Choosing Your Table Tennis Practice Partner

To buy MARK V, click on the image. I prefer MAX thickness. 

It is crucial that you choose a table tennis practice partner carefully, especially if you are new to the game. Select someone with whom you have excellent 'chemistry'. The person should ideally be a BETTER player than you, or at least have the same skill level as you. You don't want to practice with someone who is not able to properly return your shots, or returns your shorts in a poor fashion.

Once you have selected your practice partner, you are on your way to get some really good practice. Go for extended rallies ACROSS the diagonals of the table tennis board. Practice across one diagonal for some time and then go for the other diagonal. When rallying, restrain from going for fancy shots, because that may disturb the rhythm.

After practicing diagonally, start practicing along straight lines. Use the right-hand section of the table, then the middle section, and finally the left-hand section. Practicing along straight lines is much more difficult because there is less space to control the ball.

After you and your partner have finished the rallies using straightforward shots, go for the fancier ones. Tell your partner that you want to practice topspin, and he should block the shot. Then do the reverse, practice blocking the topspins of your practice partner.

Next, go for the chop. Both of you should be chopping the ball at your respective ends. Tell your partner to flick the ball if he possibly can. If your chops at not up to the mark, he should be able to flick it, if he is a good player. This is a nice way to test the quality of your chops. Then ask him to chop the ball while you try to flick it. This will test your ability to attack a chopped shot. Flicking a chopped shot depends on the quality of the chop and the skill level and you have with flicks.

Practice for as much time as you like. Stop when you or your partner feels tired. After you have rested for some time, and you still have time, play a match. This will create the kind of friendly rivalry between you and your practice partner - which is good for both of you. After all, you need to keep that spark of interest intact and not get bored.

Practicing with your partner will improve both your skill levels. If your partner happens to have superior playing skills, you will quickly find evidence of this by your inability to return his shots. This should not discourage you, in it should encourage you. After all, you are getting more out of your partner than vice versa. There will come a point when your return charts get better and better. One fine day you might find that your partner is faltering. This is a sign that your game is improving faster than your partner's and you are picking up some really good table tennis. You will, in that case, be starting to win most of the matches you play with your partner after the practice sessions.

Developing Ball Control In Table Tennis

To buy TENERGY 25-FX, click on the image.

Developing ball control in table tennis is probably the MOST essential skill you need to survive at the upper echelons of the game. Ball control refers to the ability to RETURN the ball during play. Maybe your shot is not a quality one, but if you are CONSISTENT in returning the ball, there is a high chance that your opponent will start making mistakes. You can then CAPITALIZE on those mistakes to deliver quality shots and possibly win points from them.

Improving ball control is not a skill you acquire in a hurry. It requires meticulous and dedicated practice for hours on end every day. This is where your table tennis practice partner can play an important role. Discuss with him the schedules when you can meet up with him, maybe at your favorite local club, and spend some time practicing rallies. These practice sessions will help you gain confidence in your playing abilities and develop ball control. You will find that controlling the ball requires not only PHYSICAL fitness but also MENTAL fitness. This is because you will face situations where you need to decide INSTANTLY on how best to return the ball. During these practice sessions, do not be too involved about the quality of shots you are playing. Instead, be concerned about RETURNING the ball. You can develop quality shots later on - that is something for the future. In fact, you will NATURALLY pick up quality shots if you persevere with these practice sessions.

So let's see how you can start off with these practice sessions. Begin your practice session by first taking a FOREHAND stance. This means you should play the ball with your forehand and not backhand. The stance you take will vary depending on whether you are right-handed or left-handed. Ask your partner to play DIAGONALLY across the table - take any of the diagonals. Let him serve or you can serve to put the ball into play. Practice for some time diagonally with your forehand and see how you are returning the ball. Increase the SPEED of the rally now.

Next, ask your table tennis partner to start another practice session by playing diagonally again. Remember to maintain your forehand stance. However, this time your partner should return every FIFTH ball DOWN THE LINE. However, you should always return the ball to HIS quadrant of the table - no exceptions. Hence, every FIFTH ball will MAKE you move in order to hit it properly. Again, increase the speed of the rally.

Okay. Now repeat the same thing but with every FOURTH ball played down the line by your practice partner. Don't forget your forehand stance. Ask him to increase the speed of the rally. Repeat until you reach the point where you have to return every ALTERNATE ball coming at you down the line. Speed up as before. This is the most difficult part of your practice session. As the rally speeds up, you will find it difficult to adjust. But it is important that you go through with this practice session. Do not be affected if you mishit the ball at times. This is quite normal. Once you are up and going with these practice sessions for a few weeks, you will find you are able to return a maximum percentage of the balls correctly.

Now, during these practice sessions, reserve some time to practice with your backhand also. This means this time you need to maintain the BACKHAND stance. Follow the exact procedure as outlined above. The above guidelines are just to get you going. You can discuss with your table tennis partner what OTHER variations you can make to the above procedure so that you get STILL more practice. Before long, you will find yourself getting more CONFIDENCE in table tennis as your ball control improves steadily.

Watching Table Tennis For Playing Better

To buy MARK V, click on the image. I prefer MAX thickness.

Hey! So you want to IMPROVE your game? Well, the most important thing to do is PRACTICE. You need hours of practice each day to improve your skill level in any game. And table tennis is no exception. You need to visit your favorite local club or wherever to practice with your table tennis partner. You need to practice with rallies and play matches against the players around. These practice sessions will EXPOSE you to various playing styles and TELL you how you are shaping up to expert level table tennis.

Still, another IMPORTANT way to improve your skill level is to WATCH table tennis games. Sit down comfortably in a chair and watch your friends play. Watch the rallies when they practice, but also watch the matches. During matches, you get to see the different shots being played. More importantly, focus your eyes on the BALL. This will develop BETTER eye reflex. Try to absorb the FLIGHT of the ball and also its BEHAVIOR after it bounces. Try to appreciate the brilliant shots being played and also the mistakes made. You can offer to be judge in a match if you want. But it's better to be a simple spectator because you stay less involved with the game physically and be able to FOCUS better on the finer points of the game.

Watch table tennis games on television if you have the opportunity. Or watch them on the Internet. Watch how the top-level players are playing their shots. Watch the ball in play. Watch the winning shots. Watch the mistakes. Try to absorb the ATMOSPHERE. Imagine yourself as being a PARTICIPANT in the game. Feel your blood rush in your veins as you see a jaw dropping loop, a blinding topspin, an elegant flick, or a simply spectacular drop shot. Watch the crippling spin on the ball and the petrifying speed. All this helps you anticipate the type of things you MUST face if you want to steadily continue your upward climb to table tennis stardom.

Watching table tennis is the NEXT best thing after playing. If you get the chance, buy a ticket and visit the stadium in your city where an international event is being organized. Sometimes it is possible to walk up to the foreign players who are participating and talk to them. Just saying hello will give your confidence a huge boost. Select a place where you get a good ringside view of an important match being played and settle down comfortably and stay relaxed. Notice the air of TENSION palpable all around. Watch the lighting conditions and the temperature - is it pleasant, too hot, too cold? Make a note of all these things. Watch the players' faces. Are they showing signs of the tension that they obviously feel? Look at how they GRIP their racket. When the match starts, watch the serves Watch the movement of the players as they negotiate the ball. Watch their footwork, their posture. Watch the ball moving through the air. Watch how it bounces. Watch the shots these star players play. Listen to the sound of the racket making contact with the ball. Watch the EMOTIONS during play. 

Watching TRAINS your eye so that when you actually play, you are FAMILIAR with the game. When you see a ball coming at you in a particular way, you INSTINCTIVELY know the best way to play. When you watch professional level tournaments, you are training yourself to FACE the electrifying atmosphere when you YOURSELF become eligible to participate. It's common for otherwise talented players to fail COMPLETELY when they go out to play tournaments at the elite level. The tension is too much to handle. The hands and feet become cold and NUMB. The blood starts racing. The heartbeat STOPS. It is sometimes even difficult to BREATHE. How can one even THINK of playing properly with such challenges to face?

Watching table tennis also DEVELOPS the TECHNICAL sense so vital to improve one's game. When you see international players make difficult strokes look so easy, you start wondering how you can train yourself to do those strokes yourself. You keep wondering and speaking to your CONSCIOUS mind - when you fall asleep you ask the same questions to your SUBCONSCIOUS mind. Often, your subconscious mind will provide you the right answers. It means you are falling in LOVE with the game.

Loading Your Forehand Topspin Even More

To buy PRYDE 30, click on the image.

Okay. This time let's discuss now one of the most popular shots in table tennis - the forehand topspin - with a slight twist. I presume you must already be knowing how to play the forehand topspin. It's one of the basic shots you learn when you start out to play table tennis. The purpose of this discussion is not so much to tell you how to play the topspin properly. Instead, we examine how to LOAD your topspin even more. Perfecting this shot can really boost your skill level and earn your respect in the table tennis circuit.

The ordinary forehand topspin is played by moving your arm DIAGONALLY and brushing the ball in the region between the equator of the ball and its top edge. Usually, players tend to brush the ball in the region between the equator and the middle point of the arc stretching from the equator to the top edge or the apex of the ball. The arm makes a nice diagonal movement while playing the shot. You can play the topspin on top of the table or a little behind but the movement of your arm and striking region of the ball is essentially the same. The shot gives a nice forward spin to the ball and opens up an entertaining round of rally - with both players usually playing topspin. The players typically have their racket blades opened up at about 45° or less relative to the plane of the table. The topspin shot causes the ball to bounce on the other side and make a graceful arc.

However, when you see top-level table tennis tournaments, you usually won't see the same type of topspin that we discussed just now and that you might be used to. Instead, the elite level players usually go for the LOADED topspin, which is one of the most DEADLY shots in table tennis. Let us find out how to execute this type of topspin so that you can have even greater EDGE in your game. But remember that to properly execute this type of shot you should be sufficiently advanced in your skill level as a table tennis player. The loaded topspin is not only difficult to execute, but incorrect judgment during execution can lead to mishits. With proper practice over a period of time, you should be able to play the loaded topspin with sufficient finesse.

In order to hit this VICIOUS kind of topspin that can easily win you the point, unless your opponent is equally skilled, you need to do three things:

> When you move your arm, do it even more HORIZONTALLY than VERTICALLY. This extra horizontal component will give a higher corresponding horizontal impulse vector to the ball.

> Whip the region of the ball between the middle point of the arc, connecting the equator of the ball to its top edge or apex, and the apex.

> Close the angle of the blade to about 30° or even less - whatever you are comfortable with.

This EXTREMELY offensive shot hits the ball with a DULL 'thwack' and gives it a TREMENDOUS amount of horizontal momentum as well as forward spin. The ball flashes to the other side of the table and after bouncing does NOT bounce up so much. Instead, it makes VICIOUS floater movement and stays flattish. Your opponent will find it extremely difficult to properly return this kind of ball, if at all.

In order to properly execute the loaded forehand topspin, you need to use an OFFENSIVE rubber, preferably of maximum thickness. Your racket should also be an OFFENSIVE type. Try out this shot on a ball coming at you with LOW trajectory and not much spin. You should see instant results in your favor.

Returning Your Opponent's Smash

To buy MARK V 30°, click on the image.

Facing the smash or kill shot is possibly the most sobering experience in table tennis. Typically, your opponent goes for the smash when you return the ball high enough for him to play the shot. It is immaterial whether the ball contains some type of spin or not. The important fact here is that the ball has a high enough trajectory and ASKS to be smashed.

One of the first thoughts that comes to mind about the smash is that you are most probably NOT going to win the point. The smash is a high-speed shot executed with full power and can be delivered anywhere on the table. Typically, you have moved away from the table in order to try to return the smashed ball. A routine response to a smash is the lob. Basically, what you do is scoop the ball up and hope it lands on your opponent's side of the table. Even if it does, your opponent is likely to smash again. This can be repeated any number of times until one of you makes a mistake. Usually you are the one most likely to make that mistake.

What we will try to discuss here is how best to negotiate the smash. One recommended way of handling the smash is to return it with some FORWARD spin. This way, when the ball gets back to your opponent it will be slightly more difficult for him to control the ball because of the spin AND the high trajectory. Remember, a high trajectory is not always easy to negotiate if the concentration level of the player is not sufficient. Many players get TENSED when they see a ball floating up at them and this can lead to simple errors.

Another way to return the smash is to play the DEEP CHOP. The deep chop is a more severe version of the standard chop. What you do is execute a chopping action way back from the table, which gives the ball a tremendous amount of backspin. This can pose problems for your opponent. A neatly executed deep chop might FORCE your opponent to play a normal topspin drive, which means you have a better chance to return the next shot. This is because it is easier to face even a severe topspin than a smash.

However, remember that although you might try your level best to return the smash, there is very little chance of you winning the rally. Examine at a later stage what mistake you might have made that gave your opponent the chance to kill the ball. Maybe you did not make any mistake at all and it was your opponent's quality shot that FORCED you to return the ball lamely, which then led to the smash. Anyway, let's get this very clear - there is NOTHING much you can do against the smash.

A table tennis rally consisting of smashes and lobs can be very entertaining to watch for the audience. However, there is very little technical expertise involved in this spectacular exchange. Defensive players often GENERATE such kind of rallies. This happens because their NATURAL tendency to play the deep chop results in situations where the opponent can start smashing the ball. Some defensive players at the elite level are capable of winning points even after a prolonged session of deep chops and smashes. However, modern-day table tennis has made such entertaining play almost OBSOLETE. Serious players of table tennis no longer stand much chance of making any progress with such a defensive approach.

This is not to deny, however, the importance of having a strong defense. Even purely attacking players at the international level can display amazing defense when necessary. But this is not their MAIN approach to the game. In order to be better prepared to return a smash, you need to practice a good deal with your table tennis partner. However, it does not benefit you to spend too much time on it. Instead, concentrate on improving your basic shots like the topspin and flick.

Why Playing Close To The Table Helps

To buy TENERGY 05-FX, click on the image.

One of the ways to DOMINATE a table tennis game is to play CLOSE to the table. If you look at Asian players, you will find most of them playing close to the table. This offers many advantages and is an excellent way to CONTROL the game.

Players staying close to the table need to have quicker reflexes. This is because of the blinding speed with which the ball comes at you. Also, you need to have quick eye movement to follow the ball correctly. With that said, playing close to the table gives you a MASSIVE advantage by way of giving you a BETTER view of the table and watching clearly your opponent's stroke.

Because table tennis is such a fast game, you need to rely on sound for making a split-second decision on how best to negotiate the ball. When you play AWAY from the table, the sound of the ball played by your opponent is not that audible. Further, you cannot get a grandstand view of the TRAJECTORY of the ball to help you decide on how best to play the ball.

Players INSTINCTIVELY choosing to play away from the table are mostly DEFENSIVE players. They would like to LOOP the ball, which is an OFFENSIVE stroke, but sometimes end up LOBBING the ball, which is a DEFENSIVE action. The looping action DEGENERATES into a lobbing action when the player is unable to reach the ball properly in order to execute the loop. Once the ball is lobbed, it is ripe for the KILL. Although, admittedly, there are good lobbers even at the international level, most of the time the player executing the kill shots ends up winning the point.

A very big disadvantage for players staying away from the table is the much GREATER ground coverage necessary to play their shots. While this is feasible for tall and well built players, the ones with medium build will be struggling when they play far from the table. Even for the tall players, not only do they have to cover more ground, but they have do that in a VERY short time. The slightest delay or mistake in moving correctly can cost them the point. Which means a very RISKY way of playing the game.

Playing away from the table also INCREASES the vulnerability to ball placement tactics like the drop shot. You might have seen players rushing back to return a well executed drop shot, but ending up losing the point quite often. This is because the way they handle the drop shot is slipshod; the next shot might be the winning one for the opponent.

There is nothing against moving back from the table if you are FORCED to. The point I am making here is that you should not back away from the table HABITUALLY. If a particular rally forces you to move away from the table, make sure you get back in when you find the opportunity. Moving back temporarily should be out of NECESSITY and not CHOICE.

As mentioned earlier, playing close to the table requires you to have excellent reflexes and quick eye movement. You can develop these faculties by practicing intensively with your table tennis partner. As you will move up the ladder in terms of skill level, you are likely to appreciate that playing close to the table is not that difficult. Just like driving a car, you can play your shots using INTUITION, rather than ANALYSIS. Humans are capable of a whole range of complex activities in a split-second by intensively training their SUBCONSCIOUS mind. This is essential because in a high-speed game like table tennis, there is simply not enough time to think properly before playing the ball.