When in Rome

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

When in China, play table tennis.

Hey guys, I’ve recently moved to China and that’s prompted me to return to the sport after a few years away from the tables. I’ve been messing around with a pre-made DHS bay with Hurricane 3 on the FH and Tin-arc on the BH, however now I’ve started to play regularly I’d like to go back to some more European/Japanese style rubbers, with a new blade.

I used to play with a TSP balsa 6.5 with rubbers like Stiga Boost, Neos etc, and really enjoyed that set up. But after researching the new equipment on the market and reading several forums, many people seem to think balsa blades hinder ones ability to loop, and started to wonder if playing with such a set up could have hindered my game/development.

Firstly I was wondering what people’s opinions are on balsa blades, looping and conventional attacking play. And secondly I was wondering what people’s recommendations would be for an intermediate player who has a decent all round, aggressive game. Would I be wasting money going for the Viscaria Tenergy combo that people seem to love?

Any recommendations or points of view would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Dan

Thanks man, next time training isn’t too busy I’ll try and get a video. I’d hope I’m not a beginner after playing at a club from 10/18 and then briefly whilst I was at uni.

Why do you suggest avoiding anything carbon as an intermediate player? Lack of dwell time?

Hey man- I took your advice and went for an all wood blade. I got the Andro temper tech off- with Tibhar Fx-p and Fx-s. It feels great at the moment, and besides the handle being a bit small for my hands I have no complaints.

I’ve been experimenting with each rubber on the forehand and backhand and can’t really decide which one better suits my game. I know there’s very little difference between the two rubbers but which way round would they conventionally be used?

Yeah I’ve seen yangyang before and she’s good, we also have good coaches at the club I’ve started playing at and I’m slowly getting back to the level I was playing at before my break.

I’m just currently unsure about the differences between the Tibhar evolution FX-P and FX-S. I can feel the subtle differences between each rubber, but differences are so subtle I’m not sure which is best for my forehand/backhand.