Receiving

Alois Rosario Answered 1 week ago

Hi Alfred,

If you are really unsure of the type of serve or the spin on the ball then the key focus is to play the ball back to the centre of the table.

Also think about having a very soft relaxed grip on the racket.  This will help to absorb some of the speed and the spin on the ball.  If you think about it as a ball going into a soft sponge rather than a hard wall and the effect it would have coming off both of those.

As you mentioned taking the ball later will also help as the spin will start to slow down and it also gives you more time to see what the type of spin is on the ball and read it's direction.

Ideally you will start to learn the effect of the ball off your racket when these serves are coming in to you by watching what is happening to the ball when it hits your racket.  This is a slow process but one that is really rewarding as you progress in your learning.

Take a look at the tutorial on How to Return Spin Serves which I think will also help.