One of our latest videos on the Academy looks at how to increase your attacking options by being more prepared for serves that drift long. I’m sure you’ve all heard the phrase “attack is the best form of defence” well in table tennis this is a pretty good rule to live by, on most occasions if you can be the player to attack with a quality shot first it will give you a huge advantage right from the off.
Do you find yourself often suck in a pushing rally or notice that your opponent always seems to be able to attack first, leaving you on the back foot and trying to stay in the rally? Well here is one of the main reasons why and how you can stop it happening. Often we see players actually pushing a long or half long serve instead of looking for an opening topspin to start the point, this usually comes down to improving judgement and the perception of the serve. Working on this area can open up a whole lot more attacking options and create a platform for controlling the rallies more often.
Now we know it’s not possible to attack all the time, but it’s about building the mindset of always being aware and looking for your opportunity to attack first, many people we see are to eager to push long and not really searching out the serves or returns that come long and can be attacked. It’s also important to note we want to emphasize attacking with good spin and safety is much more effective than pure power or speed, we demonstrate this in another of our videos here. This creates a more balanced game where by players are looking to be positive but with controlled aggression.
Our recent video “Be ready for the serves that drift long” explains and demonstrates how you can improve this area of your game and increase your attacking options and also reduce the number of times you actually end up pushing a long or half long serve and handing the initiative to your opponent! We look at the technical elements, and how to use your weight transfer and angle of bat correctly to perform this shot efficiently against all types of spins and serves.
