reading-backspin
Slicepong asked 5 years ago
Hi Dan and Tom. I really enjoyed your vid on “How to read spin” but I don’t recall you mentioning backspin specifically. I find it difficult to both look at the opponents racket and focus on the ball. Tom mentioned in the backhand push article that he adjusts the angle depending on the quantity of the backspin. How does one tell how much backspin is on the approaching ball? Thanks.
Tom Academy Coach answered 5 years ago
Hi Slicepong,
Glad you enjoyed the video, yes it can be difficult to watch the opponents bat and focus on the ball too. There are a few ways to judge the amount of backspin, firstly the bounce of the is lower and will skid through the table if there is mode backspin.
Also learning to watch the contact on the opponents bat and the action of the shot you will be able to read backspin much better. With a fast brush under the ball there will be more backspin generally,if the action is slower and they hit the ball more firmly without brushing as much usually the ball will have less spin.
Learning to watch the action of their shot as a whole can be easier than watching just the contact on its own. Hope that’s helpful for you!
SlicepongThanks for your in depth answer, Tom. I’ll work on these points and I’ll devour my nephew’s heavy backspin serve and pushes next time. I had an incorrect bat angle and coudn’t figure it out during the match, so lesson learned.
No problem at all, I’m sure you definitely will now!
