Advice for returning awkward serves

[lodro]

I just play for fun at this stage and i never competed in tours, so i really just play with anyone willing to play, because some top players are trying to player with weaker opponents and i also try to avoid those because they aren't deserve to play against with this attitude, and to play with similar players of my level is making things more fun and challenging as he/she is trying to overpower me and i try to outperform them to stay ahead, and most of the time their weapon is the serve alone, others have no great serve but they have great return, so i like variation, but those who has better serves and whatever are just simply trained only, if i trained i will swap them to floor too.

Last Friday i played against one coach, no match of course, but i liked that he is just enjoying to play and practice with all and i can see why he is a coach, he never care about the result as me too, and i can see what i need to improve, but he is trained since he was a kid and he still playing at his age now, while i never have any training in my life when i was a kid and barely had few training that is not sufficient but helped me to battle some i couldn't or to keep me in shape for a while, but i must find a coach to teach me about how to serve and return serves, then i can have more advantages later.

We are much alike.
I am playing for fun , physical exercise and mental stimulation.
I am happy just to play , it seems that most others like to start a match and win.

When covid lock downs started here , I got some MDF boards out of the shed and created a small long table, there were some bits of 2x4 as a net. I learned some serves. I watched some games on yutube and whenever i saw a serve i liked I went in my hobby room and tried to copy it. Now, 2 years later I am well-hated for my serves and can sometimes even get some payback against the nasty a graders with their trick serves 😂

 

[TareqPhoto]

We are much alike.
I am playing for fun , physical exercise and mental stimulation.
I am happy just to play , it seems that most others like to start a match and win.

When covid lock downs started here , I got some MDF boards out of the shed and created a small long table, there were some bits of 2x4 as a net. I learned some serves. I watched some games on yutube and whenever i saw a serve i liked I went in my hobby room and tried to copy it. Now, 2 years later I am well-hated for my serves and can sometimes even get some payback against the nasty a graders with their trick serves 😂

The problem with me is that i got back to table tennis in 2015 as i stopped it since 2004 when i graduated from university and got busy in my life with job and my family drama, back then i was faster and more fit, now i just try to gain some skills i didn't have it before such as blocking better and defensive style with pips.

What happened to me is that i am having many hobbies, mainly it was photography since 2005, but i stopped in 2014 or 2015, that is why i got back to table tennis, but then i got into astrophotography since 2017 and that somehow slowed me down to keep doing table tennis, and with Covid year until now i feel like i won't put all my energy and budget on one hobby, and 3 regular friends i used to play much with are all gone their ways, so i left with no one as regular to play with, and all opponents in the clubs i visit are just like high level or they play in almost daily basis so they are not interested in to play with me for long time, but now i am planning to make rackets collection then make some promotions to my city club TT room and my house if they live nearby, this way i can invite and attract more people into it and i might find some regular opponents by then.

I have one old robot that is like out of performance now, but i have another one that i didn't open it from the shipping box yet, i believe that new robot if working could give me really great practice, and i am now preparing my table at home to return back to practice for myself, and i will try to practice with serves at some points, but for now i just keep focusing on testing my gear until i get few i am happy with and not only depends on one racket for everything, then i can think about practice on anything.

 

[lodro]

The problem with me is that i got back to table tennis in 2015 as i stopped it since 2004 when i graduated from university and got busy in my life with job and my family drama, back then i was faster and more fit, now i just try to gain some skills i didn't have it before such as blocking better and defensive style with pips.

What happened to me is that i am having many hobbies, mainly it was photography since 2005, but i stopped in 2014 or 2015, that is why i got back to table tennis, but then i got into astrophotography since 2017 and that somehow slowed me down to keep doing table tennis, and with Covid year until now i feel like i won't put all my energy and budget on one hobby, and 3 regular friends i used to play much with are all gone their ways, so i left with no one as regular to play with, and all opponents in the clubs i visit are just like high level or they play in almost daily basis so they are not interested in to play with me for long time, but now i am planning to make rackets collection then make some promotions to my city club TT room and my house if they live nearby, this way i can invite and attract more people into it and i might find some regular opponents by then.

I have one old robot that is like out of performance now, but i have another one that i didn't open it from the shipping box yet, i believe that new robot if working could give me really great practice, and i am now preparing my table at home to return back to practice for myself, and i will try to practice with serves at some points, but for now i just keep focusing on testing my gear until i get few i am happy with and not only depends on one racket for everything, then i can think about practice on anything.

Actually while i do understand your ""search for the proper racket"" I can tell from my own experience that the sooner you can choose just ONE the better.
Otherwise you end up going in circles and never find a comfortable combo

 

[TareqPhoto]

Actually while i do understand your ""search for the proper racket"" I can tell from my own experience that the sooner you can choose just ONE the better.
Otherwise you end up going in circles and never find a comfortable combo

I did find it already for offensive style, even have second one, and i hope the new blade i received can be either the third one or second and backup for the two favorite i have.

Now for defensive style, well, that might take much longer journey, as i tried one or two not mine and both were nice, but the ones i made all turned out not good yet, but i didn't test few more new assembled, hopefully they can be good or i get the one clicked for me very soon, otherwise i will just not go defensive path and stay with offensive style only.

 

[lodro]

I did find it already for offensive style, even have second one, and i hope the new blade i received can be either the third one or second and backup for the two favorite i have.

Now for defensive style, well, that might take much longer journey, as i tried one or two not mine and both were nice, but the ones i made all turned out not good yet, but i didn't test few more new assembled, hopefully they can be good or i get the one clicked for me very soon, otherwise i will just not go defensive path and stay with offensive style only.

https://tabletennis-reference.com/player/detail/1088

you can use an attacking blade for modern defensive play. many pros a doing just that. like Hitomi Sato