OOAK Table Tennis Forum

I can see why people might be put off by disputed edge balls, but apart from that, why would anyone be upset by edge balls or nets?

Every playing surface has a boundary. That is, the boundary is part of the playing surface. If you hit a good enough shot for the ball to strike the boundary and thus bring the less predictable effects of the boundary into play, then good on you! Sure, apologise because it's good manners…but you've earned the point.

I'm overstating the drama. The vast majority of edge balls & nets at pennant nights are greeted with good humour. I would just like to understand why some people really dislike edge balls. I think there was even a not-entirely-serious question on the Pingskills podcast once about whether edge balls and net balls should be banned.

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"Once you get past a certain threshold, everyone's problems are the same: fortifying your island and hiding the heat signature from your fusion reactor." –Doctor Impossible

One reason to be upset: it often feels like I was robbed - I did all the work to put my opponent under pressure, forced him to make a bad return I am about to smash to pieces and then... ball hits an edge or a net and takes a bounce I have no chance to get to.

Another way to look at it - you could be doing everything right and yet you have absolutely no chance to counter, so you suddenly feel powerless.

To make things clear - I don't get mad about nets and edges, it's part of the game and with pips I get slightly above fair share of these, especially nets. I just shake my head and smile.

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USATT: 1807 | League: 1887

there is only one person in my club who got angry when i get net and edge balls... but that's only because he can't handle my pips and gets frustrated. the additional net and edges really tips him over the edge...

i consistently get minimum 1 net/edge ball each game by luck. the luckiest i've been was just last friday. getting 3-4 net/edge balls each game for three consecutive games (that's about a dozen for the set). we just had a good laugh during and after the play.

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instagram: rokphishtt

They can tilt my game. I've lost games to two nets/edges in a row where I was at worst doing 50/50 in the point and often much better than that.

Lately I've learned to point them out and give a thumbs up on edges. This positive reaction by me to the poor luck tends to help my attitude towards the whole thing.

Nets are worse in many ways - they often are rewarded for risky/poor shot selection or just passive play.

Nets and edges on big powerful strokes don't bother me at all - I was losing the point anyway.

Part of anger is - when player has something like ox pips, the trajectory is very low and theresult is lot of net balls. Someone with higher trajectory shots is upset.

Today I play against my amateur opponent, he tries to hit his BH slap a lot and usually he misses, but when it lands, many landing shots are netballs, partly because of sloppy net. And then I get frustrated.

What I'd say is that an edge ball or net is really a good return. It is difficult to return or unplayable, like a well-placed ball, a deceptive serve, a strong loop, etc. It is played right at the margin – some of the best placement possible.

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"Once you get past a certain threshold, everyone's problems are the same: fortifying your island and hiding the heat signature from your fusion reactor." –Doctor Impossible

That's what a lot of people don't get. When you play low to the net, which is often what pips players do. you inevitably get net balls....and you inevitably put some balls in the net. No-one complains about the free point they got when you hit the net tape and dribble backwards

Nets and edges are part of the game. If it turns the result for or against you..it was in the game...and in the destiny of it LOL.

Last week I played a 5 setter against someone I should have beaten easily. He got a LOT of edges in the first set and I lost it, then I lost the next set because my confidence was shaken. I composed and won the next 2, 11-3 and 11-6. In the final set I was 10-9 up and he hit a ball set to sail over the end, but it clipped the back edge with the finest of snicks to get him deuce. Fortunately, I re-composed again and won it 13-11...would I have been annoyed to lose it? Yes. Would it be because of the edges I lost it? Yes. Is that fair? Yes! I should have played the other points better!

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All these angry players who go ott about nets and edges never seem to vent their anger on themselves when the reverse happens!!

I tend to smile them off, part of the game, being a pips player - yup i get my fair share!!!!

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I don't think "angry" is the right term. "Frustration" is.

Iskandar

I don't really get bothered by nets/edges and to be honest I've had far more that have worked in my favour than those that haven't.

However, I think it's justified (within reason) for a person to be annoyed or frustrated about a net/edge because those shots are lucky and not skill.

I won two deuce matches recently with a net/edge. In one of those matches, I was 9-4 up in the 5th and my opponent came back to 10-9. I then got a net to level. Then an edge to go 11-10 up. Then a net to win the game. How is that fair? It isn't. That's frustrating and it wasn't a fair reflection of how the game should've turned out.

Neither opponent got angry about it though. Frustrated, yup, but not angry. They shook my hand and called me a few names (jokingly. I think ) but that was it.

On the other hand, a couple of seasons ago I played against a guy who got massively angry about one net I got and then refused to apologise about 3 or 4 that he got. All it did was motivate me and focus me to win... pointless and discourteous.

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When I first started going to the club, I didn't know why a few players apologized when it happened. It was weird to me, as I saw it as just part of the game's unintentional variables.

I haven't been playing long enough to see someone get genuinely angry yet. Most of it is just "OMG you lucky bastard" with a frustrated laughing headshake.

I had a game that went all the way up to 22-20, and I lost on a wild high lob from my opponent as it caught the back edge. Tense game of back and forth points, but we both just stood there shaking our heads laughing.

I hate it when players better than me get edges and net balls. I need every point I can get to stay in the match without them getting freebies. Overall, with my style edges and nets are usually more in my favor, but when I get them they don't bother me. lol

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i'm okay with net and edges, unless, it's the last point of the game/set...

feel so disappointed and robbed when happening to me
feel so very very sorry when happening to my opponent

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instagram: rokphishtt

At Weekend Doubles when a ball hits the edge:

"Haier!!!!! Fluke!!"

"What fluke. Skill lah.."

"Where got skill. Fluke lah.."

"Brother, I meant to put it right there.. not everyone can do it."

"Flukola means flukola. How to win like this, so many flukes.."

"That's skill lah... aiming for that spot."

"Come on lah, all luck, how can, just now hit the net, now hit the edge.. where got fair..."

"You have to be one with the table... then only can.."

"Where got, all luck lah.."

"That's what you call Octopus!"

"Ya lah... octopus one kaki hilang already.. Sotongboy.."

"Just serve lah.." (Serves, ball goes into the wrong court..)

"See? Cheaters never prosper, god punish you."

(This goes on constantly.. Weekend after weekend.. I've been threatening to tape this and post it on YouTube.)

Iskandar