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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.
