions. For many
players, this is an adequate answer. However, the more correct answer is
seven, plus an infinite number of combinations.

The ball can rotate in three different axis that are perpendicular to each other,
and the ball can rotate in two directions on each of these axis. Assume you ’ve
just hit a ball away from you, and are watching to see how it rotates.

¡ If the top of the ball is rotating away from you, it is topspin.

¡ If the bottom of the ball is rotating away from you, it is backspin.

¡ If the right side of the ball is rotating away from you, it is “right” sidespin.

¡ If the left side of the ball is rotating away from you, it is “left” sidespin.

¡ If the ball is spinning clockwise (relative to you), it is “right” corkscrewspin.

¡ If the ball is spinning counter-clockwise (relative to you), it is “left”

corkscrewspin.

¡ If the ball is not rotating at all, it’s no-spin!

No -spin is considered a spin on its own. In fact, if you listen to top players, you’ll
hear them refer to “heavy no-spin,” which sounds rather contradictory! It’s
actually a no -spin serve that is faked to look like heavy spin (usually backspin).

Corkscrewspin is rarely seen except in serves by advanced players. It generally

can only be produced with a high -toss serve. If you ever face this
corkscrewspin, read over the difference between sidespin and corkscrewspin
carefully. If you imagine the axis of rotation, it’s easier to understand. For
sidespin, the axis is up and down. For corkscrewspin, the axis points straight at
and away from you. (For topspin/backspin, it is left to right.)
For the truly nerdy, there are really 27 specific combinations of spin, by taking
every possible combination of backspin/topspin, sidespin and corkscrewspin,
rotating in either direction. (Yes, there are even 8 spins that combine all three –
you can do that!) We ’ll leave it as an exercise to list all 27. (Don’t forget no-
spin!)

Effects of Spin
All spins have three major effects: how they travel through the air, how they
bounce on the table, and how they bounce off the opponent’s racket. Here is a
listing of each spin’s major effects.

Topspin
In the air Curves downward
Bounce on the table A low, fast bounce
Rebound off opponent’s racket Jumps upward and fast

Backspin

In the air Tends to float

Bounce on the table Ball slows down
Rebound off opponent’s racket Shoots downward

Sidespin

In the air Curves sideways

Bounce on the table A slight sideways bounce, but not too
much
Rebound off opponent’s racket Bounces sideways

Corkscrewspin
In the air light sideways curve
Bounce on the table Very sharp sideways bounce
Rebound off opponent’s racket Not too much effect off opponent’s
racket, unless opponent’s racket is very
open or very closed, in which case it
bounces sideways

Purpose of Spin
Spin is used when serving or rallying either to control the ball or force an
opponent into error. Let’s examine the purposes of each type of spin.

Topspin
When serving, topspin is used primarily to force a high return or a return off the
end. If an opponent doesn’t make an adjustment (i.e. aim low), the topspin will
force either a high return or a return that goes off the end. Often players use a
very fast motion to fake a backspin serve, but actually serve topspin, fooling
their opponent into an error.
In a rally, topspin makes the ball drop very fast, and so allows a player to hit the
ball very hard and still have it drop down and hit the table. Not only does it allow
a player to attack a very low ball, but it gives a larger margin for error on all rally
shots, with the topspin pulling down balls that would otherwise go off the end.
One way of thinking of it is as follows. If you hit a relatively low ball hard but
without topspin, the ball might only have enough time to drop so as to hit the
last foot of the table. With topspin, it might be able to drop and hit anywhere on
the last three feet. This means your target is three times as large!
Just as when you serve, the topspin you put on the ball will make your opponent
to tend to return the ball either high or off the end. The loop drive, which has
extreme topspin, is the most important rallying shot in table tennis . It forces an
opponent into either a defensive return or a difficult counter-attack.
Backspin
When serving, backspin is used to try to force an opponent into returning the
ball into the net. It is also effective in forcing a defensive return that you can
attack. Often players fake either topspin, sidespin or no -spin when serving
backspin, trying to trick the opponent into an error.
In a rally, backspin is a relatively defensive shot. Against an incoming backspin,
a backspin return (a “push”) is a way to jockey for position, and against many
players, it is quite effective. However, it gives the opponent the opportunity to
attack (especially with a loop drive), and so should not be overused.

There are also many defensive players who back off the table and return
topspin attacks with backspin (“chop”) returns. Again, this gives the opponent
the opportunity to attack, but some players do quite well this way, returning ball
after ball with backspin until the opponent either misses or gives an easy ball to
put away.

Sidespin
Sidespin is used primarily when serving. The purpose is to try to force an
opponent into returning the ball off the side, or into returning the ball where you
want him to. Also, since sidespin jumps off the paddle relatively quickly, it forces
opponents into hitting many off the end as well as off the side. Often sidespin
serves are disguised as backspin serves, and opponents push them back, and
go off the side. Sidespin is also mixed with topspin when serving to force
mistakes – opponents have to worry about going off the side and going off the
end.

Sidespin is not used much during a rally except at the higher levels. Top players
sidespin loop, sidespin lob and sidespin push. Beginning and intermediate
players should learn to do these shots early on as well. That way, when they
reach the higher levels, they’ll be able to control these shots.
Corkscrewspin

Corkscrewspin is not too common in table tennis, and is usually only used by
advanced players when serving. It is difficult to produce except with a high-toss
serve (i.e. a serve where the ball is tossed 6-10 feet or more into the air).
Sometimes, a player out of position will scoop a ball off the floor, and when the
ball hits the table, it jumps sideways because of corkscrewspin. Lobs and
counterloops also may have this type of spin.
When done on the serve, it can be very effective. When the ball hits the far side
of the table, it jumps sideways, throwing an opponent off. Additionally, an
opponent ’s instincts for returning corkscrewspin are often off. Suppose you
serve with a corkscrewspin so that the ball is rotating clockwise as it travels
away from you. If your opponent hits under the ball (a push), the ball will jump to
your right. If your opponent hits toward the top of the ball (a drive), the ball will
jump to your left. Imagine the rotation of the ball and which way it jumps on
contact with an opponent’s paddle, and you’ll see.
No-spin

No -spin serves are extremely effective because it is relatively easy to fake spin,
but put no spin on the ball. If you can convince your opponent to react to a spin
that isn’t there, you don’t need to put spin on the ball.
Most often, players fake a backspin serve, but contact the ball near the handle
(where the racket moves slowest) and just pat the ball over the net with a
vigorous but non-spin producing serve. If you use a big wrist snap after contact,
and a big follow-through, your opponent will probably think there is spin on the
ball – when it’s actually “heavy no-spin”!
In a rally, no-spin is also used to fool opponents into thinking there is spin on
the ball. Most players open their rackets when returning a backspin push, so if
you give them a no-spin push, they will pop the ball up. Similarly, you can fool
players by using a no -spin loop.

Another good use of no-spin is with a fast serve. If your opponent thinks your
fast serve has topspin, he closes his racket slightly. If the serve actually is no-
spin, the ball goes into the net. What makes this effective is that the serve must
be fast enough so that the opponent doesn’t have time to react to the ball’s spin
(or non-spin).

A ball with spin will jump off the paddle with energy both from the ball ’s velocity
and its spin. A no -spin ball has no spin, and so bounces out slower. This means
that players often put no-spin balls in the net because the ball doesn’t bounce
out as fast as they expect. Similarly, players often put spin balls off the end by
not taking the extra bounce from the spin into account.

Creating Spin
Spin is created at two times: when serving, or when rallying. The main
difference is that when serving, you are in complete control of the ball – you can
toss it up just the way you want to. In a rally, the ball comes at you in different
ways that you have to react to.

To create a good spin, you need three things: racket speed, a grazing contact,
and a grippy racket surface. (With a non-grippy surface, you can’t put as much
spin on the ball, but you can return an opponent ’s spin – but that’s not quite the
same as creating spin.)
It’s important to be loose and relaxed if you want to create a good spin. If your
muscles are tight, your muscles won’t work together properly, and you’ll get little
spin. Imagine hitting something with a whip, and then with a rigid stick. Notice
how the tip of the whip travels much faster than the tip of the stick? That’s the
difference between loose, relaxed muscles and stiff (stick-like) muscles.

Service Spin
There are an infinite number of service motions where you can put spin on the
ball – but that’s outside the context of this article. What we want to go over are
the principles behind getting that spin when serving.

To get maximum spin, you should use a grippy inverted surface. A less grippy
surface, such as pips -out, can create spin, but substantially less. To really spin
that ball, you need a surface that really grips the ball.
You need the racket to really be moving at contact – you want to accelerate the
racket through the ball. With whatever service motion you use, you need to start
with the arm moving, and then snap the wrist as you contact the ball. Most of
the racket speed comes from the wrist – perhaps 70% – so work on using as
much wrist as you can.
Lastly, you need to just graze the ball at contact. The finer the contact, the more
spin you will get. Top players with really spinny serves can be almost violent as
they move their racket to the ball during the serve – yet, since they only graze
the ball, the ball moves very slowly, often barely making it to the net. Nearly all
of their energy is being used to create spin, not speed. It will take practice. Get
a bucket of balls, and go practice!

A good way to practice getting spin on the serve is to serve onto the floor, away
from the table. Try to put spin on the ball so the ball bounces sideways or
backward on the floor. If you put a good backspin on the ball, it should bounce a
few times away from you, come to a stop, then bounce or roll back at you! If you
put a good sidespin, it should bounce sideways after a few bounces. Put some
targets on the floor and try to spin the ball so it bounces around the targets.
(Theoretically, a pure sidespin would not bounce sideways, because its axis of
rotation is on the bottom of the ball, so there would be no sideways bounce.
However, in bouncing on the table, the axis will move backward, creating a
slight corkscrewspin and thus a sideways jump on the second bounce. Isn’t that
simple?)

Rallying Spin
During a rally, you normally will use mostly topspins and backspins, with an
occasional no -spin or sidespin thrown in.
Most drives have some topspin, but when you want to really produce a heavy
topspin, you have to loop the ball. To really get a good topspin, you need to use
your entire body, like a tennis player. The technique for looping is outside the
scope of this article, but the principles are the same as when serving – racket
speed, grazing and a grippy surface. Also, see above about relaxed, loose
muscles – be a whip, not a stick!

The nice thing about looping, and topspin in general, is that not only does the
topspin give you a wider margin for error, but the topspin often sets you up to
attack the next ball as well. Especially on the forehand side, players learn to
loop or drive the ball over and over until they see an easy ball to put away, or
the opponent misses.

Topspin is also used when lobbing. A high ball with a lot of topspin (and often
sidespin) can be hard to smash. The topspin makes the ball take a fast bounce
off the table, and the topspin will make it jump out when it hits your racket. At
the higher levels, lobbing is one of the most spectacular shots, but it can be
quite effective against many players.

Backspin is used during a rally when pushing or chopping. A push is a

defensive or neutral backspin shot against an incoming backspin shot. Many
players are very good at attacking pushes, so choose when to use this shot
carefully. Many players overuse it, especially when returning serves – often
trying to push even against a sidespin or topspin serve! (Which leads to
disastrous return high in the air, off the end or off the side.) However, a good
push can be pretty valuable. The key is to make sure it is an effective push.
Learn to put a good backspin on the ball, keep the ball low, and push to a wide
angle. You should also learn to push quick off the bounce (so the opponent has
less time to react), and perhaps to push short by just touching the ball lightly (so
that it bounces very short on the other side of the table, making it hard to
attack). At the highest levels, most players often push short. But this is a tricky
shot, so I’d recommend learning a good deep push first. If you are pushing
deep, try to push very deep, so the ball goes within at least a foot of the endline.
Sidespin is used in rallies mostly by relatively advanced players. It can be used
when pushing, blocking, looping or counterlooping. It is used basically to throw
the opponent off and force a mistake. (Jan-Ove Waldner, probably the greatest
player of all time, is a master at this – he is famous for sidespin blocks and
sidespin pushes.) When looping, especially against a block or a topspin
(especially when counterlooping), you should usually put some sidespin on the
ball, normally so that the ball curves to the left (for righties). A stroke with about
15% sidespin is more natural than trying to loop with pure topspin. Advanced
players can sidespin both ways.

Reading Spin
The singles hardest thing to learn to do in table tennis is to learn to read spin,
especially against a good serve. Because there are no simple, easy-to-follow
methods, it takes a lot of practice and experience. However, many players play
for years and never gain this experience because they don’t understand the
principles of reading spin. Although it is best to read spin from the racket ’s
contact with the ball, you can’t always do that perfectly. You should use a
number of pieces of “evidence” to really read the spin. What follows are eight
factors take into account when trying to read spin, especially when returning
serve.
1) The grippiness of the racket surface the opponent is using.

Inverted racket surfaces usually give the most spin, but inverted surfaces run
the range from extremely grippy surfaces that will create huge amounts of spin
to very slick surfaces that will not (antispin). Pips -out surfaces will not create as
much spin as a grippy inverted surface, but most shorter pips can create a
moderate spin. Longer pips normally don ’t create too much spin. (Note the
difference between creating spin and returning an opponent ’s spin – item 8)
below.)

2) The amount of spin from the racket ’s contact with the ball.
The amount of spin is related directly to the racket’s speed and grazing motion
at contact (in addition to the grippiness of the racket surface). The faster the
racket is moving at contact, and the more the racket grazes the ball, the more
spin. You should be able to see the racket speed, but make sure you are
watching the part of the racket that is actually contacting the ball. Many players
use a fast racket motion, making it seem like there is a lot of spin, but contact
the ball near the racket ’s hand, where the racket isn’t moving as fast. The result
is less spin, which is effective if the opponent thinks there is more spin on the
ball.

You can tell how much the opponent has grazed the ball in several ways. First,
see how fast the ball came off the racket. If the racket was moving very fast at
contact, but the ball came out slowly, the energy had to go somewhere – it went
into spin, via a grazing motion. Second, see how the racket approached the ball
at contact – you can see if it was a grazing contact, if you watch closely. Third,
the sound gives it away. A grazing motion is very quiet, with at most a high-
pitched “hissing” sound. If there’s a “thumping” sound, there is less spin.
3) The type of spin from the direction of contact with the ball.

The type of spin comes directly from the direction the racket is moving at
contact with the ball. Often, this is easy to tell – just watch which direction the
racket is moving at contact. It gets tricky, however, when the opponent uses a
“semicircular” motion. This means the racket changes direction during the
serving motion. Your mission is to try to see what direction the racket was
moving at contact.
There are two ways of doing this. First, you can try to get a very short “video” of
the contact in your mind, and from that, see what direction the racket was
moving at contact. If you can learn to create this video in your mind, soon you’ll
be able to pick up the contact more consistently. Second, try to see which
direction the ball comes off the racket. If it comes up slightly, it is topspin; if it
comes off sideways, it is sidespin, etc. However, since the racket may be
moving very fast, it is not always that easy to judge this.
In both cases, when you are learning how to read the type of spin, call out to
yourself (in your mind or out loud, if your opponent puts up with it!) the type of
spin on each serve, until it becomes second nature.
4) How the ball bounces on the table.

If you aren’t sure of the spin from racket contact, you can pick it up from the way
the ball bounces on both sides of the table. If the ball has topspin, it will take a
low, fast bounce. If it has backspin, it will tend to die and bounce short. If it has
sidespin or (especially) corkscrewspin, it will bounce sideways.
5) How the ball travels through the air.

You can read the ball’s spin from its flight in the air. A topspin arcs through the
air and drops rapidly. A backspin tends to float, with a flatter arc. A sidespin
curves sideways. A corkscrewspin doesn’t curve much in the air, but its
sideways bounce off the table makes it appear to do so.

6) Seeing the ball spin (or not spin) itself.

You can read the spin (or non-spin) from the ball itself. Some players can read
a no -spin ball by seeing the label. Many advanced players claim to be able to
read directly off the ball, most likely from how blurred the ball’s label is. This is
not easy to do, and while some players claim they can do this, others claim it is
impossible.
7) Amount and type of spin on previous similar serves/shots.

Even if you can’t read the spin from any of the above indicators, you can read it
from experience. If you misread a spin one time, the next time you see that
motion – even if you can ’t really read it – you can guess it is the same spin. For
example, if you think you see a backspin serve, but every time you return it, it
pops up or goes off the end, you are probably misreading a topspin. When you
see this “backspin” motion again, put aside your natural reflex, and treat it like a
topspin. The major problem with this, of course, is that your opponent might
vary the spin with a similar motion – and if you aren’t really reading the spin,
you ’ll have great trouble reading any changes. So use past indicators to make
corrections to your reading of spin, but only in combination with the above
indicators, or as a last resort.
8) In a rally, how much spin was already on the ball, and how much of it is
being returned.
If you put spin on the ball, your opponent might simply return your spin back to
you. This happens most often if your opponent has a less grippy surface,
especially long pips. Surfaces such as long pips (but also short pips and
antispin) can return your own spin back to you. For example, if you put a heavy
topspin on the ball, a player with long pips can give you all of your spin right
back at you without doing much. A player with a more grippy surface can also
return your own spin, but to a much lesser degree.

Handling Spin
Handling spin is mostly an exercise in racket angles and stroke direction. For
every spin, there is a racket angle that will compensate for it. There is also a
stroke direction that will compensate for it. Choosing which to use is the
question. In general, use an upward stroke and open racket to compensate for
backspin, while using mostly racket angle to compensate for other spins. (Open
racket means aim racket upward; closed racket means aim racket downward.)

Against a sidespin, the more aggressive you are, the less the spin will “take” on
your racket, and so the less it will affect you. The softer your contact, the more
the ball will jump – so tentative players often have more trouble with spin than
aggressive players.
When learning to read spin on a serve, it’s a good idea to wait on the ball, and
take it as late as possible to give yourself more time to react. As you improve,
you should start taking the ball quicker. However, even advanced players often
take the ball later against a player with tricky serves.

Here is a rundown on how to return the various spins.

Topspin: Close your racket (i.e. aim the hitting surface downward). This will
compensate for the tendency to hit the ball of the end or pop it up. Against a
heavy topspin, you’ll most likely use a simple block to return the shot. Take the
ball quick off the bounce – otherwise, you’ll have to contend with the ball’s low,
fast bounce.
Backspin. Open your racket (i.e. aim the hitting surface upward). This will
compensate for the tendency to hit the ball into the net. If you are topspinning,
stroke upward and lift the ball upward. This is the perfect time to loop with
heavy topspin!
Sidespin . Aim the opposite way. A good rule to remember when returning
sidespin serves is to aim in the direction the server ’s racket came from. If you
return the sidespin somewhat aggressively with a topspin, you can treat the
incoming sidespin almost like it were a topspin, ignoring the sidespin.

Corkscrewspin . Anticipate the sideways bounce on the table, and be in

position for it. Don ’t get too caught up trying to learn how to handle this spin too
much as it is usually only seen at the higher levels. However, it is interesting to
note that if you push against a corkscrewspin (with an open racket, hitting
toward the bottom of the ball), the ball will bounce sideways off the racket. If you
topspin it back (with a closed racket, hitting toward the top of the ball), the ball
will bounce off your racket in the opposite direction. Imagine the incoming spin
and how it will “grab” your racket based on whether you hit toward the top or
bottom of the ball, and you ’ll see this.

What Makes A Spinning Ball Curve In The Air?

Now we get into serious science, so those less science-minded, here’s your cue
to leave and go practice!

Imagine a ball with topspin. As it travels through the air, the forward movement
of the top of the ball forces air forward (or more precisely, slows down the
movement of air over the top of the ball). This causes air to be “clumped”
together toward the front top of the ball, creating an area of high air density.
Similarly, the backward movement of the bottom of the ball pulls air backward
quickly, creating an area of low air density toward the front bottom of the ball.
The high density air mass at the top of the ball forces the ball downward; the
low density air mass at the bottom of the ball “vacuums” it downward. The
result: the ball drops. That ’s what makes a ball with topspin drop. The same
applies to all spins, but as the spin orientation changes, the movement of the
ball changes. For example, a sidespin creates a high-air density area on one
side of the ball, a low -air density on the other, which forces the ball to curve
sideways.
Backspin doesn’t really curve up, but that ’s because of gravity. The backspin is
pulling the ball up; gravity is pulling it down. The result is a ball that tends to
travel in a line at first (to float) before the backspin is finally overcome by
gravity.

Conclusion
Spin is the biggest difference between “basement” stars and advanced players.
Players may learn to rally better than others, but if they can’t handle spin – or
create their own – they ’re at a huge disadvantage. Learn to use and handle
spin, and you’ll quickly leave the basement players (and most tournament
players) behind. Get Spinning!
 UNDERSTANDING SPIN
Larry Thoman

Excerpts from Newgy Robo-Pong 2000 Player's Instructional Manual

More so than any other sport, table tennis is a game of spin. In order to be
successful at table tennis, you must learn about and understand the different
types of spin and how to counteract the effects of these spins on your racket.
There are two general ways to contact a ball with a racket. The first is by using
force; in other words, the racket is forced through the path of the ball in a
manner similar to hitting a baseball with a bat. The primary result of force is
forward direction or speed. This is often the only way that beginners and novice
players have learned to contact a ball.
The second way to contact a ball is by using friction-to contact the ball with a
brushing motion so the rubber grabs the ball and makes the ball rotate. The
primary result of striking the ball using friction is spin. The type of spin produced
depends on the racket angle and the direction the racket is traveling.
Top players primarily use friction to contact the ball. They apply spin to almost
every shot, sometimes severe amounts of spin. Robo-Pong 2000 simulates the
play of a top player-it produces spin on every shot it delivers. Untrained players
often comment that the robot's spin seems unusually strong. While this is true
for an untrained player, a trained, competitive player thinks the robot's spin is
quite normal. So if the spin seems strong at first, bear with it and you'll soon
adjust by following the suggestions and lessons later in this manual. Table
tennis is much more exciting and dynamic when you can produce your own spin
and control your opponent's spin.

The figures below are simple explanations of the four major types of spins-
topspin, backspin, right sidespin, and left sidespin. Each type of spin has two
figures. The first figure shows what happens when a particular spin contacts a
vertical, still racket. The second figure shows how to correct your racket angle
to compensate for the effect of the spin on your racket.

Topspin is normally produced by making your racket travel from low to high
while brushing the upper surface of the ball. Topspin has a dipping effect on the
flight of the ball. For this reason, a ball carrying topspin can be hit with full force
because the spin will cause the ball to dip down and hit the table instead of
going off the end of the table. When the ball hits the table, the topspin grabs on
the table surface, which both compounds the dipping effect and slightly
increases ball speed. Topspin is considered to be offensive in most cases.

When topspin strikes a vertical racket, the spin will grab on the rubber surface
and rebound upward, usually quite high and off the far end of the table. To
correct for topspin and make the ball go back low over the net, tilt the leading
racket face down toward the table and contact the ball on its upper surface. The
more topspin on the ball, the more the racket needs to be tilted down. (See
Figures G & H )

Figure G: Flight of Topspin Ball

Topspin is produced by racket traveling from low to high, striking the ball on its
upper surface. Trajectory is arched. Ball dips after bouncing and rebounds
upward after striking a vertical racket.
 Figure H: Correction for Topspin
Since topspin causes the ball to rebound up after contacting a vertical racket, it
is necessary to tilt the leading racket face down toward the table and contact
the ball on its upper surface. The correct racket angle will send the ball back
low to the net. It is not necessary to move the racket forward to make the ball
go back across the net.

Figure I: Flight of Backspin Ball

Backspin is produced by racket traveling from high to low, striking the ball on
its lower surface. Trajectory is flat. Ball rises slightly after bouncing and
rebounds downward after striking a vertical racket.

Figure J: Correction for Backspin

Since backspin causes the ball to rebound down when it strikes a vertical
racket, it is necessary to tilt the leading racket face up toward the ceiling and
contact the ball on its lower surface, sometimes actually on its bottom. It is also
necessary to add some forward direction to your racket to make the ball go
over the net.

An important fact to remember about topspin is it takes almost no effort to

counteract its effect on the racket. You only need to angle the racket correctly.
The topspin will cause the ball to go back across the net on its own. No force
needs to be applied to your racket other than the effort it takes to tilt the racket.
Backspin is generated by making your racket travel from high to low and
brushing the ball on its lower surface. Backspin has a floating or rising effect on
the ball. When the ball hits the table, the backspin grabs on the table, slowing
the ball and making it rise slightly. It's very difficult use full force when doing a
backspin return because the harder you hit it, the more it rises and it tends sail
off the far end of the table. Backspin is almost always considered defensive.

When backspin strikes a vertical racket, the spin grabs onto the rubber and the
ball rebounds almost straight down. The ball seems to die and lose all of its
speed and spin. To correct for backspin, and make the ball go back low over the
net, Tilt the racket face up toward the ceiling and contact the ball on its lower
surface while pushing the racket gently forward. The more backspin, the more
the racket must be tilted up and the more towards the bottom you must contact
the ball. (See Figures I & J )

Backspin is unlike topspin in that you must provide some forward momentum to
make your return clear the net. It is more difficult and takes more energy to
attack a ball with backspin because the ball has a tendency to go down. The
lifting action necessary to make the ball clear the net takes away from the
amount of forward force you can apply when attacking a backspin ball.In
general, a topspin ball will be easier to attack than a backspin one. If you're a
defensive player, backspin should be your spin of choice because it makes it
harder for your opponent to attack forcefully. Right sidespin is created when
your opponent brushes his racket across the ball from your right to your left.
This spin has a curving effect on the flight of the ball. After leaving your
opponent's racket, the ball will momentarily hook to your left, then curve to your
right. When it hits the table, the spin grabs, and the ball jumps out and curves to
your right.

When right sidespin strikes a vertical racket, the spin grabs onto the rubber and
jumps quickly to your left. To correct for right sidespin, the leading racket face
must be angled to the right and you must contact the ball on its left surface.
(See Figures K & L )
Left sidespin is produced when your opponent brushes across the ball with his
racket from your left to your right. Left sidespin is exactly like right sidespin, but
in reverse. Left sidespin hooks to your right, then curves to your left. When left
sidespin hits a vertical racket, it rebounds to the left. To correct for this spin,
angle your racket to the left and contact the ball on its right surface. (See
Figures M & N )
Sidespins are seldomly used in their pure form in table tennis. Normally they are
combined with topspin or backspin to produce a combination spin such as right
sidespin/topspin or left sidespin/backspin. Combining two spins produces the
effects of both, but to a lesser degree than if they were in their pure forms.

Figure K: Flight of Right

Sidespin Ball
Right sidespin is produced by
your opponent's racket traveling
from your right to your left.
Trajectory is curved. Ball curves
to your right after bouncing. Ball
rebounds to your left after
striking a vertical racket.
Figure L: Correction for Right
Sidespin
Since right sidespin causes the
ball to rebound to the left when it
strikes a vertical racket, it is
necessary to tilt the leading
racket face to the right and
contact the ball to the left of its
middle.
Figure M: Flight of Left
Sidespin Ball
Left sidespin is produced by your
opponent's racket traveling from
your left to your right. Trajectory
is curved. Ball curves to your
right after bouncing. Ball
rebounds to your right after
striking a vertical racket.
Figure N: Correction for Left
Sidespin

Since left sidespin causes the

ball to rebound to the left when it
strikes a vertical racket, it is
necessary to tilt the leading
racket face to the right and
contact the ball to the left of its
middle.

For example, a ball with right sidespin/topspin will both dip and curve to the right
as it is comes toward you, particularly after it bounces on your side. To correct
for this combination spin, it is necessary to contact the ball on its left upper
surface by tilting the racket down and angling it to the right.
Understanding spin and its effects is crucial to a player's success in table
tennis. The player with greater mastery of spin will almost always control the
play. By using spin, you can limit the responses of your opponent and make him
play your game. Two important table tennis skills to develop are:

(1) Be able to instantly judge the type and amount of spin on the ball. Deduce
the type of spin by carefully watching the direction your opponent's racket is
traveling when it contacts the ball. Deduce the amount of spin from the speed of
your opponent's racket at contact and the type of rubber being used. The faster
your opponent's racket is going at contact and the finer his graze of the ball, the
more spin he can apply to the ball.
Rubbers vary in their ability to spin the ball primarily because of the grippiness
of their top surface. In general, inverted rubber is grippier and will produce more
spin than pips -out rubbers. But even within these two broad categories of
rubber, the spin producing capabilities of rubber will vary widely. If in doubt, test
the grippiness of an unknown rubber by running a ball across its surface and
comparing it to your own rubber.

(2) Once you determine the type and amount of spin, be able to instantly adjust
your racket angle to correct for the spin's effect on your rubber. The tension of
your grip, the looseness of your wrist, the flexibility of your forearm, and the
position of your body all play major roles in developing this important skill.
 TWO STEP FOOTWORK
By: Larry Hodges, USATT Certified National Coach

Illustrations courtesy of Tamasu Co., copyright 2001.

Two-Step Footwork to the left.

Two-Step Footwork to the right.

There are several styles of footwork for various types of moves, but the most
popular and versatile is called two-step footwork. It can be used for nearly all
moves, especially side to side, and is used by most of the best players in the
world as the easiest and most efficient.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty about two-step footwork, a few general
principles for all footwork should be noted. First, weight should be on the balls
of the feet. This keeps the player ready to move in all directions. Second, stay in
a slight crouch, knees slightly bent. This enables a player to spring in any
direction very quickly.

Two-Step Footwork

Two -step footwork is ideal for moving side to side to get to the ball. It can be
used to cover the wide forehand corner with the forehand, to cover the wide
backhand corner with the backhand, and to cover the wide backhand corner
with the forehand. (Note that when covering the wide backhand with the
backhand, a single step with the near foot will usually do.)

Two -step footwork is pretty much identical whether you are going to the left or
to the right. Here we will explain how a player moves to his left. To move to the
right, just reverse left and right.

Start by taking a short step, about six inches or so, with the left foot. This puts
your legs farther apart and gets your momentum going.

Now pull with the left leg, letting your weight transfer onto your left leg. Move
both feet together to the left, remembering to pull with the left leg instead of
pushing with the right. (Of course, since most of your weight is on the left leg,
you can ’t push with the right leg without putting weight on it.) Use the
momentum from the short step to pull your body to the left.

Both feet should move together, coming closer together in the middle of the
motion but ending up with your feet at the same distance apart as at the start of
the motion. Your right foot should end up about where the left foot was after the
short step.
The whole movement might also be called a “step-jump,” since if you are doing
it correctly the second part of the movement is essentially a jump. With practice,
it should feel natural.
 FOOTWORK
Excerpts from Larry Thoman's Newgy Robo-Pong 2000 Player's Instructional
Manual

This chapter is intended for those who need assistance in moving to the ball. If
you can perform a stroke well while keeping your feet in one spot, but you lose
consistency when you start practicing the stroke with foot movement, then you
need to improve your footwork. When learning footwork, slowly shadow practice
several sets of the described footwork until you get the hang of it. Then combine
practicing footwork with a particular stroke or combination of strokes using the
robot to deliver balls to different points on the table.

Having proper footwork greatly assists in executing good strokes. With proper
footwork, a player will move into good position and then execute his strokes
from a solid, balanced stance. This leads to consistency, quickness, and being
able to use full power. Without good footwork, a player will reach, lean, and hit
the ball from an unbalanced position. Strokes end up being jerky and erratic,
more like slaps than strokes.

In table tennis, you won't have to cover a lot of ground, but you will have to
move to a spot very quickly. Therefore, most table tennis footwork consists of
one or two steps, usually fairly short. During all footwork, it is crucial to stay
balanced. Always start your foot movement from the balanced ready position.

Place your weight on the balls of your feet with your heels lightly touching the
ground. Keep your shoulders centered over your knees. Eliminate any up and
down movement. Move the instant the opponent has committed to his shot, not
before. Move to where the ball will come before starting your stroke. Avoid
stroking while moving.

For side -to -side movement, you may use one-step, two-step, or three -step
footwork.

One-step footwork is normally used for short distances, two-step for medium
distances, and three-step for long distances. One-step footwork is very common
when moving left to cover a wide backhand. It is performed by simply shifting
your weight to your right leg and pushing your left foot further to the left. Vice
versa if you want to go to the right. One big disadvantage of one-step footwork
is it can leave you in a "stretched out" position if you have to move more than a
foot or two. Once stretched out, it is difficult to get ready for the next shot.

The two-step footwork is the most common form of footwork. It is used to get
into forehand position for balls to your wide forehand two -step footwork, you
lean on your right leg, pull your left foot toward your right foot, then quickly shift
your right foot to the right. You end up with your feet in the same relative
position as when you started the movement except 2-3 feet further to the right.
It is a side-skipping type of movement.

Three -step footwork is used to cover shots hit deep to the forehand comer,
angled off the wide forehand sideline, or to step out wide on your backhand side
to hit a forehand. It is very similar to the two -step except an additional small
step is made before both feet are shifted. To move right, take a small step with
your right foot to the right (6 to 8 inches), shift your weight to your right leg, then
perform a two -step movement.

Figure O: Footwork Diagrams

Below are diagrams showing how to place and move the feet for one -step, two-
step, and three-step footwork. The diagrams are for a right-handed player. You
should practice these patterns until they become second nature. When
practicing, remember to stay balanced and in a good ready position. Strive to
keep your shoulders level and on the same plane (no up and down movement
of the body and no dipping or raising of one shoulder).
TO MOVE LEFT TO MOVE RIGHT

One Step Footwork

Two Step Footwork

Three Step Footwork

 PLAYING CHOPPERS
By Larry Hodges, USATT Certified National Coach

There is nothing more infuriating than losing to a patient chopper who lets you
beat yourself with your own errors. Losing to a chopper is like four-putting in
golf; you may have made some good drives to get to the green, but all you
remember are the misses at the end. Rather than four-putting forever, let’s learn
how to beat the chopper.
A chopper is weakest in the middle, but you have more table (and so more
margin for error) by going diagonally to a corner. Going for a winner down the
line often catches the chopper by surprise. A chopper who is not particularly fast
is vulnerable at the corners; a chopper with inverted on both sides is more
vulnerable in the middle. Keep these "basics" in mind when playing any of the
following styles. There are three general ways of playing a chopper. Informally
they are called European style, Asian style, and Chiseling.

European Style
The goal here is to bring the chopper in close to the table, and then attack hard,
especially at the chopper’s middle. The chopper is too close to the table to
make the return, and so misses. When using this technique, you should mostly
serve short to bring the chopper in, and try to follow with a strong attack.
Sometimes, however, fake the attack, and push short instead - the chopper, in
his haste to back up for the expected attack, will have trouble with this ball, and
will often have to make a last-second lunge to return it. Even if he makes the
return (often a weak one), he will be left jammed over the table and vulnerable
to the next ball, which you can promptly loop for a winner. If the chopper stays
closer to the table to guard against this drop shot, then you attack. The chopper
has absolutely no way of answering this ... in theory.
During a rally, if the chopper makes a good return from away from the table,
push short again, and start over. The object in a rally is to catch the chopper too
far away from the table or moving backward so that you can drop the ball short,
force him to rush in, and attack when he is jammed up against the table.
Alternatively, you can push a few balls, keeping the chopper close to the table,
and then attack when you think he’s not expecting it.

Asian Style
The goal here is to control the spin and pace of the rally. This method is
especially good against a long-pipped chopper, but takes regular practice
against a chopper to learn to do effectively. Pips-out players are especially good
at this style, but many good inverted players also play this way. This style
doesn’t work well against an all-inverted chopper who chops very heavy. Let’s
assume you are playing a long-pipped chopper.
Here the aim is to get the chopper off the table, and then attack relatively softly
over and over, into the long pips side, but not with full spin. The chopper can
only return whatever spin you give him because of the long pips, and so their
returns are not particularly heavy, making your continuous soft attack easy.
After topspinning a few balls, you find one you like and loop or smash a winner.
Depending on what you are more comfortable with, you can topspin many balls
in a row before going for a winner, or only a few - be unpredictable. Some
players just topspin over and over, not going for a winner unless they get a very
easy one. You should try to vary your spin, sometimes looping very dead,
sometimes spinny. However, beware of varying spin returns when you vary your
own spin. For example, when you give heavy topspin, expect heavy chop, and
so either lift the ball more on next shot, or push and start over. Don’t fall into the
trap of spinning heavily over and over – a chopper loves it, and all you’ll get are
heavy chop returns, which can be very difficult to loop consistently.
You can mix in pushing, but too much pushing will throw your own timing off. By
topspinning over and over to the long pips side (but not with full spin), you can
build up a rhythm that a chopper will have difficulty breaking.
Try to get down to almost eye level with the ball by bending your knees. This
will help your consistency by making the lifting easier and will get your eyes
closer to the ball so you see it better.

Chiseling
I am not fond of this style. This basically means pushing with the chopper until
the chopper either misses, pops up an easy one, or gets impatient and attacks
too much. At the higher levels, chiseling is rare, but at the lower and medium
levels, it is more common. Since I’m a strong believer that the game has to be
FUN (it is a game!), I don ’t like this way of winning. Unless you’re a chopper
yourself (in which case SOMEONE’s got to push, and it might as well be you),
I’d rather see a player lose by attacking in some way. You may lose now, but
you ’ll learn how to play a chopper better in future matches.
 TIPS FOR BEATING A CHOPPER

1. Place your attacks at the center of the table. Attack at his elbow / pocket /
body. Stay away from both his wings.
2. Move him close / far to table. Use drop shots when he is very far from
table.
3. Do not put much spin on your shots if you can't handle they when come
with reversed spin. If you send heavy topspin you'll receive heavy
backspin.
4. Loop with a high arc with an upward motion. Your primary goal should be
keep the ball in play, while looking for a chance to score.
5. If he's serving with long pips, his serves can't be spiny. Learn to kill them.
6. He probably can't attack against topspin well, but can attack backspin.
7. No spin can be hard to handle for some long pips. See if you can make
him miss.
8. Try to cover the entire table with you forehand if you are fast enough. Get
into ready position as soon as you know where the ball is going.
 PLAYING AGAINST LONG PIMPLES

Part 1 : Key Thoughts and the Long Pimpled Effect

The Best Way to get to grips with the surface is to assume that:
Long pimples do not put any spin on the ball at all, they return your own
spin to you.
This leads to the somewhat surprising result (see the diagram):

If you do a topspin - the ball will come back with backspin

If you do a chop( or a push) - the ball will come back with mild topspin

You do a forehand drive which

You do a chop
produces topspin

The ball is rotating clockwise. then

The ball is rotating anticlockwise
The long pimpled player does a then
block. The long pimpled player does a
block.

The pimples have no effect on the

The ball is still rotating
spin, so the ball is still rotating in a
anticlockwise.
clockwise direction.
This means it will be returned to So the return will look like a
you with backspin. topspin to you

Your chops and pushes only come back with a small amount of topspin
because your chops and pushes will only contain a small amount of spin, much
less spin than your hits.
Although a block is shown in the diagrams the effect is the same regardless of
the movement of the pimpled bat. And herein lies the problem because your
experience tells you that if your opponent does an upward movement of the bat
there will be topspin on the ball and if he does a downward movement there will
be backspin on it.
You will judge the amount of spin by many factors such as the speed of the
arm, the path of the arm etc. all this information will be assessed by the brain in
a split second and will be the result of knowledge gained over many hours of
play. In fact one of the reason why we practice is to be able to make these sort
of judgement automatically.

But when playing against long pimples, your experience lets you down. It is not
what your opponent does with his bat that is important but what you did with
your last shot. So you have got to re-train your brain and try to remember what
you did with your last shot.
Surprisingly this is not very easy, and even after you train yourself to do it, you
will often forget and make the most basic and, seemingly, simple mistakes.
When this happens don't panic just keep calm and try to recollect what you
should be doing and have the confidence and courage to act accordingly.

Now I am going the make the statement which, I am sure,many people will
disagree with. I think it is largely true but in any cases it is the best thought to
have in your head.

The harder you hit the ball the more topspin will be on it
This means

The harder you hit the ball the more backspin you will receive back
This last statement needs to be borne in mind when playing against long
pimpled defenders.

So a slow hit will contain a small amount of of topspin and any long pimpled
return will contain a small amount of backspin. A hard hit will contain a lot of
topspin and so a long pimpled return will contain a lot of backspin.
These last two sentences are very important, and they should give you a clue
as to how to play against long pimples. We will come back to them later.
In the next part we will look at some typical rallies and see how things can go
wrong when playing against long pimples. In the meantime study the diagrams
and memorize the key thoughts because they are at the heart of the long
pimpled effect.

Part 2 : Long Pimpled Defenders - the core of the problem

We now come to what is probably the core of the difficulties encountered by

attacking players when playing against long pimples. I am illustrating these
difficulties by analysing a number of rallies between you, a modern attacking
player, and a long pimpled defender - Mr. Pimps. The rallies are typical of the
sort of thing I have seen many times in encounters between these types of
players.

First two comments:

when you play a defensive player you will often get points early on in the game
with hard hits, but as the game goes on the defensive player will get the
measure of your hits and get them back. I have assumed this has happened
when the score is 5-5. It is unlikely that when you play a game you will analyse
each shot as I indicated in the table. Most of the time you will judge each shot
automatically using your experience. But when playing against pimples you
have got to think more and put your experience aside.

The score is 5 all with Mr. Pimps to serve

Mr. Pimps You Result Reason

Score 5 -5
1. Serves - a long It goes off The chopping action
slow serve with a the end makes you think there is
chopping action chop on the ball so you
2. Try to hit it hard lift it; but, in fact, there is
no spin on it.
Score : 6-5
1. Serves You hit it The small amount of
2. you are more past him topspin you put on the
cautious and do a (you think ball with return of serve,
soft hit - it will you have shot 2, comes back to
contain a small cracked it) you as a gentle chop. In
amount of topspin fact just the amount of
3. Chops it back chop you would expect
from a normal bat with
4. Hit it hard the same action; so,
luckily, you judged it
correctly.
Score 6 -6
1. Serves It goes into Your first hard hit, shot
2. Another soft hit the bottom 4, contains a great deal
3. Chops it back of the net of topspin which is
4. Hit it hard returned to you as a
very heavy chop.
5. This time he
just scrambles it
back, but is out of
position. 6. Try to hit hard
again
Score 7 -6
1. Serves It goes off Your push, shot 6, will
2. Another soft hit
the end of contain a small amount
the table of backspin which will be
3. Chops it back returned to you as
topspin. But because of
4. Hit it hard the chopping action of
his bat, and the heavy
5. This time he backspin on the
just scrambles it previous shot, you still
back, but is out of think there is chop on
position. the ball, so you lift it off
6. This time you the end of the table.
push, lifting it to
allow for the chop

7. Pushes it back
with a chopping
action
8. Try to hit it hard
again
Score 8 -6
1. Serves Leaves you You are more cautious
2. Another soft hit standing and push his return. But
you still think there is
3. Chops it back chop on the ball, so you
4. Hit it hard lift it; it goes back high
giving him an easy
5. This time he smash.
just scrambles it
back, but is out of
position.
6. This time you
push, lifting it to
allow for the chop
7. Pushes it back
with a chopping
action
8. Push, it goes
back high
9. Smashes it
Score 9 -6
You are losing confidence but it's your serve now. You do your best, most
spinny serves, but you get your own spin back and make all sorts of mistakes.
You become more and more bamboozled and he runs out an easy winner.

During the game you are confused you just don't know what he's doing. You
watch his bat closely. If only you knew what he was doing you could combat it.
But that's just it he isn't doing anything, you are doing it all for him. The
more severe and diabolical things you throw at him the more severe and
diabolical things you will get back.
Look at the print at 7-6 and his shots 3, 5, 7. This is where your problems really
start. You get back a mild chop, a heavy chop and a mild topspin, and all from
what looks like the same shot from him - a fairly gentle chop. No wonder you
are confused. But remember, each time you are getting your own spin back so
you are digging your own grave.
 CHASING THE ELBOW

'Elbow' is referred as the point where a shakehand player changes his strokes
from forehand to backhand. All players have some problems to handle a ball
going fastly to this point. The better the player, of course, it would be much
easier for him to return this kind of balls, and he is more likely to step around
and hit it with a powerful stroke, but even at the higher levels, the quality of his
returns will be still lower in comparison with a return done with a 'clean'
forehand or backhand as he had to move get in position before playing his
stroke. My advice is to use this to your profit.

1. WHEN to do it:
When your opponent is close to table. When he is moving closer to the
table. When he is stepping around wrongly (overanticipating). When you
see a chance of doing it. Do it as a serve return if they serve short or
from a close to table position and he will almost NEVER attack that 3rd
ball.
2. WHY to do it:
To force a weak return. Most of the time the ball will come back, but it
will be a weak return, since your opponent had no time to step around
and loop, or done with a short or 'poor' arm swing. You can take
advantage of weak returns like this. Of course, if you can score from a
kill at his elbow, it's even better.
3. WHICH strokes are best to be placed at elbow:
Punch blocks against fast loops are the best, if your opponent is close to
table. Loops or flips are fine. Fast pushes are very good too if you are
pushing each other. Anything that gives your opponent little time to
react. Play off the bounce on his short balls, and he will look FREEZED.
If you are going for a hard shot, you have to know what are the chances
if has to come back. It it's 0%, place it far from your opponent, but if it's
(let's say) 30%, and you place it at your opponent's elbow, his return will
be weak, and you'll be able to hit it hard. No spin fast balls at elbow are
even more effective, same as sidespin, or any heavy spin. Learn to
serve at his elbow. Do so with sidespin or corkscrew so your opponent
is suddenly surprised by a second bounce that makes the ball jump to
his body.
4. WHERE is the elbow located:
If your opponent is on a ready position that is backhand oriented
(showing to you his backhand rubber), his elbow is somewhere between
his wrist and his elbow (this point is moving to the player's forehand if
he's more used to play backhand all the time). It is not at the same spot
for all players, so you'll have to find it during play. If he is on a ready
position that is forehand oriented, his elbow is at the point where he can
only hit the ball with his backhand, as closer as possible to his forehand.
Be careful: place the ball a bit more to his forehand, and he could step
around and loop. The grip that your opponent has, determines if his
style is forehand or backhand oriented, and that determines where the
elbow is located. Also, the elbow is moving according to his feet.
5. HOW to set up the rally to play a ball at his elbow:
You could, if you know that your opponent is weak against elbow ball,
chase his elbow in the following manner (that's an example, and that
can be done in a lot of ways): Play a long ball, then do one quick drop
shot, then one long ball at his elbow. The drop shot is the key here. I
don't recommend playing like this as a rule of thumb, but that can work
against certain players. I recommend to use elbow balls when you see a
chance of it.
6. WHO will hurt elbow balls the most:
Players with bad footwork. Players that play very close to table (This
ones can have its elbow at more extreme spots than usual). Long arm
swing players. Players with weak backhand or forehand (his elbow is
often a bit closer to his weak side). Players with poor ball control.
Players that let the ball drop before they play his stroke. Players with
certain shakehand grips that screw his wrist action.
7. WHAT nobody uses but is very effective:
High balls at elbow: Extremely difficult to do, since a high ball gives time
to your opponent to step around. If you can send a fast and high ball to
his elbow (almost to his shoulder), he can be in troubles, same as
penholders with high balls to his backhand.
 LIFT STROKES

Introduction
This is a very technical stroke that is very deceptive. It is difficult to execute and
also difficult for opponents to recognise and managed. It is only performed
against relatively heavy underspin. The primary objective of a player performing
this stroke is to "lift" the opponent's underspin back to him with little or no spin
at the point of returning it.The whole idea is to play a fast trick on your
opponent, making him to believe what is not true. Because table tennis is a fast
game that relatively depends on speed and spin, it requires quick decision
making and fast reflexes .You must act fast considering your opponent's stroke.

Executing Lift strokes

In the process of performing lift stroke, a very experience player pretends as if
he wants to loop an opponent's underspin but will only place his racket almost if
not completely horizontal (see diagram above) and lift the underspin ball across
the net. One important principle applicable is the fact that the stroke is by force
and not by friction. If there is friction, it should result to partial underspin. The
player's racket contacts the ball by taping it in an upward direction. what this
means is that the player must assume the position of looping an underspin
(down - up motion). If the opponent is deceived by this motion, he blocks the
partial underspin or a close to motionless no -spin and the resultant effect is that
the ball hits the net. Remember that you can only block top-spin drive/loop
strokes with speed and not underspin or "no-spin no-speed" stroke.

Explanation of "no-spin & no-speed" stroke

Take a look at the diagram above. When an opponent plays an underspin to
you by chopping (preferably deep chop), you lift the ball by taping upward; what
you are planning to do is to neutralise the spin, then the ball moves to your
opponent's court with a "slight" underspin. This situation retards the speed to a
great extent. The table surface drags the ball down and any attempt to block the
ball will result to hitting the net.

How to return lift strokes

What you need to do is to:

¡ Watch the player and observe if the stroke is by force or by friction. If it is

by force do not block.
¡ Watch the ball and observe the no -spin situation. Quickly counter. If you
are close to the table smash.

¡ Watch the ball and observe the slight under-spin situation. Quickly push. If
you are close to the table counter or smash.

The only remedy to successfully return 'Lift' stroke is to perform any other
strokes except blocking.
 FLIPPING? HOW TO ATTACK SHORT BALLS
By Larry Hodges

The flip is an aggressive return of a shortball-a ball that would land on your side
of the table twice if given the chance. It's most often used against short serves
and shourt pushes. On the backhand side, the flip is basically the same as a
backhand drive, but on the forehand it's different.
A flip can be done either crosscourt, down the line, or to the middle. Flip to your
opponent's weaker side most of the time (usually down the line to the
backhand), but usually go crosscourt whenever you go for a very aggressive flip
( so you'll have more margin for error.) An aggressive flip to a player's middle
(elbow) is also very effective, because your opponent may have trouble
deciding whether to return with a forehand or a backhand.

A flip is done against a ball that has landed short. If it lands short on the
forehand side, it can be awkward to reach. For this shot, you'll also need to
learn stepping -in footwork.

WHY IS THE FLIP IMPORTANT?

You could use a normal forehand drive against a short ball to the forehand, but
it would be awkward because the table is in the way. A Flip is less awkward and
more deceptive. But don't overuse the flip; just the threat of it makes your other
returns more effective. Too many flips and your opponent gets used to them.

EXECUTING THE FLIP

When your opponent serves or pushes short, you'll have to step in to flip. If you
reach over the table you'll be off balance and have trouble controlling the shot,
especially if you're short. Even tall players have to step in, or they too will not hit
their best shot. Most players have little trouble reaching a ball short to their
backhand but find it very awkward to deal with the short one the forehand
unless they step in.

If you're a step or so away from the table, step forward first with your left leg,
getting it close to the endline. If you're already close, don't move the left leg.
The longer your legs are, the easier stepping in will be.
Step in with your right leg under the table and toward the ball. Get the leg as far
under the table as you can comfortably. Most of your weight should now be on
the right foot. Reach over the table with the racket, with your body facing where
the contact will be. Against backspin, cock your wrist down and open the racket;
otherwise, cock your wrist straight back and keep the racket perpendicular to
the floor. Bring the racket to a position just behind the contact point.

Bring the racket forward with your elbow. Then snap your wrist forward (and
slightly up against backspin.) Your wrist should rotate at contact, which closes
the racket some. Contact should be an upward grazing motion against backspin
for control, or straight through and forward against topspin or for extra speed.
The stroke against backspin and topspin is essentially the same, but you should
open your racket more and stroke slightly up against backspin.
Contact should be on the back bottom of the ball against backspin, on the back
or top back of the ball against other spins. Make sure to contact the ball directly
opposite where you want it to go. When flipping, make sure to flip to wide
angles-either crosscourt at a wide angle or straight down the line (unless you go
after your opponent's middle.) Step back quickly, and return to ready position.
If the ball you're flipping is high, "flip kill" it. This is just a flip at full power. Use
both wrist and elbow snap for power, and go crosscourt so you'll have more
room.
 FAST PUSH TECHNIQUES
By: Richard McAfee, USATT Certified National Coach

The push is not often thought of as an aggressive tool, but rather as a basic
keep-the-ball-in-play stroke. The reason for this is simple. Adding speed to a
pushed ball is difficult as underspin causes a ball to rise up during flight. Push
too fast and the ball will sail off the end of the table. Because of this, most
players emphasize producing heavy backspin (as opposed to fast speed) with
their pushes if they want to force errors or weak attacks from their opponents.
Rather than only using heavy spin on your pushes to force weak returns, mixing
in a fast push can be a great surprise tactic. Often a surprise fast push will force
a weak shot from your opponent and enable you to step-around and attack with
a strong forehand loop or kill. Here is how to execute a fast push stroke.

First and foremost, contact the ball at the top of the bounce. Your racket should
make friction contact with the ball (spin), contacting the middle of the ball and
pushing forward and down. This is very different from producing a spin push
where the ball is contacted on the way down and more towards the bottom of
the ball.

To practice this shot, set your Newgy Robot to produce a push return and have
it oscillate over the entire table (Oscillator Lever positions 3 & 4). Now practice
mixing spin pushes with a sudden fast push until you can produce both shots
with ease. Good luck and good pushing.
Important Notes: Adding sidespin to this stroke can make it even more effective.
Also, when you use the fast push in a game situation, look to attack the next
return.

Basic Elements of Push Strokes

Stroke Element Spin Push Fast Push

Timing As ball is descending Top of bounce

Ball Contact Location Bottom of ball Middle of ball

Ball Contact Type

Friction Friction
(Friction or Force)

(Editor's Note: If you have trouble learning this stroke, you may want to start
off with having the robot deliver the ball 12 to 18 inches high above your side of
the table. This will allow for a greater margin of error. When you gain
consistency with your stroke against a high ball, lower the ball delivery angle a
little at a time until you can fast push even a ball that is barely over the net.)
 SHOULDER PROBLEMS
Rotator Cuff Tendinitis / Impingement / Bursitis

Rotator Cuff Tendinitis is an overuse condition that causes pain and disability in
the shoulder and upper arm. It is often referred to as impingement or bursitis. All
three names refer to the same condition, caused by using the arm and shoulder
in tasks that are repetitive and often involve moving the arm above the level of
the shoulder.

Causes and Symptoms

Common athletic activities that produce this condition are racquet sports,
swimming, throwing, weight lifting and calf roping. As the athlete increases
activity levels too quickly or works out for long periods of time, the muscle-
tendon groups may become inflamed. Pain, tenderness and inability to perform
shoulder movements result.
Other activities such as painting, driving or carpentry also may cause and/or
aggravate the condition. Tendinitis often brings pain with such activities as
combing your hair, putting on a jacket, tucking in your shirt, or sleeping on the
shoulder or with your arm over your head. The condition may be acutely painful,
or it can be chronic with a dull pain lasting months.

Diagnosis
There are several components to diagnosing rotator cuff tendinitis:

1. Your physician will take a careful history.

2. Specific tests on physical examination.
3. X-rays may be helpful to detect bone spurs.
4. Occasionally, an injection of xylocaine into the bursa adjacent to the cuff
will alleviate pain, and helps to confirm the diagnosis.
5. In complicated cases, an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) may be
ordered to carefully evaluate the cuff tendons for tears or degeneration.

Treatment

Treatment is usually non-surgical. The goals of the treatment program are first
to lessen the inflammation and then stretch and strengthen the rotator cuff
muscles. The inflammation can usually be controlled with rest, ice and oral
medication (anti-inflammatory).
It is best to reduce or stop the offending activity. This may mean stopping or
reducing yardage in a swimming program or only volleying with no overhead
serves in tennis. You may also need to modify or stop certain work activities
(i.e., use of a computer mouse, painting, etc.) for a period of time.

After the inflammation has been controlled, your physician will most likely
prescribe a stretching and strengthening program. It is important that you stay
with the program to achieve lasting results. At the beginning of the
strengthening program it may help to ice your shoulder after the exercises. The
stretching exercises are done before the strength exercises to warm up and
stretch out the cuff muscles.

Perform the following exercises at least four times a week, preferably daily, with
occasional days of rest.

Stretch 1

Bring hand of affected arm to opposite shoulder. Pull

shoulder forward slightly. You should experience a slight
stretch in the affected shoulder.

Exercise 1

With the arm in an “empty

can ― (thumb down)
position, and at a 45 degree
angle to the body, raise the
extended arm to 45 degrees
or as pain allows.

Stretch 2

Place affected arm up and over head, with hand resting

on back of (or extended toward) opposite shoulder.
Slowly stretch bent elbow back.
 Exercise 2

This can be performed standing with

surgical tubing, or lying on the injured
side with free weights (see below).
Start with high repetitions of slow-
controlled movement and progress with
increased weight or tension on the
tubing.

Stretch 3

Bring hand of affected arm to opposite shoulder. Pull

shoulder forward slightly. You should experience a
slight stretch in the affected shoulder.

Exercise 3

Lie on a table with elbow on the edge

and hand hanging over, with weight in
hand. Raise the weight parallel with the
ground to the level of the table or your
head (keep back flat and do not arch).
Lift elbow towards the ceiling and
squeeze the shoulder blades together.
Start with low weight and work on your
technique. Do not swing the weight up.
Remember: slow and controlled.
Increase weight as strength builds.

Note: You may feel some discomfort. But you should not feel pain. These
methods may work by themselves or may require the additional use of physical
therapy (ultrasound, electrical stimulation, etc.). Surgical solutions to the
problem are usually considered if home care and/or structured therapy for the
problem is unsuccessful.

Prevention
It is important to moderate training sessions and take adequate periods of rest
between training sessions to help in the prevention of tendinitis. Warming up,
stretching and strengthening are also good components of prevention. Early
attention to soreness in the shoulder and upper arm during training or after a
session may prevent a chronic problem. Treatment of shoulder symptoms
should be started as soon as noticed.

This information is provided by Orthopaedic Center of the Rockies as basic

information about a specific orthopaedic topic. It is not intended as a personal
reply to your specific questions or concerns. For more information, please
contact your physician or a physician at Orthopaedic Center of the Rockies,
(970) 493 -0112 or 1-800-722-7441.
Table Tennis Tactics Cheat Sheet
By PongWorld.com

Tactics Against All Opponents

Versus all styles of opponents: 1) Vary spin and strokes and 2) place ball outside power zones

How To Play Each Style

Counterdrivers
Use heavy spin. Play the middle. Use chops and pushes.
When playing a skillful counterdriver, avoid topspin rallies since this is their strength. Use heavy spin on both
under- and topspin shots. Counterdrivers are most comfortable with light spin. If the opponent lacks good
footwork, work the middle of the table. By forcing them to quickly decide between a forehand or backhand
return, you can succeed in jamming them. Try using chops and pushes to slow down the game and rally for
position.

Choppers
Be patient. Play the middle deep & short- not side to side. Deep loops. Drop shot to forehand.
When playing a chopper, be patient. Alternate your use of shots, favoring deep loops and short pushes. This will
often throw the chopper off enough to return a high ball which you can put away with a smash. The chopper is
likely to try to force you to make errors by using a variety of amounts of underspin. Expect the chops to vary
from no spin to very heavy underspin. Finally, work the chopper down the middle more than side to side. The
sides are often a chopper's strength while many have problems with shots hit down the middle. Move the ball in
and out and use the drop shot, especially to their forehand side.

Blockers
Break their rhythm. Alternate aggressive shots with defensive shots.
Blockers, just like choppers, are often defensive players. Break their rhythm by varying the shots. Hit one deep
and hard and then alternate with a short shot. Favor a high, spinny loop because blockers often like to use the
power of their opponents to win points. Be patient, use just one power shot at a time, and sometimes trick the
blocker into initiating an attack, in which they are usually weak.

Loopers
Be aggressive. Initiate attacks. Play the middle.
When playing a looper, especially a consistent one, patience is out the door. Beat an aggressive looper with
aggressiveness. Do all you can to initiate the attack. Your goal is to put the looper on the defense, where they
usually are weak. As with choppers, work the middle to keep the ball away from their strength- the sides.

Penholders
Play all zones randomly. Move them out wide and then play their backhand.
Penholders tend to heavily favor their forehand. The obvious strategy would seem to be to exploit their weaker
backhand, but since many penholders display superb footwork, this is not as easy as it might seem. To work
their backhand, you need to move the ball around, especially out wide. Do this in random fashion so they can't
predict where you will direct the ball next.
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 1: Getting Started

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Silas Xu
Rules and Dimensions:

A complete set of ITTF rules can be found at www.ittf.org

Table Tennis was invented by an English diplomat about 100 years ago, and rapidly spread to other
countries. An Olympic sport, table tennis is now one of the most popular sports in the world, with over 150
countries participating. The big table tennis nations of the world are China, Sweden, Germany, Belgium,
Korea and Japan. There are other European nations that field one or two good players but they generally
lacked a consistently strong team.

The ball is 40mm and weights 2.7g.

There has been a bit of controversy as far as the size of balls is concerned. Previously, all table tennis balls
were 38 mm. However, in an effort to make the game more ‘spectator friendly’, the International Table
Tennis Federation (ITTF) decided to reduce the speed and spin of the game. This is a bid to make rallies
longer and more entertaining. (The ball has already been changed to orange so that TV viewers can more
easily see the ball). The easiest way to do this is to increase the size of the ball. This makes it harder to spin
the ball during service and loops are slower. There were also extensive changes to the scoring system (11
point games instead of 21) and rules regarding serving.

Many players protested – especially players who relied on the fast game or a devastating serve. Liu Guo-
Liang – one of the most dominant players in recent years retired citing new rule changes as one of the main
factors!!

But hopefully, in the long run, these rule changes will make table tennis more dynamic and entertaining!

How to tell good balls from ones not so good:

The very cheap balls (ones you buy at CVS) have a visible join running along the entire circumference of
the ball. Some are multicolored and some are white. Never use these balls!

You also get balls with 2 stars on them. These balls are fine for practice.

3 star balls are competition balls. They bounce better because usually the shell is thinner. They also tend to
break more but they are the right weight and have the correct bounce. So use these whenever you can.
Good Umpire:1

1. Is it legal for doubles partners to swap bats in the middle of a rally ???

Only if they are married, or at least, very good friends. However, great care must be taken during the
swapping maneuver to ensure neither bat is dropped. It is also recommended that swapping be restricted to
long boring rallies as a means of distracting your opponents. Note also that during normal doubles play, by
players of B grade standard and higher, that the time lapse between shots is approx 0.895 seconds.
Therefore, bat swapping needs to be practised so that it can be performed extremely quickly.
NB: Bat swapping is forbidden in MD & WD events. This is to prevent the spread of BSD (Bat Swapping
Disease)

2. Is it legal for the umpire to call "Play on" during a rally ???

Only in event of earthquake or other natural disaster. However in where 'play' means 'let' and 'on' means
'please' this is a perfectly normal call.
Note: Be careful in Mongolia, where 'play' means 'get' and 'on' means 'knotted' - remember many
Mongolians are descendents of Attila the Hun.

3. Is it legal for a coach outside the playing area to make silent signals to a player during a match ???

Only between points as most table tennis players are too busy watching the silly little bouncing yellow
thing to pay attention to the coach. However, as most sports fans know, the reason the All Blacks failed to
win the World Cup was the lack of silent signals from Mr J Hart to Mr T Randall, therefore the following
experimental signals have been agreed to by ITTF for the 2002 season:

a) Coach holds up left hand - "attack down opponents forehand"

b) Holds up sign with "fas.harvard.edu" on it - "hang in there - consulting online coaching manual and will
get back to you shortly"
c) Holds up right hand - "attack down opponents backhand"
NB: Signals a and c are reversed if opponent is left-handed
d) Scratches head - "don't have any advice"

4. Is it legal to throw the ball high in service with one hand and then pick up the bat and serve with the
same hand ???

Yes, providing the following conditions are met:

a) Umpire is advised beforehand
b) If server has only one usable hand
Note: that the bat must be in the hand no later than 0.5 secs before striking the ball, or the umpire should
call "No Ball".
Special note: No gluing-up is allowed between the throwing up of the ball and striking it. Any breaking of
this rule to be immediately dealt with by the umpire showing the offending player a yellow card and
awarding point to opponent.
Extra special note: Should the ball be in flight longer than 30 seconds before being struck the server shall
be penalised a point for time wasting.
Any dissent dealt with by showing a red card.

1
source: Table Tennis New Zealand – with modifications
Words to Know!

Pimples / pimples out Instead of a smooth rubber surface, the surface consists of hundreds of
small round ‘pimples’ , some up to 2mm in height. There is less surface
area, so pimple rubber imparts less spin on the ball.

Reverse pimples The pimples face into the bat with a smooth surface for hitting. With
more surface area, reverse pimples or ‘smooth rubber’ generally impart
a greater amount of spin on the ball. Generally, it is only possible to
loop using reverse pimples.

Long pimples This rubber generally has no impact on the spin of the ball. However, if
it is used to hit a top spinning ball, then the ball is generally returned
with some backspin and vice versa. This is because a top spinning ball
is hit back without a change in its spin – in effect causing backspin.

Short pimples The shorter the pimples, the more ‘reverse pimple’ like it is. Short
pimples are generally used by attack players for their speed. Generally,
there is not a great amount of spin.

Sponge Rubber is rarely directly adhered to the bat. Generally, a layer of

sponge separates the rubber and the bat. Sponge type has a great impact
on gluing. Generally, soft sponges are more suited for gluing than hard
sponges. Thicker sponges (up to 2.3mm) give greater power but less
control than thinner counterparts.

Anti-spin Looks like smooth rubber but imparts no spin. Similar characteristics to
long pimple. Normal smooth rubber that has been left out in the sun or
has been badly cared for can acquire this property!

Net Call There are no net calls in table tennis. If the ball hits the net and lands on
your side – too bad!! The ball is only allowed to bounce on the net once.

Edge If the ball hits the edge of the table, it is counted in. Unless it hit the
‘side’ of the playing surface.

Let Call Call a let if the current point is being disturbed by external factors. The
point will be replayed. Let may also be used to delay the opposition
from serving until you are ready to receive.

Loop The attacking shot of choice after the introduction of reverse pimples
which imparts a lot of spin. Loops can transform a ball of any spin into
a heavy top spin attacking shot. This is why no serious professional
player is a perpetual chopper anymore! Can also be played on the
backhand.

Expedite Old rule that prevents games dragging on forever – used to deal with
incessant choppers. Especially when choppers play choppers.

Glue Glue is the substance that holds the rubber (sponge included) onto the
bat.

Gluing The process of applying a layer of glue onto the reverse side of the
rubber. The volatile substances in the glue are absorbed by the sponge
and this changes the property of the rubber as a whole. The bat will
 sound different. Gluing allows a player to achieve more spin and speed.
Many types of glue are illegal because of the toxicity in the vapors
(Pang and other car tire glues). But generally illegal glue is faster than
legal glue. You can also make your own glue by using white spirits,
turpentine and various other solvents.

De-Gluing Serious players will glue for all practices and competitions. Often
several times in a day during competition. Constant gluing will cause a
build up of glue on the reverse of the rubber. This makes the rubber
heavier and generally, this will cause the rubber to slow down. Instead
of throwing the rubber away, players on a budget sometimes carefully
peel the glue away from the sponge – leaving a clean sponge ready for
more glue!

The Finger Holding up the index finger with knuckles facing you. It could mean
‘Sorry!’, ‘Let!’ or ‘Good Shot!’.

Chow! Sa! Ousa! Oush! Yes! Things players say after making a good shot. ‘Chow!’ is by far the most
popular followed by ‘Sa’. Generally ‘Yes!’ is not a part of this
vocabulary.
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 2: Fundamentals

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Silas Xu
Correct Grip:

Shakehand:

The racket is held in the palm of the hand.

The thumb and forefinger lie roughly parallel to the straight edge of the rubber.

The remaining three fingers are wrapped loosely around the handle to provide stability.

Pro: Strong backhand. Easy to learn.

Con: Heavier bat. Weaker towards the middle position.

Penhold:

The thumb and forefinger circle the handle.

The remaining fingers curl or spread on the back surface. Usually only the front side is used with
this grip.

Pro: ‘fast’ and strong middle position

Con: Need good footwork. Don’t learn this grip unless you hold the bat this way already.
 Basic Strokes
Backhand Drive:

Preparation … Contact … Follow through …

The Backhand Drive is a fast stroke which gives the ball speed and a small amount of topspin.

Key points:

Left foot slightly forward (right hand players)

Bat angle is closed slightly to impart topspin

Bat starts at table level or higher

Shot is generated from the elbow with the forearm accelerating on ball impact to produce speed
and power

Ball contact is made at the top of the bounce

Ball is hit, as opposed to a brushing action, therefore imparting negligible topspin

Stroke is of medium length and slightly curved

Recover to ready position

Keep in mind:

• Stroke is of medium length and slightly curved

• Bat angle slightly closed for topspin

• Ball hit at top of the bounce

Backhand Push:

Preparation … Contact … Follow through …

The Backhand Push is a short basic stroke used to contain and control play, often during the early part of a
rally. It imparts some backspin.

Key Points:

The movement of the forearm is fluid and continuous with less speed and acceleration than on the
backhand drive

Emphasis is on control

Left foot slightly forward (right hand players)

Shot is short and concise, with the elbow as pivot and slight wrist movement

Bat angle is open slightly to impart backspin

Ball contact is made at the top of the bounce

Stroke is short and slightly curved

Flight of the ball is controlled by varying the bat angle and the point of contact with the ball

Recover to ready position

Keep in Mind:

• Stroke is short and slightly curved

• Bat angle slightly open for backspin
• Ball hit at top of the bounce
Forehand Drive:

Preparation … Contact … Follow Through …

The Forehand Drive is an offensive stroke and the basis for the smash or kill shot.

Key Points:

Left foot slightly forward (right hand players)

Bat angle is closed slightly to impart topspin

Bat starts at table level or higher

Shot is generated from the elbow with the forearm accelerating on ball impact to produce speed
and power

Ball contact is made at the top of the bounce

Ball is hit, as opposed to a brushing action, therefore imparting negligible topspin

Stroke is of medium length and slightly curved

Upper body rotates at the waist to provide direction and power, and at the moment of contact, the
weight is transferred from the right to left leg (right hand players)

Recover to ready position

Keep in Mind:

• Stroke is of medium length and slightly curved

• Bat angle slightly closed for topspin
• Ball hit at top of the bounce
Forehand Push：

Preparation … Contact … Follow Through …

The Forehand Push is a defensive technique or safety stroke, and is used mainly for placement and control.
It is kept low and sometimes short to prevent the opponent attacking.

The movement of the forearm is fluid and continuous with less speed and acceleration than on the
forehand drive

Emphasis is on control

Left foot slightly forward (right hand players)

Shot is short and concise, with the elbow as pivot and slight wrist movement

Bat angle is open slightly to impart backspin

Ball contact is made at the top of the bounce

Stroke is short and slightly curved

Flight of the ball is controlled by varying the bat angle and the point of contact with the ball

Recover to ready position

Keep in Mind:

• Stroke is short and slightly curved

• Bat angle slightly open for backspin
• Ball hit at top of the bounce
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 3: Advanced Strokes

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Silas Xu
 Advanced Strokes

There is so much more to table tennis than just the four simple strokes: forehand push, forehand drive,
backhand push and backhand drive, although these form the fundamentals essential for consistent
improvement. By mastering one or more of the advanced strokes outlined below you will add complexity
and depth to your game. Only the important points of each stroke are outlined. To master these strokes, it
takes time, consistent practice and careful observation. But you will be handsomely rewarded for your
efforts.

Loop:

Ever since the invention of reverse pimple rubber capable of imparting enormous amounts of spin, the
game of table tennis was fundamentally altered. The loop is a forehand or backhand attacking stroke where
the ball is given a heavy top-spin. The loop has become the nemesis of the chopper and defensive players
of all sorts – they have not been able to dominate table tennis ever since. (This does not mean that you will
beat choppers with your loop. Choppers are known to cause insomnia to countless hot-shot loopers)

The formidability of the loop is its versatility and variance. These two points will be discussed below:

Versatility: Played well, the loop can impart a heavy top spin upon any sort of return that leaves the
table. This statement alone means that it is next to impossible to prevent a good looper
from attacking. By changing the curvature of the stroke, and the angle of the bat, any ball,
below or above the table with any spin can be returned by a loop.

Variance: A loop is not a static shot. Its character can be changed at will by a good looper. By
changing the curvature of the stroke and the angle of the bat, a loop can be higher with
lots of spin, or lower and faster with perhaps less spin. Side spin can also be imparted
upon the ball. It is also relatively easy to control placement with a loop.

Wow! With all these advantages no wonder every new player is learning how to loop. If you think this is
the way of the future, well it is! But looping definitely takes some time to get used to.

Short Guide to a Loop:

1. Judge the ball. Top spin – angle of bat is more flat, stroke has less curvature
No spin – angle slightly more open, stroke has more curvature
Back spin – angle open, stroke curvature has more ‘up’ than ‘forward’

2. Be in position. Very important! Use the right footwork. We’ll go over this in practice!

3. Back swing. The more back spin the ball has, the more down your back swing should be.
If the ball has top spin, the back swing should be more ‘back’ with no ‘down’
4. Remember your arm does only half the hitting. Twist your waist, bend your knees. If
forehand loop, then left foot forward. Backhand loops should have right foot forward.

5. Loop. Never do a half-go loop. The ball will not have a lot of spin and will generally
either go off the end of the table of go into the net.

6. You shot is not over! Recover and be ready if opponent returns the loop. They will if they
know how to block!

As you can see there is not a great deal of comment on the nuances of the loop. A loop must be experienced!

But a note about the swing:

A good way to picture the loop swing is what some call ‘up-side-down-banana’. The stroke follows the
line of a banana with its back facing upwards. Again, remember to use the forearm not the shoulders for
all shots in table tennis.

Block:

Although not as glorious as the loop, the block is nevertheless essential to the repertoire of any
accomplished table tennis player. Imagine your game if your can not block and would lose every rally in
which the opponent attacked. Well, you are not doomed for failure. If you have killer serves and a killer
loop then you may not need to block very much. But for the rest of us – blocking is very important.
(Actually, all good players can block really well. It is naïve to think that your opponent will never attack
you. Sometimes good blocking can be just as effective as good attacking.)

The key to blocking is to use the speed and the spin of the attacking ball to your advantage.

Short Guide to a Block:

1. Judge the ball. Top spin – angle of bat is more closed.

No spin – angle slightly more open.
Back spin – if you get this then it is really weird. Use a chop. Or you
can loop it and feel like a hero.

2. Be in position. Very important! Use the right footwork. We’ll go over this in practice!

3. Back swing. Although there is not a lot here.

4. Block. Think about where you are blocking to and the speed with which you are blocking.

The horizon for blocking is filled with variation. Good blocking is actually really cool and good blockers
can change the speed, rhythm, and spin of the block. This adds great adaptability and variance to the game.
Spin push:

This shot is an important complement to the ordinary push. Beyond what you might think, the push is
perhaps the single most important stroke in table tennis. Good pushing will allow you not to lose points
from unforced errors, allows you to return difficult serves and balls from awkward positions, return the ball
in such a way that the opponent can not attack you and maneuver the opponent so that you get the chance to
attack.

A spin push is just a push but this time the ball has a fair back spin to it. If the opponent does not recognize
this, this return will go into the net. This will force your opponent to be cautious, because your ordinary
‘not-spiny’ pushes will go high if the opponent treats it as a spin push.

1. Judge the ball. Top spin – maybe you can’t spin push this.
No spin – start angle slightly more closed.
Back spin – start angle slightly more open.

2. Be in position. Very important! Use the right footwork. We’ll go over this in practice!

3. Back swing. Remember to use your forearm.

4. Spin push.

Here is another note about the swing:

A good way to picture the loop swing is what some call ‘right-side-up-banana’. The stroke follows the
line of a banana with its back facing downwards. The spin push relies on the fast movement of the wrist
and the forearm. Don’t use your shoulders.

Flick:

A flick is an attacking shot played on balls that do not leave the table. Generally, flicks are done on balls
that do not have a lot of spin and are slightly high. Otherwise the flick is a hard shot to do.

There are several ways to do a flick:

1. ‘Hit through the ball’. This strategy usually works well if the ball is fairly close to the net.
Generally in this case the spin of the ball does not matter greatly if the ball is slightly high. Hit
straight through the ball using mainly the wrist and a bit of forearm. The ball will land on the other
side.

2. ‘Spin the ball a bit’. This strategy works well if the ball has a bit more spin and is not that close to
the net. Also this works well if placement is important and the goal is not to win a point
immediately. A bit a like a mini-loop but using mainly the wrist and a bit of forearm, impart a bit
of top spin to force the short ball over the net. Often easier on the backhand and looks easier than
it actually is.
A flick is useful to receive short serves and to break up prolonged pushes.

But think carefully about a flick – if it is not good, then you give the opponent a top-spin opportunity
which is usually easier to attack than a backspin.

Chop:
Some players believe that this is a valid way to play table tennis. “Chop until they drop”, they’d say. If you
don’t already know how to play the chopping game, chances are that you will find it pretty hard to learn. A
lot of choppers are very talented table tennis players who have a great feel for the ball. Unfortunately, they
didn’t get the loop/block/serve sort of training modern players get in TT101 so they kind of self taught and
half invented their own game.

A chopper basically stands back from the table and chops your attacking shots back at your with varying
amounts of spin. Good choppers can put all sorts of spin on the ball.

Until you know how to consistently loop you will always have a hard time against choppers and your
games will probably go on forever. But after you can loop, the chopper has to be a very good chopper to
win. So that is the good news and the bad.

I don’t know how to chop although I have tried to learn. They say choppers can play table tennis well into
their seventies. So I’ll probably have to learn the chopping game pretty soon.

“Pimple Smash”:

Some players never loop. But they can still attack! This domain now-a-days is becoming a privileged
sanctuary of pimple rubber players. Pimples don’t seem good for much else. They don’t impart a lot of spin
but they are also a bit immune to spin. This is why you see a pimples player smash something that is clearly
below the net.

That is pretty weird table tennis. But if they can smash you all the time then you are in trouble. Maybe you
should think about attacking first or forcing the backhand. Or learn how to block.

Note: the New Zealand Open Champion for the past five years plays with pimples out rubber on both sides
of a shakehand bat. He can attack any sort of chop on forehand or backhand and will smash pretty much
anything too.

You would have to ask him how he does it.

A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 4: The Service Game

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Silas Xu
The Service Game:

The most important stroke of you game is not your incredible looping forehand – although it looks cool and
certainly helps. More often than not, how well you serve and how you receive the opposition’s serve will
determine how the game will progress in your favor.

Rules of Service:

The service commences with the ball resting on the palm of the free hand.

This hand should be:

• above the table

• stationary
• flat
• with the thumb free

The player must begin the service action from above the table

The ball must be thrown vertically upwards at least 16 cm

The ball must be struck, on its descent, from behind the white baseline

It must bounce once on the server’s side of the table before crossing the net

The ball shall be at all times clearly visible to the umpire

Aim of serve:

1. To win a point immediately

2. To win the point after your opponent returns the serve.
3. To intimidate your opposition so that you have a psychological advantage.

A player with a good serve will be able to do all of the above.

This is why the serve is of fundamental importance to your game. The serve is the only shot you
are able to make that is under your complete control. If you have a serving advantage over your
opponent, then the game is already half won.
Serving Strategies:

First, begin your serve in the correct position. For a right handed player, serving on the left corner of the
table, allows him/her to cover the table with the forehand which generally has longer reach and greater
attacking power. Unless your forehand is much worse than your backhand. This is where you should
generally serve. Another option is to start the serve more towards the center of the table.

Distinguish between long serves and short serves. This is very important and is the basis of a tight serving
game. Generally serve to the six places marked on the above diagram.

Long Serves:

The most important thing to remember is in a long serve you must bounce the ball close to the
edge of the table on your side if you hope for the ball to bounce towards the end of the table on the
opposite side.

These serves should be as deep as possible.

Long serves can generate a great amount of spin and can be used to effectively control the attack
of an opposition. Unless the opposition has a strong backhand loop or has extraordinary footwork
it is very difficult for him/her to attack a long serve to the backhand. When the ball returns, you
have a chance to attack. Very occasionally use the long serve on the forehand. Many players will
loop the serve back. But it is a good change to break up a game. Sometimes, a long serve down the
center line is also very effective.

Short Serves:

The most important thing to remember is in a short serve you must bounce the ball close to the net
of the table on your side if you hope for the ball to bounce close to the net on the opposite side.

All short serves should bounce at least twice on the opposite side if not received.

Short serves controls a player who likes playing the long game. If the serve is short (remains in the
table), then unless the opposition has a brilliant flick, it is difficult for the opposition to attack your
 serve. When the ball comes back, you have an opportunity to attack. The short serve to the
forehand is often a good serve which works well with long serves to the backhand. It is generally
harder to spin the ball as much in a short serve as in a long serve. So be wary of short serves that
are high.

The Spin:

Spin plays a crucial role in the serve. Always think about what kind of spin you are putting on the
serve.

Top spin this means you like to rally. Your opposition will hit the ball back to you. If you
like playing the rally game then top spin shots might work well. Although it is
hard to play top spin serves against most advanced players.

Back spin a defensive serve which restricts the attack of your opposition. In order to attack,
the opponent must either flick or loop and this can be difficult to do. When the
ball returns, it presents an opportunity for you to attack.

No spin this is one of the most effective serves in the game of table tennis. BUT it should
be well disguised and used together with the back spin serve. A no spin serve
will be returned high if the opposition thinks it is a back spin serve while the ball
will go into the net if the opposition treats it as a top spin serve. So it is
important for the opposition to deal with the no spin appropriately – by looping,
flicking or by ‘half-pushing’ so that the ball is not high.

Side spin can be used to fool your opposition. But side spin is generally secondary to top
spin and back spin. Decided whether you want to serve top spin or back spin,
then decided whether to add side spin to complicate the serve. Some side spin
serves makes it difficult for the opposition to return the serve to certain parts of
the table. Thus the server can use the side spin to control the position of the
return in order to set up the shot after the service return.

Flexibility:

The serve is probably the most complicated part of table tennis and advanced players put a lot of
time and effort into the serve. To serve well takes practice and experience. The above are merely
guidelines – there are no hard rules regarding the serve. The best server can always adapt his/her
serve to the opponent and situation at hand. Whatever works is always the best serve!

To Be Good:

To serve well is also one of the hardest aspects of table tennis to master. The best way to improve
is to think about every serve before you serve it. Ask yourself – ‘Why am I doing this serve?’,
‘Should I serve long or short? Top spin or back spin?’, ‘What am I hoping to achieve?’, ‘What
kind of service return do I expect?’ An important source of ideas is to see how other people serve.
Always think about the serve – and your game will improve markedly.
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 5: Service Returns

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Silas Xu
Returning Spin Services:1

We stand trembling while our opponent winds up, throws the ball three meters into the air, ties his/her
body into knots, twists the bat in every conceivable direction, utters a fearful grunt, and, biceps bulging,
serves with such vicious spin that the ball is almost humming as it wobbles towards us. Our doubles partner
pulls up a chair while we prod tentatively forward, wondering whether this time the ball will bury itself in
the net, land on the next table, or fly over our smirking opponent’s head and disappear over the horizon.

For us, there are only two kinds of serve: the ones we can get back, and the ones we can’t.

How to return difficult spin serves in one easy lesson

There is one prerequisite to the lesson. The chances of your mastering the art of returning spin serves are
minimal if you have not learned to use spin in your own shots. And you’ll find things easier still if you
have experimented with some spin serves of your own.

That much understood, you’ve only got two things to learn: how to read the spin: and how to compensate
for it.

Reading the spin

The ball does not spin by itself. It’s not spinning when it’s thrown up, and the direction in which it’s
spinning can’t change after the ball leaves the bat. So to establish the direction of the spin, simply watch the
bat as it makes contact with the ball. The direction in which the bat is moving at that moment is the
direction in which the ball will be spinning.

Don’t be fooled by the bat being waved in other directions before and after contact - you’re concerned only
with the moment when the bat strikes the ball. And you have the opportunity to verify your judgment by
watching the way the ball bounces when it hits the table.

Establishing the speed at which the ball is spinning is somewhat more complex. Factors include:

1. How high the ball is thrown (a high ball will be traveling faster when it finishes dropping so a
faster spin will be imparted by the bat stroke).
2. Bat speed across the ball, readable not only by physically watching it but also by observing the
follow-through.
3. The point of contact on the bat (the ball which hits the bat near the edge closest to the table will
receive more backspin because it has more bat-face to roll over; and the ball that hits the bat near
the edge furthest from the handle will spin faster if a pivotal wrist action is used, because that end
of the bat moves faster than any other part).
4. How firmly the bat actually makes contact with the ball (among the most difficult to read, but
verifiable by the bounce on the table).
5. The length of the serve (a ball landing deep on your half of the table is likely to be spinning faster
than one which falls shorter, except in the case of backspin).

Having sorted out what’s coming towards you, all that remains is to safely return the serve.

1
Article by John Kiley. Table Tennis New Zealand Inc.
Compensating for the spin

You do this by simply holding your bat at the "wrong" angle. A conscious effort and a good measure of
confidence are required because your internal instinct will be screaming at you to hold your bat in its
normal position. As a rule of thumb, angle your bat in the direction from which the server’s bat started its
movement across the ball. If your opponent’s bat swings from left to right (as seen from your end of the
table)’ angle the face of your bat to the left. If the bat begins above the ball and finishes below it, angle
your bat in an upward direction. How far to angle it, and how firmly to stroke the ball depend on the speed
you have assessed the ball to be spinning at. But to control any spinning serve, the ball must be stroked.
Prodding or blocking belong in the hit and miss department.

Some people work on the premise that even if you’re not sure exactly what spin is on the ball, you can
return it by giving a firm push behind and under the ball. Although this can be useful as a last resort, it is
less than satisfactory in that you can easily push the ball too high; and you are also taking most of the spin
out of the ball. By accurately reading the spin and compensating for it, you are not only thumbing your
nose at your opponent’s brilliant serve by decisively returning it but you have also kept the original spin on
the ball. Now your opponent has to cope with it.

Beware the Hollywood Actor

Just because someone tosses the ball up four meters; winds their leg around their neck; jumps in the air and
emits a contorted grunt on impact with the ball, don’t automatically assume that the ball is spinning. If the
bat-face doesn’t move across the ball, you can expect a flat serve, whatever the accompanying antics. But
flat serves, like any other, still have to be handled correctly. There is no compensatory angle to worry about,
but the ball must be stroked more firmly than usual if you don’t want to see it float harmlessly off the end
of the table.

Conclusion

Just as we began with two categories of serve, we conclude with two ways of coping with the heavily spun
serve.

One, carefully assemble all the information required to play a shot which correctly compensates for the
spin. This includes observing the height of the throw; the length and direction of the serving stroke; the
point of contact on the bat; the degree of touch; whether the whole forearm or just the wrist is used and the
depth of the ball at your end of the table. Don’t be distracted by "shamming" or multiple bat movements,
and don’t forget to also take into account the type of rubber, and the condition of it, on both your
opponent’s bat and your own (not gone into here, as that’s a whole story in itself). You are now ready to
return the serve. or,

Two, if you find that you are unable to establish, collate and apply all the foregoing data in the time
available (approx 1/4 second), then you may have to do what everyone else who has learned to return
difficult spin serves had to do to begin with: practise, and keep practising - until the art of reading spin
becomes instinctive.

The point is, other people have learned to cope with difficult serves, so why not you? It may take weeks or
months of practice but if it’s going to save eight or nine points in a game, it’s surely worth the trouble.

From there it’s only a matter of time before you have devised a range of horrific serves of your own and
we’ll be the ones standing trembling at the other end.
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 6: Footwork

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Kyna Fong
What about my feet?
Now that you’ve learned all about forehands and backhands, loops and pushes, service and service returns,
you might be wondering how to piece all of those together; in particular, you just might be wondering what
in the world to do with the rest of your body, including your feet. There are two very important concepts
besides strokes that every good table tennis player must be aware of and pay attention to: first, the ready
position, and secondly, footwork.1

The Ready Position

You can keep practicing all those strokes and keep developing your technique to perfection, but all that
won’t do you any good without a proper ready position. The ready position refers to the stance that a
player assumes when receiving serves. It is the same body posture to which a player ideally would like to
return after each shot, although few actually return to the position in game play.

A correct ready position is crucial for effective play. In a game situation, you can never be certain about
what kind of shot is coming. Even if receiving a serve, you may get a short underspin ball, a fast serve
down your forehand corner, or a high lob in the air, so you have to be ready to push, to block or to attack.
Few shots are completely predictable and thus you must be ready for anything. In order to do so, after each
shot, it is important for you to return to your neutral ready position to prepare for the next ball. The faster
you recover to your ready position, the better you can deal with your opponent’s following shot. Once you
return to your ready stance, you will have more time to react to the kind of shot that your opponent is
making.

A good ready position is one from which you can make a quick start. Thus, the right stance may vary from
player to player according to style. But there are a few general characteristics that good ready positions
share:
- The position should be flexible, relaxed and natural. There is no need for rigidity or awkward
positioning.
- The upper arms should be kept close to the body, and the racket should be up, at least at the level
of the table.
- The knees should be bent and the body should be a bit crouched, ready to pounce on the next ball.
- The right foot should be diagonally behind the left foot, forming an approximately 45-degree
angle with the table.
- Weight should be on the balls of the feet, almost on the toes, and feet should be approximately
shoulder width apart.
- The position should be maintainable and composed in order to give oneself a calm state of mind,
especially when returning serves.
- The position should be one from which it is possible to quickly execute any of the basic shots,
including forehand and backhand drives, loops, blocks and pushes.

The ready position should always be assumed when receiving serves. When returning shots, however,
there is seldom enough time to return fully to the ready position, so most players just aim to return to a
position that is neutral between the forehand and the backhand. Achieving such neutrality is sufficient.

NOTE: Beginners should be careful not to focus too much attention on recovering their basic stances too
quickly. The reason is that often players forget to finish their strokes and complete their follow-through’s
before trying to return to a neutral position. You must be sure to complete your stroke before returning to
the ready position.

Footwork
The second key to a player’s movement is the synchronization and coordination of leg movements, known
as footwork. No matter how good a player’s technique is, if he doesn’t have good footwork, his

1
In these descriptions, I assume a right-handed player. Lefties should replace all occurrences of “right”
with “left” and vice versa. ☺
performance will forever be limited. Typically, when a ball is not right next to them, beginners and
intermediate players just stretch out their arms and try to swing at it. Although in theory simply stretching
out your arm is easier, it does not mean it is correct. Instead, you should first get into the right position and
then do your stroke. When you use correct footwork to get to the right position relative to the ball, you
then gain the ability to use your weight effectively and to manipulate the ball more easily and accurately.

There are a three main points that come to mind when thinking of correct footwork:
(1) Sidesteps. In table tennis, footwork consists of small sidestepping. If moving to the right, the
right foot leads by taking half a step, the left then follows, and then on the third step (with your
right foot) you will typically be in position for your next shot.
(2) Right foot. The right foot is always the foot used to step into the table, whether the ball is on the
forehand or backhand side.
(3) Knees. The knees should always be bent and the weight should always be on the balls of the feet,
practically on the toes.

According to Dimosthenis E. Messinis in his book Table Tennis: From A to Z, four factors are basic for
satisfactory footwork:

(1) Knowledge of the Steps. Footwork both close to and far from the table is characterized by small
side steps. Quick side-stepping movements give the player the ability to react faster and beat the
ball more easily without losing balance. Drills for learning correct footwork are discussed below.
(2) Foresight. Good footwork also involves a certain degree of a player being able to anticipate the
direction of the ball. This is the basic factor that distinguishes high level and low level players. A
player can improve his skill in this area by not over-focusing on a ball at any point. The player
must give equal attention to the opponent and his racket so that he can move simultaneously with
his opponent’s stroke or slightly before it.
(3) Return to the Ready Stance. As mentioned above, returning to the ready stance is crucial to being
an effective player. Footwork helps one return to that stance. Also, a player can anticipate her
opponents’ position by observing his ready stance and assume her own ready stance accordingly.
(4) Physical Fitness. Finally, physical fitness is an essential factor for successful footwork as well.
Strength in both legs helps a player move quickly from side to side and take the best position for
the next stroke. Waist flexibility helps the player keep body balance during more difficult shots.

Footwork Drills
Although most of practice is spent doing drills that inevitably train better footwork, there are some
exercises that can be done that focus solely on footwork. These “shadow-stroking” drills are done with just
a racket, without a ball or a partner. Footwork drills are fun and extremely useful, so I really recommend
everybody takes a few minutes at the end of practice or before a break and does a few of these. Each drill
should last between 1 and 2 minutes, depending on your fitness level, and repeated 2 to 3 times.

Drill 1: The ball has gone wide to your forehand, at the most acute angle you have ever seen. You shadow
stroke and hit it with your FOREHAND. Then, wowzers, your opponent has countered with a shot wide to
your backhand, again at the most acute angle you have ever seen. You move your feet rapidly,
sidestepping to the left all the way and shadow stroke another FOREHAND. Repeat until end of drill.

FH FH

2 1
Drill 2: A short ball is dropped short to your forehand and you begin by stepping into the table with your
right foot and performing a FOREHAND FLIP. Your opponent quickly makes a strong shot deep to your
forehand, and you stroke a FOREHAND. Next, a short ball is dropped short again, this time to your
backhand. Again, you step into the table with your right foot and perform a BACKHAND FLIP. Your
opponent quickly makes a strong shot deep to your backhand, and you hit a BACKHAND. Repeat until
end of drill.

3 BH 1 FH

4 BH 2 FH

Points to remember:
1) Do not shadow stroke until your feet are in the correct position for the stroke.
2) Always move first before making your stroke.
A Short Guide to Table Tennis
Part 7: Structured Practice

Harvard Table Tennis Club

Kyna Fong
How to Structure a Practice Session

So, you’re off on your own, you have a great practice partner, you have rackets, balls and a table, and you
want to have a great practice. What do you do??1

Pre-Warm Up
This is to try to ensure that you don’t pull any muscles or hurt yourself in any way.
1) Always begin by getting your blood pumping. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways.
The best way is to jog around for a few minutes. Or you can do some sidestepping and crossovers.
Or even jump in place. Just do some sort of non-table tennis activity until you feel your body is
warmed up.
2) Now stretch all your major muscles. Your quads, hamstrings, calves, biceps, triceps, etc. And
don’t forget your ankles, neck, and waist!

Stroke Warm Up
One important thing to remember when warming up your strokes is not to hit the ball too hard. The
purpose of the warm up is to warm up your strokes, and you can’t accomplish that if you are continually
picking up the ball off the ground. So, hit at such a speed that you and your partner can exchange at least
10 balls back and forth without missing. There’s no need to smash back and forth. ☺ Each step in the
warm up should take 2-4 minutes. Beginner players should try to hit at least 30 back and forth in each step
without missing before moving on to the next step.
1) Forehand counterdrive. Begin by hitting some forehand drives back and forth to warm up your
forehand. Try getting used to the angles by aiming your counterdrives so that they bounce off the
side of the table instead of the end.
2) * Forehand loop and block. You warm up your forehand loop and your partner blocks. Begin by
looping slowly with more arc and spin. As you get more warmed up, you can decrease the arc and
increase the speed. Once you feel comfortable with your loop, switch roles with your partner. So
now you block and your partner loops.
3) Backhand counterdrive. Hit some backhand drives back and forth to warm up your backhand.
Again try getting used to the angles by aiming your counterdrives so that they bounce off the side
of the table instead of the end.
4) ** Backhand loop and block. You warm up your backhand loop and your partner blocks. Begin
by looping slowly with more arc and spin. As you get more warmed up, you can decrease the arc
and increase the speed. Once you feel comfortable with your loop, switch roles with your partner.
So now you block and your partner loops.
5) * Step-around Forehand loop and backhand block. Warm up your forehand loop from your
backhand corner while your partner blocks with her backhand. Once you feel comfortable, switch
roles.
6) Down-the-line. Use your forehand and hit down the line to your partner’s backhand. You can
either counterdrive or loop with your forehand. After a few minutes, switch roles.

Footwork Warmup
Now that you’ve warmed up your strokes, it’s time to warm up your footwork. I would recommend doing
2-3 footwork warmup drills, depending on how much time you have. Each drill should be done for at least
5 minutes (ideally 7 or more) by each player. These are great drills for beginners to learn footwork
because the ball placement is pre-determined and expected – there is no element of surprise. Here are a
couple of drills that I would recommend. Of course, there are many other possibilities and variations as
well.

1) One Forehand, One Backhand.

2) N Forehands, N Backhands.
3) Two Forehands – One Middle, One Wide
4) * Two Forehands – One Forehand side, One Backhand side

1
(*) Denotes intermediate drills. (**) Denotes advanced drills.
 5) * One Forehand, One Backhand on the Backhand corner
6) * Envelope

Advanced Footwork Drills

These are some more footwork drills whose ball placement is pre-determined and expected. However, they
are more difficult and work just as much on strokes and rallies as on footwork. Again, these should be
performed at least 5 minutes (ideally 7 or more) for each player.

1) * Falkenberg
2) ** Falkenberg with Forehand Block
3) * Forehand, Middle, Forehand, Backhand
4) ** Backhand, Middle, Backhand, Forehand
5) * FH Loop to FH Block and Middle Block
6) * FH Loop to FH Block, Middle Block and BH Block
7) * Backhand block to BH corner and middle (Loop)
8) Down the line FH loop, BH loop to FH block

Advanced Random Footwork Drills

These drills are more advanced in the sense that they include an element of randomization and thus
surprise. Again, these should be performed at least 5 minutes (ideally 7 or more) for each player.
1) * Random to BH block
2) One or two FH, one or two BH
3) * BH middle or BH forehand
4) ** BH, FH on backhand corner and then down the line when feel like it
5) * Down the line rally, switch when want, down the line, switch, etc.
6)

Service Drills
While the previous footwork drills focused primarily on counterdriving, looping and blocking, these drills
incorporate service, and thus you work on your pushes, flips and service as well. These service drills
should be performed at least 7 minutes per player.
1) Two Forehand loops, Two Backhand loops – effective for warming up before matches (warm up
loops)
2) Serve short, flip cross court, do envelope drill.

Service Practice
It is always a good idea to set aside some time to work on your own serves. If possible, you and your
partner can both grab a bucket of balls and alternate serving at each other. The player who receives the
serve can tell the other player what sort of spin she has managed to put on the ball.

Multi-ball
Multi-ball is a whole new topic by itself, but essentially one player gets a bucket of balls, places it on the
table and feeds balls to the other player like a machine. This type of drilling is widely popular especially in
China and is the major form of training for many top players.

Footwork Drills
There are a few drills that can be done that focus solely on footwork. They are “shadow-stroking” drills
that are performed with only a racket, with neither a ball nor a partner. See Part 6 for more details.

Games
It is always fun and effective to play a few practice games after training hard through all the drills. Besides
playing the regular games to 11, it is also very helpful to begin from certain scores and to play the games
out from there. Good scores to start at include 5-5, 8-9, 7-7, 8-8 and 10-10. It is important to be able to
squeeze out the tight matches when necessary.
 TABLE TENNIS EXERCISE - 1

(for right-handed players)

FH.D=Forehand drive
BH.D=Backhand drive
Drive=Basic power shot with no or little topspin executed close to the table.
Forehand=The right side of a right -handed player.
Backhand=The left side of a right handed player.

Exercise 1 Exercise 2 Exercise 3

Both players play Both players play Parallel forehand &

forehand drive backhand drive backhand drive. One
diagonally. diagonally. player plays forehand
drive and the other
backhand drive.

Exercise 4 Exercise 5 Exercise 6

Same as the previous Both players play 1. Diagonally to the

exercise. The players forehand drive. The forehand side. Both
change sides. first ball diagonally to players plays forehand
the forehand side and drive.
the second to the 2. To the center. Both
center. Good for players plays forehand
footwork. drive.
3. Parallel to the
backhand side. One
player plays forehand
drive and the other
backhand drive.
 TABLE TENNIS EXERCISE - 2

(for right-handed players)

FH.D=Forehand drive
BH.D=Backhand drive
FH.BL=Forehand block
BH.BL=Backhand block
FH.Ts=Forehand topspin
Drive=Basic power shot with no or little topspin executed close to the table
Block=Basic defensive shot for topspin countering
Topspin=Offensive shot with heavy topspin executed close to the table
Forehand=The right side of a right -handed player
Backhand=The left side of a right handed player

Exercise 1 Exercise 2 Exercise 3

One player plays One player plays One player plays

diagonally and the parallel and diagonal forehand topspin
other parallel. with his backhand and diagonally ang in the
the other moves middle. The other
across the table with player plays forehand
forehand and block from his
backhand. forehand and in the
middle.

Exercise 4 Exercise 5 Exercise 6

Same as the previous Forehand tospin Forehand topspin

exercise. The diagonally to the diagonally to the
difference is that the forehand side. backhand side.
player who plays block
uses both his forehand
and his backhand.
 TABLE TENNIS EXERCISE - 3

(for right-handed players)

FH.D=Forehand drive
BH.D=Backhand drive
FH.BL=Forehand block
BH.BL=Backhand block
FH.Ts=Forehand topspin
Drive=Basic power shot with no or little topspin executed close to the table
Block=Basic defensive shot for topspin countering
Topspin=Offensive shot with heavy topspin executed close to the table
Forehand=The right side of a right -handed player
Backhand=The left side of a right handed player

Exercise 1 Exercise 2 Exercise 3

Exercise 4 Exercise 5 Exercise 6

1. FH.Ts - BH.BL 1,2. BH.D, FH.Ts

2. BH.D - FH.BL 3. FH.Ts
 TABLE TENNIS EXERCISE - 4

(for right-handed players)

FH.D=Forehand drive
BH.D=Backhand drive
FH.BL=Forehand block
BH.BL=Backhand block
FH.Ts=Forehand topspin
Drive=Basic power shot with no or little topspin executed close to the table
Block=Basic defensive shot for topspin countering
Topspin=Offensive shot with heavy topspin executed close to the table
Forehand=The right side of a right -handed player
Backhand=The left side of a right handed player
2 THE LAWS OF TABLE TENNIS

2.1 THE TABLE

2.1.1 The upper surface of the table, known as the playing surface, shall be
rectangular, 2.74m long and 1.525m wide, and shall lie in a horizontal plane
76cm above the floor.
2.1.2 The playing surface shall not include the vertical sides of the tabletop.
2.1.3 The playing surface may be of any material and shall yield a uniform bounce
of about 23cm when a standard ball is dropped on to it from a height of 30cm.
2.1.4 The playing surface shall be uniformly dark coloured and matt, but with a
white side line, 2cm wide, along each 2.74m edge and a white end line, 2cm
wide, along each 1.525m edge.
2.1.5 The playing surface shall be divided into 2 equal courts by a vertical net
running parallel with the end lines, and shall be continuous over the whole
area of each court.
2.1.6 For doubles, each court shall be divided into 2 equal half-courts by a white
centre line, 3mm wide, running parallel with the side lines; the centre line shall
be regarded as part of each right half-court.

2.2 THE NET ASSEMBLY

2.2.1 The net assembly shall consist of the net, its suspension and the supporting
posts, including the clamps attaching them to the table.
2.2.2 The net shall be suspended by a cord attached at each end to an upright post
15.25cm high, the outside limits of the post being 15.25cm outside the side
line.
2.2.3 The top of the net, along its whole length, shall be 15.25cm above the playing
surface.
2.2.4 The bottom of the net, along its whole length, shall be as close as possible to
the playing surface and the ends of the net shall be as close as possible to
the supporting posts.

2.3 THE BALL

2.3.1 The ball shall be spherical, with a diameter of 40mm.
2.3.2 The ball shall weigh 2.7g.
2.3.3 The ball shall be made of celluloid or similar plastics material and shall be
white or orange, and matt.

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 2: The Laws of Table Tennis
2.4 THE RACKET
2.4.1 The racket may be of any size, shape or weight but the blade shall be flat and
rigid.
2.4.2 At least 85% of the blade by thickness shall be of natural wood; an adhesive
layer within the blade may be reinforced with fibrous material such as carbon
fibre, glass fibre or compressed paper, but shall not be thicker than 7.5% of
the total thickness or 0.35mm, whichever is the smaller.
2.4.3 A side of the blade used for striking the ball shall be covered with either
ordinary pimpled rubber, with pimples outwards having a total thickness
including adhesive of not more than 2mm, or sandwich rubber, with pimples
inwards or outwards, having a total thickness including adhesive of not more
than 4mm.
2.4.3.1 Ordinary pimpled rubber is a single layer of non-cellular rubber, natural or
synthetic, with pimples evenly distributed over its surface at a density of not
less than 10 per sq. cm and not more than 30 per sq. cm.
2.4.3.2 Sandwich rubber is a single layer of cellular rubber covered with a single
outer layer of ordinary pimpled rubber, the thickness of the pimpled rubber not
being more than 2mm.
2.4.4 The covering material shall extend up to but not beyond the limits of the
blade, except that the part nearest the handle and gripped by the fingers may
be left uncovered or covered with any material.
2.4.5 The blade, any layer within the blade and any layer of covering material or
adhesive on a side used for striking the ball shall be continuous and of even
thickness.
2.4.6 The surface of the covering material on a side of the blade, or of a side of the
blade if it is left uncovered, shall be matt, bright red on one side and black on
the other.
2.4.7 Slight deviations from continuity of surface or uniformity of colour due to
accidental damage or wear may be allowed provided that they do not
significantly change the characteristics of the surface.
2.4.8 At the start of a match and whenever he changes his racket during a match a
player shall show his opponent and the umpire the racket he is about to use
and shall allow them to examine it.

2.5 DEFINITIONS
2.5.1 A rally is the period during which the ball is in play.
2.5.2 The ball is in play from the last moment at which it is stationary on the palm of
the free hand before being intentionally projected in service until the rally is
decided as a let or a point.

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2: The Laws of Table Tennis
2.5.3 A let is a rally of which the result is not scored.
2.5.4 A point is a rally of which the result is scored.
2.5.5 The racket hand is the hand carrying the racket.
2.5.6 The free hand is the hand not carrying the racket.
2.5.7 A player strikes the ball if he touches it in play with his racket, held in the
hand, or with his racket hand below the wrist.
2.5.8 A player obstructs the ball if he, or anything he wears or carries, touches it in
play when it is above or travelling towards the playing surface and has not
passed beyond his end line, not having touched his court since last being
struck by his opponent.
2.5.9 The server is the player due to strike the ball first in a rally.
2.5.10 The receiver is the player due to strike the ball second in a rally.
2.5.11 The umpire is the person appointed to control a match.
2.5.12 The assistant umpire is the person appointed to assist the umpire with certain
decisions.
2.5.13 Anything that a player wears or carries includes anything that he was wearing
or carrying, other than the ball, at the start of the rally.
2.5.14 The ball shall be regarded as passing over or around the net assembly if it
passes anywhere other than between the net and the net post or between the
net and the playing surface.
2.5.15 The end line shall be regarded as extending indefinitely in both directions.

2.6 A GOOD SERVICE

2.6.1 Service shall start with the ball resting freely on the open palm of the server's
stationary free hand.
2.6.2 The server shall then project the ball near vertically upwards, without
imparting spin, so that it rises at least 16cm after leaving the palm of the free
hand and then falls without touching anything before being struck.
2.6.3 As the ball is falling the server shall strike it so that it touches first his court
and then, after passing over or around the net assembly, touches directly the
receiver's court; in doubles, the ball shall touch successively the right half
court of server and receiver.
2.6.4 From the start of service until it is struck, the ball shall be above the level of
the playing surface and behind the server's end line, and it shall not be hidden
from the receiver by any part of the body or clothing of the server or his
doubles partner; as soon as the ball has been projected, the server’s free
arm shall be removed from the space between the server’s body and the net.

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 2: The Laws of Table Tennis
2.6.5 It is the responsibility of the player to serve so that the umpire or the assistant
umpire can see that he complies with the requirements for a good service.
2.6.5.1 If the umpire is doubtful of the legality of a service he may, on the first
occasion in a match, declare a let and warn the server.
2.6.5.2 Any subsequent service of doubtful legality of that player or his doubles
partner will result in a point to the receiver.
2.6.5.3 Whenever there is a clear failure to comply with the requirements for a good
service, no warning shall be given and the receiver shall score a point.
2.6.6 Exceptionally, the umpire may relax the requirements for a good service
where he is satisfied that compliance is prevented by physical disability.

2.7 A GOOD RETURN

2.7.1 The ball, having been served or returned, shall be struck so that it passes
over or around the net assembly and touches the opponent's court, either
directly or after touching the net assembly.

2.8 THE ORDER OF PLAY

2.8.1 In singles, the server shall first make a good service, the receiver shall then
make a good return and thereafter server and receiver alternately shall each
make a good return.
2.8.2 In doubles, the server shall first make a good service, the receiver shall then
make a good return, the partner of the server shall then make a good return,
the partner of the receiver shall then make a good return and thereafter each
player in turn in that sequence shall make a good return.

2.9 A LET
2.9.1 The rally shall be a let
2.9.1.1 if in service the ball, in passing over or around the net assembly, touches
it, provided the service is otherwise good or the ball is obstructed by the
receiver or his partner;
2.9.1.2 if the service is delivered when the receiving player or pair is not ready,
provided that neither the receiver nor his partner attempts to strike the
ball;
2.9.1.3 if failure to make a good service or a good return or otherwise to comply
with the Laws is due to a disturbance outside the control of the player;
2.9.1.4 if play is interrupted by the umpire or assistant umpire.
2.9.2 Play may be interrupted
2.9.2.1 to correct an error in the order of serving, receiving or ends;

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2: The Laws of Table Tennis
2.9.2.2 to introduce the expedite system;
2.9.2.3 to warn or penalise a player;
2.9.2.4 because the conditions of play are disturbed in a way which could affect
the outcome of the rally.

2.10 A POINT
2.10.1 Unless the rally is a let, a player shall score a point
2.10.1.1 if his opponent fails to make a good service;
2.10.1.2 if his opponent fails to make a good return;
2.10.1.3 if, after he has made a good service or a good return, the ball touches
anything other than the net assembly before being struck by his opponent;
2.10.1.4 if the ball passes beyond his end line without touching his court, after
being struck by his opponent;
2.10.1.5 if his opponent obstructs the ball;
2.10.1.6 if his opponent strikes the ball twice successively;
2.10.1.7 if his opponent strikes the ball with a side of the racket blade whose
surface does not comply with the requirements of 2.4.3, 2.4.4 and 2.4.5;
2.10.1.8 if his opponent, or anything his opponent wears or carries, moves the
playing surface;
2.10.1.9 if his opponent, or anything his opponent wears or carries, touches the net
assembly;
2.10.1.10 if his opponent's free hand touches the playing surface;
2.10.1.11 if a doubles opponent strikes the ball out of the sequence established by
the first server and first receiver;
2.10.1.12 as provided under the expedite system (2.15.2).

2.11 A GAME
2.11.1 A game shall be won by the player or pair first scoring 11 points unless both
players or pairs score 10 points, when the game shall be won by the first
player or pair subsequently gaining a lead of 2 points.

2.12 A MATCH
2.12.1 A match shall consist of the best of any odd number of games.

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 2: The Laws of Table Tennis
2.13 THE ORDER OF SERVING, RECEIVING AND ENDS
2.13.1 The right to choose the initial order of serving, receiving and ends shall be
decided by lot and the winner may choose to serve or to receive first or to
start at a particular end.
2.13.2 When one player or pair has chosen to serve or to receive first or to start at a
particular end, the other player or pair shall have the other choice.
2.13.3 After each 2 points have been scored the receiving player or pair shall
become the serving player or pair and so on until the end of the game, unless
both players or pairs score 10 points or the expedite system is in operation,
when the sequences of serving and receiving shall be the same but each
player shall serve for only 1 point in turn.
2.13.4 In each game of a doubles match, the pair having the right to serve first shall
choose which of them will do so and in the first game of a match the receiving
pair shall decide which of them will receive first; in subsequent games of the
match, the first server having been chosen, the first receiver shall be the
player who served to him in the preceding game.
2.13.5 In doubles, at each change of service the previous receiver shall become the
server and the partner of the previous server shall become the receiver.
2.13.6 The player or pair serving first in a game shall receive first in the next game of
the match and in the last possible game of a doubles match the pair due to
receive next shall change their order of receiving when first one pair scores 5
points.
2.13.7 The player or pair starting at one end in a game shall start at the other end in
the next game of the match and in the last possible game of a match the
players or pairs shall change ends when first one player or pair scores 5
points.

2.14 OUT OF ORDER OF SERVING, RECEIVING OR ENDS

2.14.1 If a player serves or receives out of turn, play shall be interrupted by the
umpire as soon as the error is discovered and shall resume with those players
serving and receiving who should be server and receiver respectively at the
score that has been reached, according to the sequence established at the
beginning of the match and, in doubles, to the order of serving chosen by the
pair having the right to serve first in the game during which the error is
discovered.
2.14.2 If the players have not changed ends when they should have done so, play
shall be interrupted by the umpire as soon as the error is discovered and shall
resume with the players at the ends at which they should be at the score that
has been reached, according to the sequence established at the beginning of
the match.

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2.14.3 In any circumstances, all points scored before the discovery of an error shall
be reckoned.

2.15 THE EXPEDITE SYSTEM

2.15.1 Except where both players or pairs have scored at least 9 points, the
expedite system shall come into operation if a game is unfinished after 10
minutes' play or at any earlier time at the request of both players or pairs.
2.15.1.1 If the ball is in play when the time limit is reached, play shall be interrupted by
the umpire and shall resume with service by the player who served in the rally
that was interrupted.
2.15.1.2 If the ball is not in play when the time limit is reached, play shall resume with
service by the player who received in the immediately preceding rally.
2.15.2 Thereafter, each player shall serve for 1 point in turn until the end of the game
and if the receiving player or pair makes 13 good returns the receiver shall
score a point.
2.15.3 Once introduced, the expedite system shall remain in operation until the end
of the match.

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