Noob, Amateur, bad player needs Equipment Advise

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Hello,

well i guess i need help.
So i am playing tabletennis for 12 years now and i am 27 years old.
I am not so good in this game i think. Well let me start where i am and what i guess what i need for equipment.

I have 1207 TTR Points in germany, and i play in the lowest league and i still dont win many matches.

I switched to long pips and than i won more games, but i dont think it has to do with the pips.
I played with a stiga defensive pro straight and a vega europe in 1.8mm on the other side.

So i think it has something to do with the slower set up and beging more confidence with it.

In this league you push a lot with underspin, in germany we say "schupfen" and it goes all about control and dont do an error.

Before that i played off blades like Boll ALC, Long 5 or Stiga Infinity with Bluefire m1 or xiom vega Pro.

So what i am think now is, i need a slower more controlled set up.

I thought maybe xiom vega euorpe in 1.8mm on both sides on a similiar fast blade than the Stiga Defensive Pro.

But the question is, what blade is similar fast or similiar at all to this blade with a normal head size.

I hope you can help me.
I dont want to feel this sad think if you lose and cant do anything for your team.
 
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Expectations and self-confidence like self-efficacy effect the performance. I think you can play better if you believe more in yourself 😀

I also think that a defensive blade is not good for offensive play. Better to use like an allwood 5 ply. Maybe also try a bit more sticky rubber for forehand to be able to generate more spin which seems important at your level.

I believe that if you want to win more matches you should focus on learning to make topspin and work on good spin in the serves. Especially the latter. A tactical advice is also to make topspin serve if they push a lot so the ball go high and you can kill it.
 
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In training i am very good.
I can keep up with players that have 1500TTR Points.

I can topspin on both wings, flip and yeah play very good.

For blades i have a boll alc at home and of course stiga defensive pro.

But yeah i dont have a clue.

I was once told i would be a good player close to the table because i am always early at the ball.
 
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Okay,
in my head an offesnive blades sounds so much faster than the defensive pro but i have to trust because i dont have a clue.

Would a Xiom Offensive S with 2 Vega europes in 1.8mm be a good set up to play it a long time?
 
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Because the Stiga Defensive Pro has carbon would be the Donic Waldner Senso Carbon be an alternative as well instead of the xiom Offesnive S or would this be to fast?
 
Because the Stiga Defensive Pro has carbon would be the Donic Waldner Senso Carbon be an alternative as well instead of the xiom Offesnive S or would this be to fast?
Offensive S with 1.8mm with Vega is fine.
 
says Ballin
Hi,

i was kind of in a same Situation "Stuck in 3. Kreisklasse".
If its all about pushing or "schupfen" it comes down to consistency. At your level you usually cannot beat ur standard low-level-player in pushing alone. Usually thats a big hurdle to overcome.
Equipmentwise: A off- blade (see in yogis post) and the usual esn mid-range rubbers (Vega,Fastarc,Bluefire M2,etc.). Dont go too fast too early. Its hard to build trust in your attack with a too fast setup.

If you go for double-inverted--
As I mentioned above the older folks in "Kreisklasse" are usually very consistent at pushing.
A few tips i used and found very helpful:
-Open the point early. The longer the ralley gets the harder the underspin is to attack.
-If you are in a ongoing "Schupf"-Battle, try to vary (take the spin out, vary the lenght and speed or chop on ball hard) to get their shots popping up or dropping to the net.
-Use your serve to change there recieve (I take a reverse-pendelum-sidespin serve into the opponents backhand as example. In 75% of the cases it ends up in a backhand-counter-ralley or it pops up to be attacked with forehand)
- When you did the things above you can use your more offensive strokes which should be more consistent bcause of the training with the higher-level players.

If you want to stick to the pips and defensive playstyle try to find a higher level player who is willing to teach few def-basics or visit one of the "Noppenlehrgang"-Sessions. With a self tought pips-pushing-playstyle most lower level-players hit a wall very early.

kind regards / Gruß

Tobi
 
My opinion is a but different.

Softer rubbers like Vega Europe can feel more controllable with thinner sponge at 1.8 mm, but that feel is if you play flatter with less spin.
With thinner sponge you get more giveback from the blade and the blade properties become more important, so the choice of blade is more important.
If you play close and on the table you must have in mind that the softer ESN rubbers are more springy especially with slower and softer hits, than the harder rubbers, which may be faster with stronger hits, but are more linear with softer touch close and on the table.
So if you need more control in active play with good spin, you would need somewhat harder and a bit thicker rubbers.
 
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Hm okay.
Thank you of course but i am not much smarter now because one says now a harder rubber

What about a Sanwei feather carbon? Are light blades better for close to the table?

I am just confused
 
Are light blades better for close to the table?

I am just confused

"Lighter" is not always slower, speaking of different blades.
Some players are more confident with more massive and heavier blades on and close to the table, some feel the opposite, depends on your specific hitting mechanics. You should try to evaluate.

I think that for 12 years of playing TT you should be able to collaborate with the basic matter.


 
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As Tobi mentioned, pushing game is very important. You need to vary your pushes. As a player who plays at 2. Kreisliga, I lost against good pusher and drivers with 1100 TTR because I tried to do topspin without thinking. Beware of the opponent.

Try the change timing on pushes, sometimes push early sometimes late. Push maybe opponent's middle, maybe push half long. Push very aggressively etc.

But you have to be willing to improve and do something about it.

At that TTR level, very few people has good footwork. You can start training that on the table, off the table.

Do drills as shadow training at home. i.e. 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, Falkenberg, in-out. While doing shadow training you can concentrate your power from ground technique.

Don't waste your time by collecting balls by shooting full power. Try to keep the ball at the table.

Train service. 15 minutes once a week makes drastic changes.

Schedule these trainings for you weekly program. I guarantee you, you can improve minimum 50 TTR in a year.

Trust the process.

Good luck[emoji1696]
 
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Okay, thank you all.

I am going to a Xiom Offensive S in Straight and 2 Vega Europe Rubbers in 2.0/1.8 or 1.8/1.8 but thank you all for answering.
 

Brs

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Okay, thank you all.

I am going to a Xiom Offensive S in Straight and 2 Vega Europe Rubbers in 2.0/1.8 or 1.8/1.8 but thank you all for answering.

It's not really the equipment that is the answer to your problem. And the advice to push better with more variety is also true, but not useful, imo. You are stuck at a level many players also get stuck at. 1200 TTR is like USATT 1500. The answer to progressing beyond that level is a consistent forehand topspin vs push. Don't worry about how to win a push war. Work on expanding the area of the table that is playable with your fh, and opening with topspin versus the first long push you get to that zone.

The players you are competing against will not turn into Ma Long and counterloop your opening topspin. They will only block. If they have long pimples then you will be playing topspin vs backspin. If they play inverted, or you place it where they can only use their inverted side, then you are playing topspin versus block. When you feel good about your forehand topspin that is a very comfortable pattern to be in. For opponents who win by out-pushing you it is a nightmare pattern.

The hardest part of this tactical change is in your mind. You have to commit to tactics where you try to actively win point with active shots and not by waiting for the other guy to make a mistake. You will miss a lot of opening topspins, especially at the beginning. You have to accept that and have faith that in time you will win 60%. You only need to win 60% to win most of your matches. For training you should obviously practice your fh topspins against both push and block. To get easier pushes to open against it could also be helpful to work a lot on serving low no-spin, and receiving with low, no-spin pushes. The less backspin you give your opponent, the less you will get back from them.

When you achieve a consistent forehand topspin your level should move up to around TTR 1400 - 1500. That depends a lot on how good your serve and receive skills are of course. Then most offensive players get stuck around there until they develop a consistent backhand attack. Or stick with your long pips backhand, there are many ways to solve the problem, but playing reasonably well on both wings is the usual problem at that next level.

​​​​​​The new equipment you chose will be fine. There are 1000s of controlled looping blade/rubber combinations that would be fine for you. But if you use the new equipment to play the same pushing game nothing will really change.

 
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