over-thinking-it
starsky asked 5 years ago
Hi Coaches,
I have a tendency to over think things and it’s starting to affect my TT. Do you guys think about where your going to place the return of of your serve inbetween points or do you decide once the return is coming back to you ?
Tom Academy Coach answered 5 years ago
Hi Starsky,
Yes I can understand this and overthinking can be a really killer to improving and confidence in your game. Usually it depends on the opponent and if they have a certain strength for example a strong forehand then I would think about keeping it in their backhand between points.
Its fine to decide once you see the type of serve as well because thag may dictate the kind of return you need to do, so it’s not ideal to pre-decide your return in terms of shot type too early otherwise you can get in trouble, so focus on direction and make your decisions early once the opponent has hit their shot to avoid indecision.
I think the best way is to try to simplify things as much as possible and stick to the basics well, if you can play solid returns on the table you at least give yourself a chanve of working your way into the rally more often.
starskyThanks Tom for your excellent reply.
I will to take on board what you have said.
What about the third ball , do you decide before hand where you want to put it or do you wait until the ball is coming back to you after you serve ?
No problem at all, I’d say the same for the third ball, try not to decide until the ball is coming back because the opposition always has different options. They can play many different shots that will require you to move or select a certain response that you won’t know until you see what shot they choose.
You can have an idea in your mind what the most likely response is and what to expect but table tennis is unpredictable so you have to be ready for all situations!
Thanks Tom.
I’ll take that on board and try to not over think it and just try to let my subconscious decide as the points happen. Your right though , it’s been a right issue with my improvement and has got me hesitating and freezing up.
