OOAK Table Tennis Forum

That's the only rational reaction. Top it off with some Big Dipper on the fh.

Never let marketing blur your vision.

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I have a barely used sheet of H3 Prov that I will utilize first. Hopefully my new combo will help me to defeat those pesky blockers and retrievers that drive me nuts (if I decide to play again)!

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Brett. I think you just summarized the only things I say haha.

Then we are no longer friends Mick!

Look, I hear all of these things, all of the time, so don't be too concerned. You could probably get a job coaching Japan by just saying these 20 things. Just make sure you are older than the players and you have a decent playing CV.

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del

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The shove is difficult to learn for me. I had one decent session with the robot, but I didn't manage to hit a single shove when playing with a human -- not even one. That was frustrating, to say the least. As a result, it moved to the bottom of my priority list. Instead, I tried to play the backhand that is demonstrated in LTT78.

A few weeks ago I sent Brett a video in which I practiced footwork (the correct WUTT-term is "jumping into backswings") and he suggested that I learn the dive. Although I had followed the discussion about the shove and dive in this thread I hadn't understood the mechanics of the dive at the time. Maybe I was already too invested in learning the shove. It's also possible that I simply wasn't paying attention.

Anyway, it turns out that the dive is easier to learn -- at least for me. So if the shove is difficult for you, give the dive a try.

Disclaimer:

This message was brought to you by the association for the promotion of diving (not to be confused with what some professional football players do).

Someone link me a dive backhand.

IMO, if you counter topspin close to the table, something like the dive is a more natural option. Ultimately I just use my stroke and adjust to the ball and try not to think about technique too much anymore. I am still a twisting backhand guy.

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One-Loop Man: One Loop... Again????
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"We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training" - Archilochus

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He has settled for something that is working for him even though he understands that it may not be completely optimal. I actually supported it.

From close range, I think a dive is probably best. but the difference between a shove and a dive is a long conversation. I'm trying to dive when I'm very close (often), and then Squat and Thrust from further back, or against backspin. The lines tend to get blurred.

NextLevel's shove training over the last year or two has influenced his shot. It has turned his backhand into a hybrid of all of the above plus a little twist. It's what he naturally does now when his isn't trying to do anything.

At some stage, you should probably just hit the ball. I personally want to perfect this stuff because I don't actually play competition, I'm a "coach", and I find it interesting. I want to see how long it takes for me to implement stuff that young guys do which has evolved the game over the last 5-10 years. People weren't really diving 25 years ago, so I'm playing catch up.

I teach the dive by default now. It's a bit sick to watch 10 year old's pick it up in 5 minutes as I struggle. It's such a simple concept too.

I watched the below warm up today and it looks wrong compared to today, even though it's not that long ago (about 10 years ago). If two young players used these techniques today, I'd have a lot to say to them.

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I think I am going to call my shot the stab. I feel like I'm trying to shove a knife down into something.

And I just called 911 on you, though I think I know what mean unfortunately.

If there is a Law & Order episode called "The Las Vegas TT Stabber", I'm not sure if I'll watch it.

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Brett is spot on. My technique for swinging at the ball hard is too engrained with a twist. Also my knees don't move obviously enough to really let me know whether I am shoving or diving and my back hates to lean forward. Also a lot of my spin technique is banana backhand influenced. I think the biggest gains of trying to shove have been getting better at integrating movement into my backhand play.

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

Nothing wrong with this. The stab requires the arm to extend fully and I don't even think this is optimal. Probably need to do mini stabs. A whole bunch of them over and over and over and over...