Last updated on 20-Feb-2013 05:44:11 PM
Hi Chad,
This is interesting. At a club level I think a serve with a lot of spin and perhaps speed will be most effective. I don't think any one type of serve in particular here just focus on a lot of spin.
I would be interested to hear players views that play at club level.
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Short-Backspin Serve.
It makes difficult for almost anyone to attack that type of serve.
But I think that the real KEY of serve is to have some variation. You need to always keep your opponent guessing what are you going to serve.
Good Luck!
I'm a casual player, and what I find that works is to try and vary the serve. It's not one type of serve that will help you in your game, it's mixing it up so that your opponent gives weak returns. Generally, I use alot of bottom or bottome-side serves, coz their harder to attack.
I rarely give sidespin serves, coz they can be attacked fairly easily, unless they are very fast. However, I have a friend who can do a short and spinny sidespin serve, and because it's short and goes to my backk hand it's tricky to return
A short, no-spin serve is what I use if I plan on doing a third ball attack coz, the ball will, hopefully, pop up high.
i think that a short very wide serve with a lot of sidespin is most effective
because the return come little high and you have all the other sude of the table to attack
Pendulum serve with a lot of spin or speed, is a good serve. Maybe mix it up with an occasional down the line fast serve and I'd say its a good start for a successful rally.
My backhand sidespin/topspin works best against amateurs. Hard to see if the sidespin is with topspin or backspin
There are a lot of levels in amateur play as well. When I was playing in div 4, not many people had much spin to speak of on their serve so any spin you can put will mess people up - regardless of length. One player had a fairly spinny, long, sidespin with a touch of topspin serve which he would curl away from the receiver's backhand. Most people were too terrified of the curve in flight that they never adjusted, even though he basically did the same serve over and over again. He won the majority of his points on serve without ever having to hit a third ball! In div 3, and more so in div 2, it is harder to win points outright with your serve...however, people still don't punish long serves - so the most effective serves still seem to be spinny long serves. Main difference is that people DO adjust, so a bit of variation is handy. The big step up is in div 1. A lot of div 2 players who have killer serves and get promoted to div 1 suddenly find their serves under attack immediately because they are serving long. In div 1, it is more about variety (speed, placement, spin) and deception more than about ripping the ball with maximum spin.
Thanks Ji-Soo. I'm experiencing this at club level too, when I filled in at div 2,3 and 4 last year.
I have had great success with my heavy under-side to the forehand. When they start to get it over the net and on the table, I disguise a side-top. If they havn't thrown their racket yet, and learn my stuff, I dig in the bag for some more serves. :^)
Sounds like a handy bag of tricks.
Looks like Kevin C. and I have similar strategies of serves. Now I can add that the serve should be a set up for a 3rd ball attack by using 2nd bounce on the opponents board around the end line. If you make your opponent get use to heavy spin serves all the time, you can throw him out of control by faking a heavy side-underspin short on his forehand by using the same backhand movement to his forehand while yo are really giving side-topspin. In any case keep your serves in a permanent variation of placement and speed. And always keep thinking of putting more "tricks in your bag". The serve is the only time when you legally have the ball in you hand.
I think to keep variating your serve is good in two things: first, you will know which of your serves were effective on your opponent so that you will use it at last points to finish the game or recover from loss. Secondly, to confuse him and not let him expect what you will serve.
serve with a lots of variation. :D
I do most of the time a very short/low and heavy backspin/sidespin serve. Many, many players do have trouble to bring it even back over the net. If they eventually do I throw in a variation with topspin, I try to use very similar motion to fool them.
The better players who can return my serve allways say there is no way to attack that serve, they can only return it short into my forhand due to the heavy sidespin. I then keep it short to wait for their longer shot, push it long myself to open the really or if they reduced my spin I step around to use a backhand/sidespin flick. Later is hard to return for them if they didnt get fast enough back into ready position and are still somewhat close to the table. That last technique needs to be a winner or I am out of position.
Sounds like a good simple principle MArcus.
Yes I developed it after your advise about how important short pushes are. Many dont master it, eventually one push gets too long, thats the one I can attack.
As you stated it realyl lifts one to a new lvl of tabel tennis if one has a great short push. I trained about 3 months 9 hours weekly on a robot with a random excercise to have a pretty good short push. Not perfect yet, but maybe in 3 months:)
Marcus, if you haven't already, you need to have a player that can perform that same "nasty" serve do it to you. You need to learn how to return it yourself. I had a coach help me when I lost a close match 9-11 in the 5th game to a serve like that. I use the same serves you mentioned, (in a post on this thread), and the other evening I was in a league match against someone that couldn't return that serve. I Served the same "nasty" serve almost every time until he could prove to me he could get it over the net...he never did, it was a very quick match.
Well if you compete regularly, you’ll play the same opponents again and again, 1st. - serve whatever variations to find out what’s most effective, that’s the one to play less, will keep it for crucial points. 2nd - I film all my games and as many opponents as possible to be prepared for the next encounter.
Sure Tim. My coach does such serves, once a week a can play a match with him. I dont get the serve over the net all the time, but most times. The harder part part is to read his spinvariations, which he does all the time. If one doesnt realise that suddenly there is less spin on the serve , ball gets too high... He is really good at hiding his variations. One needs to be highly focused.
Hi Rene,
The only thing i would say is that if you find a serve that works well, you should use it more not less. Then it may not get to a crucial stage of the match because you will have already won.
I recently played the handicap cup, playing a team 3 divisions below me anyway i found my short kicker serve to most useful mixed in with reverse backspin deep into the Backhand to be really effective.
Ok Alois, don’t you think your opponent has the answer to your special serve ready within a few sets, or at least for the next match he’ll sure be ready. If you rely only on a serve to win a game, won’t you’ll be in trouble soon? I’m not referring to professionals, for them it will be almost impossible to hide anything anyway.
"The only thing i would say is that if you find a serve that works well, you should use it more not less. Then it may not get to a crucial stage of the match because you will have already won."
Thanks for making that point. I didn't have to use some others I had yet, next time I run up against I will frustrate him with another few in the bag. :D
Sorry Tim, but we found it out the hard way, lost gold acting stupidly against my coach advise not to use the specific serve to often, 5th set 10 x 10 opponents coach took timeout, he just knew I would come up with that serve again. Unfortunately I didn’t have another few in the bag like you, and if I had, then for sure would have kept the special one reserved for special occasion. And oh I certainly agree with Alois and try to use as many serves that work well as I can.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So sorry. You will get the next one!
I did, two on a row, unfortunately I didn’t have the opponents I could beat just be serving, and if I had wouldn’t do it anyway, wouldn’t enjoy myself doing it.
Why not????
If a guy is so under skilled he can’t return a repeated single serve during a whole match, he’s a beginner, and I see no sport in serving or smashing him out of his socks. I’ll bet he won’t either. I’ll try my best with skilled players but doubt if one can zero a player like that in the first set, just by serving.
Its possible allright:P Depends on league level.. But I share your attitude about not destroying them:)
