Daily Table Tennis Chit Chat

Last night, I felt I had a very good practice with 4 different partners.

1. Despite my FH loop totally disappearing from my toolbox, I was able to hit steadily enough FH to FH with a woman partner I've hit with before. Consciously trying to relax and not rush my stroke as well as trying to meet ball earlier. Good and steady FH from me. WHEW!

We then went BH-BH ... she is a TPB and steady blocker and aggressive puncher. I started RPB punching ok enough. Then I went to flat hitting 50-75% power/speed ... later I started RPB hit/loop 50% power/speed/spin.

Lot of people waiting and I thanked her for the practice and took a break.

2. Next I hit with a friend who advised me Tues night that i should look to just return the ball and ignore if i lost the point or not from my partner's return ... as long as I didn't have an "unforced error" ... just play steady and not go for the killshot ... just return the ball ... dont rush my shots. We hit FH-FH and same as first partner, i looked to hit steady, meet ball earlier and don't rush my shot. Felt good. He started FH looping and I FH block him.

Then BH-BH - he's a JPen with good punch ... he has seen me play/practice through the year and amazed at my RPB transition is halfway decent. I punched and then i went to spin. Good practice and I thanked him for the advice of just playing steady and return the ball.

3. Lost badly to my friend on Tuesday night ... he is at my level or 1 level below. He suggested instead of a match (as there was no one waiting for next) we just practice. And before I even suggested to practice points as ttmonster advised, my friend suggested it! The Universe works in mysterious ways!!

I think he suggested it partly because he knows my serves give him trouble and he wanted to practice serve return and I get to work matchplay situations without keeping score. I was able to serve rockets to his FH, and as he is a lefty, it's crosscourt for me and I was able to 50% of the time 3rd ball RPB punch down the line. It shocked both him and me LOL He has seen me concentrate on RPB so most of his returns were to my BH to help out.

He mentioned next time I hit with him we do the same thing again. We practiced for an hour! Great practice!! I thanked him for his time and practice.

4. Hit with a friend who is maybe 1 or 2 levels below me. He also wanted to practice matchplay without keeping score. Although he wanted to start BH-BH and on 4th ball+ we can hit anywhere. Didn't want me to serve. From previous partners I really started 'flowing' on RPB, mixing up blocks, punches, flat hitting and spinning. Felt good. Hit for 30 mins and was tired and time to go home. Thanked him for the practice.

He has watched my RPB progress from the sidelines and complimented me on how it's coming along for me.

Felt somewhat in the RPB zone last night and really started flowing as it got later.

Had fun and enjoyed the practice.

Appears to be Korean Club league match .. appears both playing long pips both sides ..

What level do you think their playing ?


https://youtu.be/_63ocsEw_M8


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Last night play/practiced 2 hrs straight.

With first partner who always takes our matches seriously, I played semi-serious, almost using RPB exclusively as well as serve Wang Hao style almost the whole match. I lost 1, won 2nd, then noticed he was super-serious, so I just played to return the ball as well as work my RPB and Wang Hao serves. Lost next game close, and 4th game lost at 3 LOL My RPB loops were about 60% ... some that i missed i didn't lift and go forward as much as was needed, had about 5 brush topspin slow loops which set up FH smash or RPB smash. Felt good to set up with slow spinny loop 2nd ball and then the putaway 4th ball.

Next practiced with a 1900 member ... always a challenge for me to hit with him ... he is still trying to get used to a new setup and although I'm about 2 months in on serious RPB work, i'm still getting used to the weight, new extended fingers grip, RPB, new rubbers, etc. Happy to report my wrist and fingers doesn't hurt as much. I noticed I curled my fingers a little and not as relaxed on the overall grip so after a night of play my fingers ache for 2 or 3 days. So i tried just extended with no curl - no achiness, however a few more balls hitting my fingers LOL

With my 2nd partner, I got into a 50-75% zone/zen/flow state ... at best though we hit 5 or 6 balls continuous all due to my lack of consistency ... but when we were had those rallies of 5/6 balls we both were happy and egged each other on ... we both know I'm a little less skilled than him, but he has hit with me before and seen me hit with others and knows I'm steady enough. i just feel bad missing easy balls as I am trying to change from TPB to RPB. My timing on blocks, flat hits and punches are getting better. I did not spin vs him, i took the role of blocker mostly and just return the ball and he started flat hitting as well as bh looping.

Itching to go to my new club and hit with my friend the coach ... alas, it will have to wait for next week. Tonight going to my daughter's HS and be with her for a college fair/info session.

Loopadoop said:

Appears to be Korean Club league match .. appears both playing long pips both sides ..

What level do you think their playing ?


https://youtu.be/_63ocsEw_M8


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Click to expand...

This is from Coach Yoo's club in Yong-In an hour south of Seoul. I played in his club 5-6 times. Coach Yoo is a coach for every possible style of long pips, a living legend in Korea. His video database is HUGE. I got his permission to have OOAK forum members view it.... but it all in Korean... but so what, still good stuff to see the training. Coach Yoo has a great club for training long pips, he can use them in any way you can imagine.

He moved the link on his page, but it is still open... if you can click on enough to see what you want.

http://cafe.daum.net/youngintt/LkMM

As for the players and the setting. This vid is from a Thursday "Fun" league, it is the finals, a handicap. All club matches in Korea are handicap.

The guy gives 2 points to the lady, so he is one level higher classified. I suspect the lady is mens Div 5 level, prolly a top player at that level. I suspect the guy is a strong Div 4 mens player. The playing range for Div 5 mens city is USATT 1000-1500. Div 4 mens ranges from USATT 1400 to USATT 1700.

My guess this is USATT 1500 vs 1700 match.

Here is the thread I made at OOAK discussing the Yong-In LP coach's club.

http://ooakforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=21704

Here is the crappy pic I took with Coach Yoo at his Yong-In Club in 2012 or 2013... The table from the vid is way in the back of the pic.

Did Sac Open today. Entered 4 events. Lost in two different divisions vs 200-300 points higher rated players at 9-10 in 4th after coming back from NET BALL in both. If I made deuce, I would have won and then really tightened the pressure on them. Bad breaks there. I won my only other match vs a player lower rated.

I DID play about 8 or 10 doubles matches today. I entered the tourney to play doubles I guess.

In U3200, I got a wild happy hitting partner and had to find a way to get him to play higher percentage plays to set me up or him to finish. Sometimes tight moments, but we got it done and won U3200 doubles. I teamed up with a better player for the U3850 doubles and spun my way from partner setups to the finals and lost to Barney Reed's team with a junior player I cannot read his touch dammit.

All in all, a couple trophies, a little cash and some good memories.

Also, I did not complain about the lighting one bit, I avoided the last 3 times this tourney ran, because of the lights.

One pic with U3200 partner.

haha, nice pic.

hey guys maybe its been posted already
but you should all read this post from EmRamTrich

https://pingsunday.com/chinese-table-tennis-footwork/

its a bit of a revelation for me, who have been always struggling after serving to get back in position and play the 3rd ball correctly

I've been working on that for a week, and its like magic ! I've beaten (again) players I've never ever beaten today (like lost 50 times in a row...), notably that penholder guy with long pimples. not only beaten but 3-0 ! 7 9 8... also beat a veteran 3-2 from 0-2 down (-3 and -5 !!), and beat my colleague whom i've beaten very rarely, but this time even though it was 3-2, i was clearly the dominant player (won my sets 6 on average, while losing 9 or deuce....).

Not only good result, but play in style. many winners, few mistakes... really feel my level has gone up more than a notch

With ERT technique, when i'm able to do it, i feel like i won 3/10th of a second, and its makes it much much easier to play the next ball , i see it coming, can decide where i can place it, or even try a pivot..

I really feel like a new player !! thank you ERT !!!

Continuing my RPB journey ...

Last Thursday - nothing spectacular to report ... played 3 matches ... lost all 3 ... but slowly the RPB is integrated into my matchplay.

Tuesday night ... played 3 matches ... one vs a lobber/fisher i've played before ... lost to him all but one match in the past ... he's like 4 or 5 and 1 vs me. We are about the same level ... he is consistent and a steady lobber. Playing him and one other has slowly convinced me I should start wearing my glasses when I play ... he adds sidespin under the table and i don't see it until it's late. before i left, i helped warm up a friend who is 1 or 2 levels above me. I like practicing with him because it's very challenging for me to block his loops. i FH looped a little but with my intense concentration on getting decent in RPB that i've neglected my FH looping ... no confidence at all in it. I was able to work some RPB loops and he blocked for me. Slowly but surely getting there.

Last night I played 3 matches ... 2 on the 1800-1900 table ... above my level significantly. I find I still rush my shots ... when I consciously slow down and focus on being steady and return the ball instead of trying to win it outright with a 125% power/speed smash/loop, I am 'in the game' and have a chance ... lose at 8 or 9... when i rush i lose at 4 or so. Sometimes i slow down too late and lose at 6. The point is i still rush my shots. That's the bad news, the good news is that my RPB punch and block is slowly working. Despite losing the point at times, I am getting a little steadier with RPB punch/block. There are quite a few times the ball hits my extended fingers. I've tried to curl my fingers but it throws off my RPB strokes/face angle/etc. Also curled fingers result in some achiness/discomfort for ~2 days. Extended fingers i feel no achiness/discomfort at all.

Sadly no video, but i had a RPB loop around the net shot! Surprised both myself and my partner LOL

I haven't hit with my coach friend in a few weeks due to conflicting schedules. Although my RPB is coming along decently IMO, it may be less than proper timing/stroke/form etc. Will have to hit with him to see what he says of my progress or lack of LOL Some of my 1800-1900 friends/partners compliment me on my RPB progress as they have seen me start off struggling regaining my TPB game after a 30+ yrs break and then see me change up and try to acquire the RPB strokes.

May all the net and edge balls go your way my friends!

Progress is painfully slow playing 2x a week, non-existent once a week, and just slow 3x a week. TT life it tough.

Hadn't played in over a week, didn't lose any games in 2 hours playing left-handed with a long pips OX bh.

Tuesday, played 2 hours no game losses, left-handed bh long pips OX.

yesterday I went to the club,
I hoped to repeat my great form of last week when i had some great wins, including 3-0 against a player i had never ever beaten despite playing with him for many years...

However, I wasn't in my best form, i wasn't moving very quickly, especially after my own serve, i think the fact i skipped my jogging session on Monday, and that i went there without having dinner affected me. In the last match [against the guy i had the great win last week], my knees and ankles were also aching quite a bit, i couldn't move seriously anymore, and I gave up quickly.

So basically I lost all my matches, including 2 junior kids, i didn't play THAT bad, but i was clearly a bit below my average level. well EXCEPT the ONE match that truly mattered, against my teammate LOL. He is the better player but now i can beat him lately. He was leading 2-0 comfortably but with some miracle, at 9-9 in the 3rd he missed 2 easy attacks giving me the set, and then in the 4th and 5th the REDBULL started working very well, i was all pumped up and finally played high risk champagne TT, and managed to finish the comeback in style 11-5 and 11-7... I'm starting to gain the upper hand on him mentally !! He is the one choking now when we play together !

I could sense from those 2 last sets and the other sets in other matches that fitness is what made the difference, i can't drink a redbull for every training match LOL...

Very cool on the Red Bull come from behind win over your teammate Sir!

TT is truly humbling. One great night and then the next time, one poor outing.

Keep at it Sir, hope your knees and ankles pain is minor!

Last night I played 3 matches. Still looking to integrate RPB into my gameplay, not have incoming ball hit my fingers, etc. I lost track, it's more than 2 months into dedicated RPB play

Happy to report no hand/wrist/finger discomfort/achiness for 2 or more weeks now. It was after I extended my fingers instead of having it somewhat curled has the discomfort/achiness gone away. On the flip side (pun intended) the balls are hitting my fingers a bit more now lol.

1. My first time vs a lefty JPen who lobs and has a good TPB punch. We recognize and greet each other in the past, but never had a chance to play him until last night. I lost 3-0 on close games. I have a chance to beat him if I go oldschool OSPH and go HULK SMASH mode, but i was looking to return the ball, be steady, and go Wang Hao and use RPB as much as I can. I had 3 corkscrew serves vs him off of my FH pendulum serves! Ball kicked wickedly. Happy that my rocket serves are getting consistent and I am getting comfortable with my new, now old, Taksim blade on the rocket.

2. Played B. who is ~1900, a few levels above me. In the past I had close games but still losses playing my osph/tpb/loop/smash game. After dedicated RPB play, i have generally lost 3-0 to him at 4 or 6 pts. I had some highlight-worthy moments but for the most part, I underestimate the speed of his shots and slowly getting used to RPB punch/block and adding that to my play. Most of the members I play with know I've been concentrating on RPB and noticed some improvement on my part and mostly help me by hitting shots to my BH. Once in awhile though they keep me honest by serving short or hitting to my FH lol

One note to add: despite my belief I'm serving heavy spin, he returns them easily. Then i had a lightbulb moment and recall NextLevel's advice on no spin serves. I started mixing in the no spin serves and lo and behold he goes to return aggresively only to have the balls fly up and not hit the table. Very interesting! I cannot still believe in no spin serves but my pea brain understands it this way: partner thinks it's heavy spin coming at him, so he compensates for the heavy spin ... but since it's no spin, the balls fly out.

3. Played Y. a SH with LP on his BH. Generally lose to him 3-0, sometimes 3-1. A month or 2 ago, had the match of my life when I won the first set from him 21-19. However, he has been very supportive and encouraging me to continue with RPB and that game, he gave me easy shots to my RPB. Since then, he has mixed up his play instead of babying me. But by babying me, he has shown me that I have it in me and can acquire the RPB techniques and integrate it successfully in my gameplay.

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Baby steps, after over 2 months, perhaps 3 months now of dedicated RPB training/play I don't expect it to be a success right away and given my lack of consistent playing, I am happy with my RPB and having fun with it. Frustrating and Satisfying at the same times.

May all the net and edge balls go your way my Friends!

Boogar said:

Hey how are you all doing? we recently won the regional Cup. here is a recording of the last deciding match our junior used his sneaky tactics to beat his opponent. Also there is me charging onto the field after I thought he had won the match, turns out it was 10:2 only >.< haha.

The quality is somewhat bad as it was sent over whatsapp :-/

Click to expand...

Congratulations to you Boogar and your team!!

LOL at celebrating at 10-2!

Wow at 0:27-0:35

Last night I went to my new club and hit with my friend who is a coach there. Due to conflicting schedules, i've not hit with him in 3 or 4 weeks.

Overall he says I have a decent foundation but generally:

1. My timing is off in that I hit the ball a microsecond too early. I should wait.
2. I should meet the ball earlier.
3. I focus on my stroke when I should focus on the ball. My strokes are decent as I'm not a total beginner.
4. I sometimes don't follow-through properly.

I think part of my challenge is that although I had gotten some coaching when younger, it may not have been consistent coaching back then. That and I don't remember a lot after coming back to TT after a 32 yrs break.

We hit for ~20 mins 1 set of multiballs FH-FH. Still have some minor tweaking to do on my part and with my friend's eye/help, i have been made aware of what I need to do.

We then hit for ~20 mins on a set of multiballs BH-RPB. At first I was trying to RPB punch. Past few times he suggested on working the punch to try to get the timing down for BH. Last night, despite thinking I have a little feel for the punch, it was still off and not proper. He then suggested instead of wasting time on practicing the RPB punch, I should work on RPB flat hit as I am decent with it. In time he thinks i can adjust and 'get' the punch.

Good practice last night. Hope I remember the lessons/tweaks I need to work on LOL

My tema had 0 loses in this season, we have played playoffs to advance to the higher league.
One of our young players had 31 wins and 1 lose during the season...but he lost all matches during 1st playoff match. We lsot it 6:8. Fortunatelly we were able to beat the opponents 8:4 in the 2nd match and were able to advance !

I was looking forward to palying in the higher league, but it looks like I will be moving to Japan ^^'

Vrael said:

My tema had 0 loses in this season, we have played playoffs to advance to the higher league.
One of our young players had 31 wins and 1 lose during the season...but he lost all matches during 1st playoff match. We lsot it 6:8. Fortunatelly we were able to beat the opponents 8:4 in the 2nd match and were able to advance !

I was looking forward to palying in the higher league, but it looks like I will be moving to Japan ^^'

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really ? great news ! looking forward to playing with you again !