OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Funny you should ask Tong!

I had my best outing ever in div 1 last round, my winning percentage is now over 50% (in fact, I think I might have the second highest winning percentage in div 1 among regular no.2 and no.3 players - so not counting the captains of each team).

I finally gave up on my FH rubber I'd been trialing (the Joola Express Two) which had so little power that, as soon as the opponent lobbed the ball, I basically knew I had lost that point!!!
I returned to my tried-and-tested Donic Acuda S3 and I feel like the weight has been removed from my ankles and I can soar like a bird!
Suddently my FH loops are more consistent AND more powerful...and have become a weapon again.

I think I am getting close to the upper limit of my potential, given my limited time to practice and lack of expert coaching. Unless Joo Se Hyuk moves to Canberra to give me intensive one-on-one coaching, and I win the lottery and can retire, I don't see myself improving much. At this stage, it's not about improving and winning for me anymore, but discovering my 'style' and learning to play my game against anyone - win or lose....and having fun! And keeping fit!

Further to that, the games I get most frustrated and upset about afterwards are not ones I lose but ones where I allow the opponent to intimidate me to the point where I don't play my game, or where I am so nervous that I can't play my game. Perhaps others have had similar experiences...you know those games where you lost 6-7 points in a row in a blink of an eye and you can barely recall what happened? Usually you lose by going for low percentage shots early in the rally or by playing too passively and allowing the opponent to dicate the rally.

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

PK, I seriously doubt you are near the limit of what you can become. I can accept that given the circumstances you are currently in, your growth could be slow, but by no means is your top end potential realized yet.

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Goof-off chopping bat
Gambler All Rosewood
Aurus Soft / Gambler GXL .6 sponge

Status - Out of Business Janitor/Babysitter

Dear all

A belated update.

I've managed to remain in div 1 for three seasons (and counting). During this time, I have managed an overall winning percentage of around a respectable 40%. And I have managed this while various work commitments and health ailments have vastly cut down my opportunities to play and train. I could definitely not have achieved this with anything other than LPs (and the grass dtecs ox in particular which is a bad-arse tricky-as-hell rubber!).

Having said that, the quality of my matches have been depressing. I find the idea of inverted max/LP ox combo intellectually stimulating because these are as different as two rubbers can get. And combined with twiddling, the tactical possibilities are endless. If I were 10 years old and could train 4 times a week, this is definitely the style I would love to develop. But when I am playing once a week, and having extended breaks, the challenge of learning completely different strokes for LP and inverted proved too much. Over the Christmas/New Year break I went 3 months hardly picking up a bat due to a very bad spell of gout. When I returned, I found that I was not just rusty but a complete beginner again with my LP. I just haven't had the opportunity to develop any long-term durable muscle memory.

While I'm still plodding along winning my share of matches, these are usually because the opponent is as completely lost as I am about what to do with my LP OX. There are lots of weird high balls and people poking at the ball hesitantly. A casual observer would assume it was a div 4 match and not div 1. In the end, I have reluctantly decided to move on from my beloved grass dtecs. Perhaps in my next life!

I decided to change to thick sponged SP.

Why?

For one thing, my game had become far too complex and I was relying too much on "effect" to win points. I wanted to go the other extreme. I read that thick sponged SP didn't have much deception but they went where you hit them. I wanted to go from far-from-table, slow and complex to close-to-table, fast and simple, simple, simple. Originally I had also planned to give up twiddling, but I found that having SP made it easier to twiddle because there is not as much difference between the strokes so there are less adjustments to be made. Also, I find SP serving is a real alternative because you still can generate some spin and adds another variation compared with inverted serving.

I've only had 2 practice sessions with the SP...but in that short time I've felt my strokes become surer and surer. Using Donic Baxster F1A 2.0mm, counterhitting and rolling came very naturally. Blocking took a lot longer but seems to be making progress. Pushing is still hit-and-miss. Tonight I have my first session in pennant competition using my SP - so that will be a good chance to gauge whether I am on the right track. The big test will be the upcoming NSW Country Championship.

Main reason for the change is not to win more games (I think 40% winning percentage is as good as I can manage at my level of training) but to have higher quality rallies. The matches I was winning with the LP were ugly wins. Hopefully even the matches I lose with the SP will be nice losses!!!

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

This is 100% the thing I struggle with the most! When I play at the table as a blocker, my matches are far less artistic (if that matters). My chop blocks are my best stroke...by far.... both in effect and in aethetics. But other at-the-table strokes, namely passive blocking, while effective, isn't aesthetically as pleasing (to me).

I get far more compliments when I'm chopping and playing more modern D...which is why I settled for the equipment in my signature, because I want to be able to go back and forth during a match between long and close defense. If I could chop block extremely strong and fast loops (like over 1900 level loops) I'd never leave the table and just chop block all day. But sometimes I get forced away from the table.... The EJ in me is screaming "You need a slow/stiff blade to chop block those heavy loops".... the defplay is not really meant for that. I've been eyeing the NSD, and this bloody anti-EJ oath is killing me.

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Blog: "Holy Chtchet!" ⇝

Projects: Player Equipment Grid ⇝ Comprehensive Thin Inverted Chopping Rubbers Grid ⇝ Please send me corrections or new submissions

I'm watching you, Japsican - no excuses. You can block 1900+ loops right now with your current equipment. You don't need to block 1900+ level loops right now, so again, no excuses. Again, the most important thing is to figure out how to get advantages and remain consistent within the first 5 strokes of the game. Because you use pips, the longer the rally goes, the more it is usually in your favor, so figuring out how to get past the looper's serve and attack with well placed returns or tricks to make them give you a high ball you can attack with your forehand should be a huge focus in your game right now. I was with a few U1500 players at a tournament a couple of weeks ago one of them used long pips. Almost everytime I served him a no-spin ball, he was only able to return the ball consistently to the middle of the table in my sweet strike zone. You need to learn to break sidelines, keep returns deep or keep returns short. When you can't put spin on the ball, placement becomes twice as important as it already is.

I've personally found that aesthetically pleasing is a necessary part of the battle to enjoy the game, but that ultimately, if you want to get better at this sport, as opposed to just playing as you like, you may be forced to do some things that you don't enjoy doing, whether it's serve practice (which I don't really like but do a lot of periodically), short pushing on service returns, or looping into pips repeatedly. I am trying to become a two winged looper and counterlooper but not as easy as it seems, even though I can loop on both sides.

But at some point, I will give up the improvement grind - when that happens, I might use short pips on the BH - who knows?

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Cobra Kai TT Exponent (Mercy effs up your Game)
One-Loop Man: One Loop... Again????
Lumberjack TT Exponent

"We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training" - Archilochus

Just a quick update following my first pennant night with my SP.

I lost 0-3 to a team with two reserves, where all three opponents were rated lower than me and against all of whom I had a strong record.
Not only that, I didn't score more than 5 points in any set!!!

*Sigh* Changing equipment is really confusing. This is a long long term project....

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

PK, I had a tourney where I made my first EVER Open finals and after a harsh winter of doing zero TT, I did a tourney a few months later and I was already 2.5 levels lower performing player.

You can have a spell where you go to crap, but you can get it back.

I hope to be in Boston a few months soon and I think a month later I will have gotten back 1.5 of those levels back.

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Goof-off chopping bat
Gambler All Rosewood
Aurus Soft / Gambler GXL .6 sponge

Status - Out of Business Janitor/Babysitter

Good to see you back posting on your blog PK. I'm wondering if you ditched the wrong thing? As you well know I've been with LP almost as long as I've been on the forum. I loved the idea of twiddling for the tactical advantage, but have never been close to doing it seriously. The stroke differences are just too much for me. So all I do is twiddle on serve. Maybe what you should ditch is twiddling and keep the dtechs. There is still a lot you can do with them without twiddling

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I'm always in the dark, but the Dark sheds lights upon everything!! Beauty is only pimple deep! Beauty is in the eye of the pipholder!
S/U 1: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Andro Rasant 2.1 . BH Red Tibhar Grass Dtecs
S/U 2: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Hexer+ 2.1 . BH Red GD Talon
S/U 3: Blade: Bty Gergely . No rubbers...thinking of adding Red Dtecs and Black Rasant
Aussie Table Tennis Shop / Aussie Table Tennis Facebook Page / Equipment Review Index / Read my Reb Report Blog: click here.

Thanks for your encouragement DE.
Reborn, I reckon you are right and I would achieve better results if I forgot twiddling and concentrated on my LP backhand...but I just love twiddling too much!

My new bat arrived (TSP Black Balsa 7.0 + Spectol Speed 1.8mm + Donic Acuda S3 max).
Bit of a shock going from defensive/all combo bat to OFF+, and also a bit of a shock going from soft sponge SP to a harder sponge...but I love the feel of this blade in my hand (and for me that's half the reason for using a particular blade).

Had a chance to play with it last night against three bona fide div 1 players and already did better with a 1-2 record.
Hard to tell whether the harder sponge on the SP makes it easier or harder to control...but am having a lot of trouble blocking with it. When someone hits the ball low and fast, it's okay to block back, but if the ball is lofted (with or without heavy topspin) I seem to have all sorts of problems. In fact, counter intuitively, when the ball is lofted with heavy topspin, I block into the net...when the ball is lofted without much topspin, I block it long.

Really wish I could have regular coaching by Sharad Pandit!!!
That's been the trouble for all my experimental stints with antispin, LP and now SP...lack of authoritative advise on what's wrong with my technique and how to correct it.

At least I am making progress...

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

G'day all

I've uploaded a video from my NSW Country Championships in Gosford last weekend.
It was without a doubt (especially the Saturday) the worst experience of my table tennis life for the following reasons:

1) I was still clueless on the technique and tactics of SP
2) I had just returned from a half-a-month business trip to New York, meaning I hadn't had a chance to train or play, I was exhausted, tired, sleep deprived and jet lagged and I was also very unfit (too busy and tired for the gym and too many macdonald meals!)
3) I had pulled muscles in my upper back a couple of days before and was only just starting to be able to breathe without pain
4) I caught a cold in Gosford

Anyway, things got a bit better by the second day. I started getting more used to playing with pain and also I started being more prudent and cautious with playing my SP, and playing within my limits. I made less unforced errors and I found that short pushes were quite effective, especially against aggressive loopers.

Anyway, here is a "highlights" video I uploaded. As always, grateful for any advice on my technique and tactics, especially on my SP BH.



Thanks as always!

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,

Most of the short pips players I know have mastered the art of blocking the ball short - have you ever practiced this?

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Cobra Kai TT Exponent (Mercy effs up your Game)
One-Loop Man: One Loop... Again????
Lumberjack TT Exponent

"We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training" - Archilochus

G'day NextLevel

During the championship I was focusing on three strokes: the push, the block and the opening attack against backspin.
The easiest stroke was the push...by the end of the weekend, I was able to push consistently, deep and low.
I even got fancy with some side swipe pushes which really confused some high quality opponents.

However, I was struggling with the block and the opening attack all weekend and was bleeding unforced errors all over the place.
I got okay at the reflex block against a fast, flat drive. But I was all lost at sea against slow spinny loops (I blocked it straight down into the table) and high dead balls (I blocked these long). Still haven't figured it out...let alone blocking short. I have no idea what the technique should be.

I also struggled with the opening attack. I have a general sense I was perhaps brushing too much and hitting up on the ball. Not sure about the technique either. Particularly frustrating as blocking and attack against backspin are supposed to be the strengths of a SP.

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

Hi Poorknight,

I played you in Gosford, eeked out a 3-2 win, hope to see you again next year for another battle.

Watching your video the thing that stands out for me is your footwork, particularly when hitting backhands. I have been told by William Henzell that the technically "correct" foot position for a right hander when hitting a backhand is left foot about 50mm in front of the right foot. You however are often almost fully side on, right foot way in front of the left, what this does is make transitioning to a forehand stance very much more difficult and slow. Sure the side on might give a touch more power, but the backhand is a stroke that is almost all arm, so it makes sense to compromise the backhand foot position a little so one can more easily get to the ideal forehand stance. So if I were you I'd try to do some bh drills focused on footwork, staying square to the line of play, and do more footwork drills in general, like falkenberg, bh,fh from bh corner, fh from fh side all to other persons bh.
I think improving your footwork would definitely lift your playing level quite a bit.

Regards to Tong, Paul, Kian and all those other friendly guys from ACT

best regards
ttgame (far north coast nsw player)

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SU1 : Blade: Stiga Carbonado 45 FH: DHS H3 max blk| BH: Donic Barracuda max red
SU2 : Blade: Joola Rossi Emotion FH: DHS H3 max blk | BH:Donic Barracuda max red

I think PK is in another of his forum hiatuses at the moment ttgame

But I'm gkad you made a post as I hadn't seen his latest vid, it was quite entertaining with some great rallies!

When you do see this PK, my mate Jason who spent a while at your club in ACT has been back with us for some time now. He has improved a little...but not enough to get over a sly old pips player I think I play him next Thursday!

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I'm always in the dark, but the Dark sheds lights upon everything!! Beauty is only pimple deep! Beauty is in the eye of the pipholder!
S/U 1: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Andro Rasant 2.1 . BH Red Tibhar Grass Dtecs
S/U 2: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Hexer+ 2.1 . BH Red GD Talon
S/U 3: Blade: Bty Gergely . No rubbers...thinking of adding Red Dtecs and Black Rasant
Aussie Table Tennis Shop / Aussie Table Tennis Facebook Page / Equipment Review Index / Read my Reb Report Blog: click here.

The ACT Open was on this past weekend. Maybe we will get an update from him out of that.

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Retriever (sometimes golden, but often leaden)
Moderator, Inverted Retriever Technique sub-forum - http://ooakforum.com/viewforum.php?f=74