OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Many thanks for your expert advice antidon!

I had a pennant night with the antispin last night and went 3-0, including against the runner up to the div 2 singles title from last weekend who is one of the best players in the division. It was the most lop-sided win I ever had against him. I don't think he scored above 5 points in each game. From me it was the absolute best I'd ever played (in my 3 days of playing anti-spin!!!) with the antispin - and I felt like an old antispin pro. I was winning points both from placement and control, I was setting up my inverted forehand, and I was winning points off attacks from the antispin. It was absolutely flawless. I'll probably upload that match and link it here for some critique when I get a chance.

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Blade: TSP Black Balsa 7.0 flared; FH Rubber - Donic Acuda S3 max sponge; BH Rubber - Speed Spectol 1.8mm

Hello poor knight,

when i say anti-spin can attack almost all spin, it is very much dependent on you being able to read spin and adjust the angle of your blade accordingly, anti spin is much more forgiving compared to inverted, it also depend on which brand of antispin you are using. For Yasaka antispin, i find that it is able to attack almost all kind of spin at the table once you can read it. do not forget that you can also push with it, if in doubt and the ball is low over the table, push it hard and fast to the sides or to their midpt.

beside being able to attack, you should also learn how to block it short. if you are push away from the table, the only viable way will be to chop.

all the best in your antispin journey.

Thanks Yori

I definitely enjoy attacking with the Yasaka Antipower.
My backhand crosscourt is the most consistent shot and is almost as consistent as with my inverted.
I'm finding, for people who handle the fast attack, the slower counterhitting stroke is great for stopping them getting into a rythmn.
And dropshots and well placed pushes are great and something I need to work on.

Here is the video I mentioned before:



Once again, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers all
PK

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Blade: TSP Black Balsa 7.0 flared; FH Rubber - Donic Acuda S3 max sponge; BH Rubber - Speed Spectol 1.8mm

Great wins.

It only gets better.

The fun part is I play the 5 equal players in my club that adjust to the anti well after 5+ years of playing them so I really have to get better at in. Then when going to tournaments the other players are not use to it so I can get away with "weaker" shots.

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Omega iv pro
Butterfly super anti special
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Tri-carbon HAMMER

Vid embedded.

Looking good there PK. Your opponent looks like he had an "off night", possibly caused by you

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I did up a highlights video from our ACT closed championship div 2 gold medal winning run.
&feature=youtube_gdata_player

I think, not knowing the proper antispin technique, my strokes with it look still like with an inverted. But I think that helps the deception.

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Blade: TSP Black Balsa 7.0 flared; FH Rubber - Donic Acuda S3 max sponge; BH Rubber - Speed Spectol 1.8mm

I gotta say sir PK, for someone who is trying out antispin, you are using it well
I am not an anti user, so I don't have any meaningful advice really.

I saw my friend with anti on his bh use more push rather than graze.
And also I saw him to play much more forward stroke on the table when using anti.

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GFoT |Blade : Timo Boll ALC • FH : DHS 3 Neo Provincial MAX • BH : Tenergy 64 MAX
Crossover to Takeover!

Poor knight, I'm not familiar with the Yasaka anti, but it seems to play pretty much like Juic Neoanti or Tibhar Ellen, only faster. Below is a description of the strokes I do with the latter. I hope you don't need to adjust too much to make them work for the Yasaka.

Hitting against no-spin or top-spin, or every kind of side-spin can be done in a punch. Make contact on the top of the bounce, bat-face towards the point of the table you want to aim at (so slightly closed). A short and very quick snap of the wrist should bring the blade pointing from 9 to 12 o'clock during the stroke (mostly to make friction, to get control over the ball). The underarm should pivot around the elbow, bringing the blade itself from 11 to 12 o'clock. There should be no moving towards the ball and no follow-through to speak of, as a longer stroke tends to make you graze the ball which is pointless here; the stroke should be "dry", a real short punch, not a hook. Make sure you hit the ball well into the sponge; let it come, don't reach for it (you won't be able to use your underarm correctly with your arm stretched), but also don't wait too long, or the stroke will be too long itself. This produces a no-spin ball or very light top-spin.

Counterloop against topspin or roll against backspin (works also against no-spin). Make contact on the top of the bounce (it is possible to do it slightly later, but better not) or even before, and this time use a lot more wrist- and underarm-action to bring the bat itself from almost 6 to 12 or even 1 o'clock, similar as you would loop with inverted, but using a bit more force upwards than you would with inverted (as the friction - and so drag - are less), and with your bat a lot more open. This will produce topspin, but not a lot, except when done against backspin, in which case there will be a vast amount of topspin on the ball - it will dip fast so be sure your stroke is going more upward than forward.
The stroke resembles looping with inverted against very light backspin.
Length of the trajectory of the ball is difficult to control with this stroke, as a lot depends on the amount of incoming spin, so it is only a safe stroke if the ball bounces relatively high and you can aim directly for the table, or if the ball is close to the net and no great speed is necessary (flip).

Neutral block against topspin or no-spin. Hold the bat vertical, even against fierce topspin, and always take the ball on or immediately after the top of the bounce; this will produce a flat trajectory with the ball just clearing the net, and the ball will land somewhere mid-table or shorter, if no forward force is added. Always help the ball into the sponge and a little up by moving your underarm up a bit, softly, but don't let that change the vertical position of the bat. If you bump forward into the ball, it will go longer. For real active blocks, use the punch.

Catching block against no-spin or top-spin. Close the bat a bit, block soft and make the little movement which brings the ball into the sponge and up, but now longer and sort of hollow, as if you mean to go over the ball, but don't. If contact is made after the top of the bounce, make this catching movement faster and longer to get more grip on the ball.

Chop-block against no-spin or top-spin: like catching or blocking but going down instead of up and opening the blade a bit to compensate for the fact that you don't help the ball up now. However, against fierce topspin it may be necessary to close the bat a bit; also when you take the ball on the rise.

Pushing against backspin. Open the bat and shove it towards the ball, going straightforward into it, without lifting, and without using the wrist. Just bump it straight ahead and the ball will go low over the net. You can make contact on the rise, but not too early or the ball will go high; making contact on the top of the bounce is safe.
Make it a point to attack (roll) backspin after you have pushed it once or twice, or you will end up pushing back weak balls.

Chopping close and mid-distance against no-spin or back-spin (this is also a safe way to return fast no-spin serves, but you have to see them coming!). Make contact on the left beside you, hip-high. Start the stroke (have your bat at shoulder-height) when or before the ball bouncess off your half of the table, as a good chop takes as much time as a good loop! Bring the bat up to near your left shoulder, crooking your arm and cocking your wrist. Turn your shoulders and waist to the left, so you can reach the ball comfortably when it is beside you. Chop down quickly, but not deep, make it a scoop, going under the ball; you have to turn the bat to make it horizontal for that. Contact the ball when your bat is almost horizontal, dragging it a bit down and fast forward and a bit up again. Make forward speed by turning your waist and shoulders back. The bat ends up somewhere before your right hip. You have to start real quick against a lot of spin, but can move slower against less; always accelerate towards the ball, not after you have made contact. Keep the ball low over the net by going down (bending the knees a bit) with the stroke; also keep in mind to bring the ball into the sponge and drag it down on contact, not at the end of your stroke... This stroke will produce a lot of backspin, but not much speed, so be careful to place the ball well.

Chopping long-distance. Take the ball in front of you, lower than your waist, and stand with legs well apart. Chop from left shoulder to right knee, in a straight diagonal line, turning the shoulder and waist to make the stroke straight, and bending over to bring the ball down. This stroke will keep the ball low and fast, but tends to produce a bit less spin.

Hitting against backspin or no-spin away from the table. Open the blade a bit, lift your elbow and hit the ball going forward and up. It will stay low when you reverse backspin; against no-spin you have to "pull" a bit more upward, to make topspin of your own. Hit hard against heavy spin, but be careful not to overhit against light spin.

Good luck!

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Without opponent, no match.

Thanks Kees for the detailed advice, I'll definitely copy-and-paste it into a word document and keep it for ongoing reference.

But I wish you had posted it about 2.5 weeks ago.
Since then, my antispin experiment went terribly wrong, just in time for the pennant playoffs! My game and confidence fell apart, and I was becoming very one dimensional (the only shot I could do was a drive, which is a useful surprise tactic with an anti, but if you do it EVERY time, the opponent adjusts to it quite quickly and once they started blocking the drive back, I was just lost). Fortunately, my team-mates picked up the slack and we gone gold eventually, but it was a very forgettable campaign for me.

At the end of the day, it wasn't very surprising after changing from inverted to antispin like that without any practice and in the middle of the season. That kind of 180 degree change needs a good long off-season to practice, and even that wouldn't be enough to be comfortable.

The next season starts March, so a lot of work to do before then!

Cheers
PK

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Blade: TSP Black Balsa 7.0 flared; FH Rubber - Donic Acuda S3 max sponge; BH Rubber - Speed Spectol 1.8mm

Poor knight wrote: No no... Your analysis of failure is a good one and knowing your limitations is the soundest basis to build on. Remember it and you'll get there!

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Without opponent, no match.