Returning a very spinny serve
Receiving
Konstantin Kanev Asked 9 years ago
Hi Pingskills, I play table tennis quite a lot! But my biggest problem is that I almost never return very spiny serve! I try everything - forehand/backhand push and etc., but it is the same! In my last tournament I could lose because of that, but somehow I managed to win! Can you help me? Can you recommend me a stroke?? Best wishes, Konstantin Kanev
Alois Rosario Answered 9 years ago
Hi Konstantin,
This is a difficult part of the game for everyone when they are learning.
The key is to not do too much with your return to start with. Just use the angle of your racket to get the ball back on the table.
If the ball wants to go to the right, angle your bat to face the left and vice versa. The same is done for the topspin or backspin serves. If the ball wants to go down because of the backspin, angle your bat to face up to counteract the spin. Against a topspin serve angle your bat down.
Of course they can put combinations of spin on the ball with sidespin and backspin or sidespin and topspin. You need to adjust your angle accordingly.
We have a section in our Premium lessons dedicated to this area of the game, Receiving Secrets. If you can, join our Premium membership to see all the information and videos available there. I am sure they will help. Go to the My info link at the top right of the site to see the options.
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Judging the Length of a Serve
A really important skill in table tennis is to be able to judge if a serve will be short or long. If it's short you won't be able to take a full swing at the ball and hence will need to use either a push or a flick to return the ball. However, if it is coming long then you can make a topspin attack. In this video we give you some tips to help you judge the length of the serve and hopefully this makes you a better returner.
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