How to practice thin contact for the forehand loop

Strokes and Technique

David Samoilov
David Samoilov Asked 9 years ago

I'm a beginner , I saw a few videos on the loop on youtube but when I try it the balls goes really far of the table,

any tips or drills on how I can practice thin contact?


Alois Rosario
Alois Rosario Answered 9 years ago

Hi David,

One way is to roll the ball off the table towards yourself.  As the ball drops off the table lift the ball over the net with topspin.  This will force you to get that finer brushing contact.  Give it a try and see how it goes.


Thoughts on this question


Bennett Brown

Bennett Brown Posted 9 years ago

Similar to what Alois said about rolling the ball off the end of the table and brushing it, try getting an empty bottle with a cap end and take off the cap.

Place the bottle on the table near the end and place a ball on it.  The goal is to not knock the bottle over while brushing.


David Samoilov

David Samoilov Posted 9 years ago

those are some nice ideas, thanks for the help :)


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 9 years ago

We also mentioned on the Ask the Coachshow last night that you can put string at about head heightover the net and try to topspin the ball over the string and onto the table.  I found this worked really well 


David Samoilov

David Samoilov Posted 9 years ago

yeah I saw it already, great show :) I was really happy when I saw that my question was in the title.

alois I know this is a different question but can you have a look at this photo of my bat and tell me if this is normal

http://imgur.com/a/69509

maybe you can't see it clearly but the thickness of the red sponge is inconsistent , is this normal?


Dakota Castleberg

Dakota Castleberg Posted 9 years ago

Hey David,

I believe what you have is a pre-made racket? I'm fairly certain that the rubber on both sides are the same thickness, just that the edge tape (has the "DHS" on it) wasn't applied perfectly in the center. This would make it appear to be thicker on one side than the other. It appears in your photos that you are able to see the wood from the blade sticking out from the edge tape a little, which which is evidence this is the case.


David Samoilov

David Samoilov Posted 9 years ago

yeah I'm dumb haha.

Thanks for the help I was worried for a second but I'm glad everything is good


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