You can make your forehand better by improving the technique, but the overall approach was sound and I liked the way you kept your rhythm
=> NL, thank you for giving my video a watch & be encouraging, I AM HOPEFUL!
=> after the match, i remember sitting on the stage in the back & said to myself ... "man, i can't go through this guy" "what else can i do?"
=> ironically, his nick-name is "the wall"
If you had a good kill shot, this would have been no contest. And you could develop a killshot over time by knowing how to flatten out your shot/smash with the right timing or just learn to place the ball better and hit to three points of the table or sometimes learn to loop with sidespin
=> man NL, there are a lot of golden nuggets here ... flatten out kill-shot, early timing (Brs), 3-point placement, loop side-spin
=> i watched the video of you vs waltrip, he did vary his FH top-spin vs you AND he does have a descent side-spin shot
=> i am going to ask der to show me how to loop side-spin the next time we train
As BRS pointed out, you need a practiced finishing shot of some sort (if you want it to be a topspin, you have to place it better - looping to the middle of the right and left courts on table in practice is okay, but in matches you need to make people move with your loops, either by hitting them in awkward spots to the middle or making them move. That's what's missing from your game, you have the topspin stroke, but you aren't placing it deliberately and consistently.
=> 10-4 NL; even my wife (doesn't do any sports) noticed he was just standing there, not moving much & i was doing all the heavy-lifting
=> at times (still), i am so concerned with what i should be doing, i have a hard time paying attention to what the other's doing i.e. in this case, he was just standing there ... I NEED TO MOVE HIS @$$ (3 point placement or aim at his hip)
You need to work on and believe in your backhand topspin even when you think you are off the table. Don't float the ball, play a topspin and lose the the point! At some point it will start going in.
=> you know NL, there are different ways to saying the samething ... you communicate constructively, encouraging & builds me up 👍
=> QUESTION: what do you mean by "float the ball?"
The backhand topspin is usually spinnier than the forehand topspin so it causes all kinds of trouble when you land it from off the table
=> interesting ... from time to time, i do noticed BH top is generally spinnier than FH top
You had some really good finishing points, but you didn't play like that all the time and you didn't respect his block and make him move - you kept expecting his block to fail but you need to realize that unless you are making people move and vary the quality of the ball, once they read your ball quality, they just need to put the bat there. You need to make the move so that putting the bat there is harder because the angles are hard to maintain when force to move
=> loud & clear NL; freaking amazing you saw all that ... i mean i 100% fully understand what you mean, so ...
=> i am going to work on my FH 3-point placement, Kill-shot (bat angle & timing) AND BH loop BIG TIME
=> i am confident in a year, i will take this guy
But I really like this and hope you can play this way - I don't think this guy will be beating you in a year, but that said, sometimes when you get better, they get better against you. But I still think he is not going to beat you if you continue in the style you continue playing so above all else, work on placement patterns but work on having options when the ball slows down to put the ball to 3 points on the table. The three points on the table strategy allows you to make the opponent commit with a shot to the middle and the fall apart when forced to move wide
=> a prime example of you building me up instead of tearing me down, telling me to play tactically smarter (variety) in an encouraging way instead telling me everything negative, what i was doing wrong, thank you NL
=> today was a recovery day - I am ready to do work, back at it tomorrow, I AM EXCITED knowing what i should practice on
You did the right thing, if you can't produce the spin, you don't know how to vary it and place it, so it is step by step!
=> i feel like i have a road-map to adding VARIETY to my game
Your play in that video was encouraging and showed a path to serious TT, your future is bright, it is easier to teach someone who plays topspin like you do to move the ball around or to vary their contact point to make the ball go wider with sidespin (really side topspin) than to teach someone who doesn't topspin how to stay consistent in the face of tough opponents. Now you have the base, you can now add some stuff to it, and you have a good opponent to keep you motivated until you get to the next level!
=> LOL 🤣, pun intended? haha ... l8ter NL