Daily Table Tennis Chit Chat

[Jslick89]

The next level of all this (pun intended and un-intended) is that the bottom and middle levels play many levels better than they were before... but their ratings are mostly the same, since the entire field for the most part is better.

A significant chunk of Cali 1500 level players are now playing at a level most 1900 level players were at just 5 yrs ago.

Another swath of that 1500 level class is playing 2000+ level in big tourneys... but they meet other 1500 rated 2000 level skilled players and do not get much ratings increase.

The situation is exasperated in California as a whole, but there are extreme pockets of this in NorCal Bay area and especially so in the Los Angeles area. So many damn ringers down there it is silly.

I do not say any of this demanding some change... just saying it so people understand the tide is rising many boats in TT.

It's funny....a lot of us just need a chance to play some of the higher rated players to get a rating increase. Nisanth me and Brian play each other so much, it's hard to get a jump in ratings. but as soon as we play some opponents rated 200 points higher than us, we give them real trouble.

 

[pgpg]

It's funny....a lot of us just need a chance to play some of the higher rated players to get a rating increase. Nisanth me and Brian play each other so much, it's hard to get a jump in ratings. but as soon as we play some opponents rated 200 points higher than us, we give them real trouble.

Ratings don't really work well in the small closed communities. As a thought experiment, take Chinese national team, give them some ridiculous initial rating, e.g. 1500 and make them only play each other. No one will break 2000. There was a pervasive complaint about some CA clubs with active junior training programs who loved having U150 events etc. Made it easier to get a medal haul at Nationals/Open, I guess...

 

[Jslick89]

Ratings don't really work well in the small closed communities. As a thought experiment, take Chinese national team, give them some ridiculous initial rating, e.g. 1500 and make them only play each other. No one will break 2000. There was a pervasive complaint about some CA clubs with active junior training programs who loved having U150 events etc. Made it easier to get a medal haul at Nationals/Open, I guess...

Yeah it doesn't work that well. Our club is not huge but its not small. We had 54 play in the round robin last night with only 16 of us being rated about 1500. Points definitely are not easy to come by at my level but i know i am playing well and getting better.

 

[dingyibvs]

Spent the last week in Yellowstone and Grand Tetons, had a great time! Saw a lot of wildlife and survived a bear encounter

Had a practice session today, first time playing in 10 days, and boy do I feel deconditioned. It felt like I hardly got any loops in before my HR hit 170, and while my shoulder tends to get tired from BH practice, today it was sore just from BH blocking

I switched to H3 37 on my BH, will see how a slower, spinner rubber works. It can still generate good pace when needed, but it's really spinny. Will do some more practice this weekend before playing some matches on Sunday probably.

 

[Cordell]

How long do rubbers stay "Like new" if left unopened in their packaging? I was wondering maybe I could get something early if they're on a decent sale and leave them in a drawer for the future. I don't think all stores get the freshest stuff anyway so it should be fine, right?

 

[Topspinslinger]

How long do rubbers stay "Like new" if left unopened in their packaging? I was wondering maybe I could get something early if they're on a decent sale and leave them in a drawer for the future. I don't think all stores get the freshest stuff anyway so it should be fine, right?

There was once a myth about red DHS hurricanes being worse, because they have been in storage too long.
It probably is true that most players don't get freshly pressed rubbers, but i doubt most are half a year old.
Nothing to worry about keepin a spare unglued for a year or more

 

[Der_Echte]

It's funny....a lot of us just need a chance to play some of the higher rated players to get a rating increase. Nisanth me and Brian play each other so much, it's hard to get a jump in ratings. but as soon as we play some opponents rated 200 points higher than us, we give them real trouble.

TROUBLE MAKER YOU !!!

Yes, J-Slick caused me sum trouble in league, the score in games deceiving, he really adjusted and was close to winning every game.

I think I would cause Brian more trouble than you J-Slick.

For the record, J-Slick returned 10 of my heavy shots that would normally knockout a strong horse. I have no one near his level accomplish that.

 

[Der_Echte]

Ratings don't really work well in the small closed communities. As a thought experiment, take Chinese national team, give them some ridiculous initial rating, e.g. 1500 and make them only play each other. No one will break 2000. There was a pervasive complaint about some CA clubs with active junior training programs who loved having U150 events etc. Made it easier to get a medal haul at Nationals/Open, I guess...

P-Terrrrrrrrrrrrrr pgpgpgpgpgpgpgpgpgpgpg !!!

I missed you on my last mission !

 

[Der_Echte]

Yeah it doesn't work that well. Our club is not huge but its not small. We had 54 play in the round robin last night with only 16 of us being rated about 1500. Points definitely are not easy to come by at my level but i know i am playing well and getting better.

(Woody Woodpecker laughing voice) Yup, it doesn't help none when Der_Echte is a tryin' to be 1500 in that league...

 

[Der_Echte]

J-Slick wanted it so damn bad you could see it and even Stevie Wonder could see J-Slick put hiz-self in a position to threaten Der_Echte. Any competent person watching could see J-Slick being brave and also adjusting during the match.

One of J-Slick's adjustments was to stay the F away from Der_Echte's BH on serve...

 

[Der_Echte]

Another adjustment waz to attack BEFORE Der_Echte... and that is in general a pretty damn good policy.

 

[Der_Echte]

Ratings don't really work well in the small closed communities. As a thought experiment, take Chinese national team, give them some ridiculous initial rating, e.g. 1500 and make them only play each other. No one will break 2000. There was a pervasive complaint about some CA clubs with active junior training programs who loved having U150 events etc. Made it easier to get a medal haul at Nationals/Open, I guess...

I coach (or have coached) at one of those Bay Area clubs where the head coach keeps all the players in a closed loop U150 or U300 or U450 until they are legit 1600-1800 and unleashed on the big natl tourneys like US Open or nationals... but they gotta go through 4-6 of those ringers too... pimping isn't easy.

I got assigned once a session with a 350 rated player... damn my underwear ants in my pants if that kid wasn't 1400 Cali level already... very typical and only tip of iceberg stuff.

 

[Jslick89]

TROUBLE MAKER YOU !!!

Yes, J-Slick caused me sum trouble in league, the score in games deceiving, he really adjusted and was close to winning every game.

I think I would cause Brian more trouble than you J-Slick.

For the record, J-Slick returned 10 of my heavy shots that would normally knockout a strong horse. I have no one near his level accomplish that.

haha! man it was fun! I felt close at times but your experience and ability to set up the shots you wanted prevailed in the key moments. Der_Echte has a deadly third ball attack that he can place anywhere on the table that he desires.

Even if i tried to avoid your backhand, the spinny forehand loop was still going wide on me a lot. I found that the fast dead spin serves right into your elbow was earning me some points. i was also able to move you around a bit to win some points.

hmmm yeah Brian is great...especially against me he's a good match up but I do think i can adapt to different styles better. not because i'm a better player per say but because i play in the tournaments and he doesn't, so i've played a wider array of players than he has at this point.

 

[NextLevel]

How long do rubbers stay "Like new" if left unopened in their packaging? I was wondering maybe I could get something early if they're on a decent sale and leave them in a drawer for the future. I don't think all stores get the freshest stuff anyway so it should be fine, right?

Absolutely zero problem doing this, and unless you are at a pretty strong, we are not at the level where our strokes should be *that* sensitive to minor changes in equipment age based on storage and the kinds of quality I have seen from ESN and DHS in recent times. I know many players who stock sheets for a year's worth of stock, sometimes two.

 

[Der_Echte]

haha! man it was fun! I felt close at times but your experience and ability to set up the shots you wanted prevailed in the key moments. Der_Echte has a deadly third ball attack that he can place anywhere on the table that he desires.

Even if i tried to avoid your backhand, the spinny forehand loop was still going wide on me a lot. I found that the fast dead spin serves right into your elbow was earning me some points. i was also able to move you around a bit to win some points.

hmmm yeah Brian is great...especially against me he's a good match up but I do think i can adapt to different styles better. not because i'm a better player per say but because i play in the tournaments and he doesn't, so i've played a wider array of players than he has at this point.

@Jslick89 , you and Brian play a VERY similar style... you both like fast exchanges at the table or a step away. You both like to counter hit with big swings. Maybe you have differences in serve receive ability. You both really hate hate hate hate slow heavy topspin. I did not use that so much vs you as I usually do, just 50/50.

One of my adjustments when I thought the ball was gunna leave the BH zone was to step in and a good foot plus right... that put the ball in my strike zone. it was your sudden deep dead serve that was difficult early.

I can only place the ball anywhere if I get into position well enough... and having 35 lbs less of me makes it a little easier... but I still have to crouch and you might make a big payday counting the few times i manage a crouch throughout a point.

 

[Der_Echte]

@Jslick89 , do you remember how many times I served 9-9 or 9-7 ???

There waz a reason to the madness from the get-go.

 

[Jslick89]

@Jslick89 , you and Brian play a VERY similar style... you both like fast exchanges at the table or a step away. You both like to counter hit with big swings. Maybe you have differences in serve receive ability. You both really hate hate hate hate slow heavy topspin. I did not use that so much vs you as I usually do, just 50/50.

One of my adjustments when I thought the ball was gunna leave the BH zone was to step in and a good foot plus right... that put the ball in my strike zone. it was your sudden deep dead serve that was difficult early.

I can only place the ball anywhere if I get into position well enough... and having 35 lbs less of me makes it a little easier... but I still have to crouch and you might make a big payday counting the few times i manage a crouch throughout a point.

@Jslick89 , do you remember how many times I served 9-9 or 9-7 ???

There waz a reason to the madness from the get-go.

I think Brian, Nisanth and I all have pretty similar styles with the slight variances of course. Nisanth has the superior backhand. Brian has the fastest shots. and i have the most consistent forehand. but on any one day, either one of us could beat the other 3-0 or just lose by 2 points in the 5th lol. We've all beaten 1800+ rated players semi regularly when given the chance.

One thing with those slow heavy top spins... sometimes i can rip an amazing counter. other times i wimp out and try to block. i think i just need to swing for those every time and be willing to lose the point to improve my confidence and consistency in the long run. the blocking is good but the counter is deadly.

and yes, you and james are the ones who like to receive even when you win the toss. i prefer not to plan to get to 9-9 lol.

 

[Der_Echte]

James does not benefit from serving last... but James plays his best when he gets 2-6 or 3-7 down in a game... whatever issues in concentration he has seem to evaporate in those situations.

 

[NextLevel]

haha! man it was fun! I felt close at times but your experience and ability to set up the shots you wanted prevailed in the key moments. Der_Echte has a deadly third ball attack that he can place anywhere on the table that he desires.

Even if i tried to avoid your backhand, the spinny forehand loop was still going wide on me a lot. I found that the fast dead spin serves right into your elbow was earning me some points. i was also able to move you around a bit to win some points.

hmmm yeah Brian is great...especially against me he's a good match up but I do think i can adapt to different styles better. not because i'm a better player per say but because i play in the tournaments and he doesn't, so i've played a wider array of players than he has at this point.

Deadly third ball attacks are really a function of serve and serve return and how they set up the 3rd and 4th ball. No one has deadly third ball attacks against good returns. That said, the main thing you pointed out is that the experience and ability gap between you and DerEchte fueled that. That is a very hard thing to overcome with the level differences between you both.

If you can attack DerEchte's serves reasonably well and not push them ( a big if because they are pretty tricky and high quality and I wouldn't expect someone at your level to do that, even I struggle massively with serve return of his stuff), then a lot of stuff becomes much easier.

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

visited another club in Tokyo where they have this system where anyone can challenge anyone in best-of-3. Its a chance to play with higher ranked players. hadn't been there for a while. While some guys were still way above me, i managed to win (again) a guy who used to nearly always beat me, but ok he's aged quite a bit. and I beat 3 other players i never managed to win before:
- a lady that honestly I could/should have won the other times but I played too much to her strengths before and rushed too much.
- a very short guy playing playing J-pen with short pips. he's got a very fast long serve which used to give me a lot of trouble but i could manage to return them well today
- 2-wing attacker but more FH oriented. My first ever match with him. I was refereeing this match against a very good chopper that he won, and I thought this guy would be way too good for me and indeed he crushed me 2-11 in G1.
At that moment, i just thought i should try to score a few points not to be ridiculous so he would be ok to play again with me next time.
But somehow I started receiving well, being more relaxed especially with my BH. my blocking game was very good and i saw myself land some very difficult FH topspins from difficult positions: well below the table while on the move, but my ball was low and very spinny; half long balls... won G2 and G3 at deuce. In both games i was well ahead but he came back but I didn't lose focus and could close it, after saving one match point in G3.

i treated myself with a beer 🍺.It feels so great !