Possible to improve?

This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
Feb 2019
34
6
40
Hello
I'm in my early 20s and around 1500 rating. I'd really like to improve my form and I'm willing to train 3 h/day 5 days/week. I don't really have a coach but I have access to practice partners around 1800-2000. Would it be possible to reach, say ~2200 rating in a few years (if at all) with those 15 hours of training a week?
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Oct 2014
12,271
17,731
44,269
Read 17 reviews
Hello
I'm in my early 20s and around 1500 rating. I'd really like to improve my form and I'm willing to train 3 h/day 5 days/week. I don't really have a coach but I have access to practice partners around 1800-2000. Would it be possible to reach, say ~2200 rating in a few years (if at all) with those 15 hours of training a week?
Hard but quite possible. But you would need to find much better players to train against and learn from. It is hard to get faster playing against players who aren't above the level you aspire to play at. Your athleticism and talent are also a factor but I can't speak to that and unless you are an outlier in either direction no one can.
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
May 2017
102
79
186
Hello
I'm in my early 20s and around 1500 rating. I'd really like to improve my form and I'm willing to train 3 h/day 5 days/week. I don't really have a coach but I have access to practice partners around 1800-2000. Would it be possible to reach, say ~2200 rating in a few years (if at all) with those 15 hours of training a week?

In a few years? How long have you been playing?

I know people who played as kids and trained like maniacs never to break 2200. I also know a guy who was in his late 20s never rated higher than 2050 who eventually broke 2450.

Right now you are 1500, just keep playing and don't worry about your rating. The jump from 1500 to 1800 is huge as is 1800 to 2000. The jump from 2000 to 2200 is even bigger. The more you play the more this will be clearer to you. Good luck.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Takkyu_wa_inochi
says 2023 Certified Organ Donor
says 2023 Certified Organ Donor
Well-Known Member
Sep 2011
12,821
13,210
30,388
Read 27 reviews
Hello
I'm in my early 20s and around 1500 rating. I'd really like to improve my form and I'm willing to train 3 h/day 5 days/week. I don't really have a coach but I have access to practice partners around 1800-2000. Would it be possible to reach, say ~2200 rating in a few years (if at all) with those 15 hours of training a week?
There are so many factors in your situation that will limit your growth potential. There are some in your favor for growth.

It is not a mission impossible to make 2200, but without specific corrections, better opponents, effective training, good luck. Not very likely.

By yourself, it will be difficult to recognize root cause of errors and do practical things to fix them. This is what keeps many players at 1200 to 1600 level.

Still, with enough time and attention, you may discover touch... and later more advanced things slowly, that over 10 or 15 years contribute to a 2000 to 2200 level. Not so many end up like this, but it has happened before.

Run yourself into Greg Bartz in NYC... he did pretty much that and cracked 2400.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
Feb 2019
34
6
40
Thanks for the replies, I really appreciate. The 2200 rating is only a guess equivalent to the league I'd like to play in in the future. I don't live in the US. Also I actually get coaching but it's only about once a week or two. I expect the training partners to become better as I get better too because they are mostly 16-18 right now (I'm one of the oldest in our club!). Also I've been playing for a bit less than 2 years. I never played in my childhood. So I really hope I can achieve that level.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Takkyu_wa_inochi
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Jun 2015
2,205
547
2,850
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Oct 2016
1,883
1,583
3,807
I think people are a little negative and need to give you some hope. I Do not think it is wise to give you false hopes But of course it can be Done. You are Young, have practice partners and are willing to practice. It is easier to get good developement with good technique But it is not necessary to have amazing technique. I think technique are more guidelines than rules. But it would help to find organized training and a good coach.

I Do not know about the ranking system But i Do not think 2000+ seem that high. Some videos of players that are that are not so good in my opinion.

Start ro practice with quality now. Good warm up, the best focus, fight every ball, make sure to hit the balls many Times over the net, run after the ball and Do work out after. And always Do shadowtraining before.

Do easy exercises with focus on technique and footwork.

Find a coach. Look at videos how to Do the strokes. Post videos here to get help. Figure out your playing style.

Go mad! Everything is possible if you want to. I have been a player and coach for a long time. Attitude and that you really want it is the most important thing. With that you become better.
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Active Member
Jun 2018
544
234
1,205
When I began playing 17y ago I had the luck to have a motivated partner and most important lots of time. We were doing very systematic training sessions almost everyday and within two years we grew rather high in rank. He became C0 which in my estimation should be at least 2300us . I became C4 in my league which is rather high considering the fact that I couldn't play so much competitions. I am a pro musician and most of my gigs were in the weekend while the tournaments were held
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
Feb 2019
34
6
40
I appreciate your comments and advice. I reckon my playing style should be close to table as coach always tells to not back off more than 3-4 feet but forehand counter feels really uncomfortable from that close. I think one can practice easy technique excercises with worse players as long as they can block any decently (if not then it's more footwork training for you :eek:). What do you think?
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Jul 2015
1,716
1,986
6,397
Read 1 reviews
As banal as it sounds, I'd rather concentrate on improving your game and enjoying the process. Paying attention to ranking/ratings too much can be quite frustrating, because they go up and down. Sometimes weird things happen, like the harder you train, the worse you get, which is completely normal.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ttdad and NextLevel
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Jul 2017
1,763
836
2,918
No, robots don't help with speed and you need careful coaching if you use one.
I do agree that someone needs to monitor the trainee's strokes if using a robot. The robot will not tell you if your strokes are wrong. Robot will help with the speed and stamina. The robot never gets tired. Setup the robot to do the Falkenberg drill and wear yourself out.
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
May 2016
322
223
548
I have used robots for blocking help, using the highest settings and the oscillator, with great success without a coach.

Yes, I think blocking and working on forehand/backhand transitions with a robot set to high speed and random ball placements is very nice! That particular style most likely lends itself the best cross-over when going from robot to human. Since humans can not be as fast, unless perhaps you were being fed multi-ball by a high level feeder. With robots like amicus pro you can have it do all kinds of spins, speeds, and placements without needing to stop and change the settings. Only downside there is you don't get to see what the "paddle" is doing as you would with multi-ball
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Member
Apr 2019
10
19
33
Hello
I'm in my early 20s and around 1500 rating. I'd really like to improve my form and I'm willing to train 3 h/day 5 days/week. I don't really have a coach but I have access to practice partners around 1800-2000. Would it be possible to reach, say ~2200 rating in a few years (if at all) with those 15 hours of training a week?

The best advice I can give: record yourself and be critical with yourself. No one does it and yet it can be such a tremendous help.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ttdad
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Jan 2019
1,119
721
2,225
Read 2 reviews
Get a rebound board, it helps with stabilizing your strokes, a good way to create muscle memory. Since the board is basically just blocking your ball back to you, if the ball doesn't go to the place you think it should, then it must be you who's doing something wrong. Prerequisite is you need to already have a decent stroke, otherwise you'll just keep doing the wrong thing over and over without know what's wrong.
 
Top