Are you playing against Timo Boll?

[KM1976]

Well this was the question my coach asked me during one of my matches in a tournament - He said emphatically "Are you playing against Timo Boll?" (Well a disclaimer, I am so respectful about Timo that I took the liberty to use his name, but you get an idea. I am just trying to refer to a world class player, so you can use any name as per your preference.)

So here are the scenarios

• Yes - for an amateur player this means that your opponent is way high above your level
• No - for an amateur player this means that your opponent is somewhere around your level plus or minus.

So let's analyze these responses one by one.

So, if your response to the question "Are you playing against Timo Boll?" is an affirmative "YES" then this means
that you are mesmerized from your opponent's game. He has ready answers for all your serves and there no very less rallies happening in your match. When this happens, you are either losing the point straight away or are losing the point in a rally.
Now this adds another dimension, which is -

• if you lose a point within first three balls - it is generally a problem with your stroke
• If you lose a point in a rally then it is a problem with your strategy

So problems is a match would be only classified into two buckets - either technique related or strategy related.
When you are mesmerized with your opponent, how often have you asked yourself a question, how can I change what is happening with my skills and thinking? Well, the idea here is to break the hypnotism which your opponent's strokes have casted on you. I didn't mentioned strategy on purpose since if you get mesmerized by strokes it is often impossible to figure out the strategy. Again, I am using myself as an example here. So if you can figure out the strategy after hypnosis, thumbs up to you.
So now what can you do? Try to take very simple pointers, like

• if your serve is long and his return is just whizzing past you then my friend, first learn to keep your serve short and low. Rest will follow later.
• If your serves are short but still getting killed, then are you varying it enough? Or is your serve is short but too high? Have you explored the idea, from where on the table is your opponent not able to flick it but push instead? Have you explored the power of underspin and sidespin?
• Are you ready for a push return? Meaning if the push is long what is your percentage of opening the ball? Trust me, opening against a push is always considered a high percentage shot because you are expected to put a hell lot of spin on that stroke. Unless you are Ma Long. Period.
• Then comes the rally part, now here the response is pretty standard - are you able to move your opponent around or are you hitting like a machine at one spot on the table mostly? If your opponent is moving your around then how well are you able to compensate and return the ball effectively? Answer these with a leveled head and you will be surprised.

Now, coming to the interesting part, -
If your answer to the question is a big 'NO' then ask yourself -

• Do you know where you can put the ball and still get a passive return from your opponent in case you are not ready to launch an offense or the ball was too difficult for you?
• Have you explored the corners with your push?
• Are you afraid of his topspin? If YES, then have you considered the racket angle or just a half step back from the table?
• Have you explored his return on both kind of sidespins? Away from the forehand and towards the backhand pocket?
• How good is your opponent return wide serves? And conclusively - How good is your block?
• Can you right from the word GO bring your opponent to an uncomfortable receive position? Well that is the key to an effective block? You might always find it difficult to block a ball, if your offer your opponent a SLAM DUNK.
• How good is your opponent moving from Forehand to Backhand and vice versa?
• How good moving in and out of the table? Can you keep it short and long as per your wish?

These lists is not complete, cannot be anyway since all of us play differently, but the idea here is not to complete it in anyway, but just to make you think. Think and you will always be calm, since if you are really agitated you will never be able to get an accurate response to these questions. And until you do - Keep working on it. Breathe, take time, Appreciate and most importantly PLAY without frustration - I say this because learning and frustration do not go hand in hand.
My philosophy is - "To play to WIN is a SIN, Play to LEARN and you will WIN".

 

[Der_Echte]

I watched a tourney where a mid 2500s to 2600 USATT level player was playing vs a current pro - Aruna.

The USA player was a teen player at ICC club, they have several players enter this playing class every year. That class would be a number 1 player in at least 1/3 of the world's national teams.

This player was in some rallies with Aruna, who was sometimes playing easy, sometimes giving him a taste of pro level.

The one thing this kid kept saying out loud is "I cannot believe how much spin is on the ball !!" as he struggled to keep even or get ahead in topspin to topspin rallies.

This is incredible as at that club, you have coaches at that club who were good enough to be Zhang Jike's sparring partner and can make that level of spin/pace/placement/amazing rally...

Pro level to even a top elite amature level is too much a difference to really expect to have any expectations to earn many points. You are gunna get what the pro allows you to get an no more. You are not a bad-azz enough to dictate anything. Nothing you do is gunna have much effect. You might get away with one or two here or there, but that is it.

Against the crowd a few levels below you, the gulf is not as big. The same principles apply, but not as severe.

 

[KM1976]

Hey Der_Echte, My point was that - "Are we totally mesmerized by our opponent or are we thinking objectively?". I used Timo's name, as I wanted to emphasize on the fact about the mental picture we create against someone whom we are playing with.

 

[Der_Echte]

Hey Der_Echte, My point was that - "Are we totally mesmerized by our opponent or are we thinking objectively?". I used Timo's name, as I wanted to emphasize on the fact about the mental picture we create against someone whom we are playing with.

I think you make an important and under-used point of how huge visualizing the result of a point calmly can be.

The kid I mentioned is a hardcore TT Warrior who was both rational and mesmerized. He and his coach knew what was going on, couldn't stop it, were not upset, and enjoyed a good training experience like you mentioned. I believe you have a good ethics of order of priority in TT for development.

 

[jawien]

I guess kid against Aruna fell heavily into the category:
A. I'm playing against Timo
1. I'm loosing points while counting to three.
2. Aruna controls rallies while simultaneously reproducing the Picasso painting.

I've been there. Felt ambushed ... no memories at all, just constant wondering what is hapening ... ; )

Second part B. not playing against Timo is interesting.

 

[ajtatosmano2]

I watched a tourney where a mid 2500s to 2600 USATT level player was playing vs a current pro - Aruna.

The USA player was a teen player at ICC club, they have several players enter this playing class every year. That class would be a number 1 player in at least 1/3 of the world's national teams.

This player was in some rallies with Aruna, who was sometimes playing easy, sometimes giving him a taste of pro level.

The one thing this kid kept saying out loud is "I cannot believe how much spin is on the ball !!" as he struggled to keep even or get ahead in topspin to topspin rallies.

This is incredible as at that club, you have coaches at that club who were good enough to be Zhang Jike's sparring partner and can make that level of spin/pace/placement/amazing rally...

Pro level to even a top elite amature level is too much a difference to really expect to have any expectations to earn many points. You are gunna get what the pro allows you to get an no more. You are not a bad-azz enough to dictate anything. Nothing you do is gunna have much effect. You might get away with one or two here or there, but that is it.

Against the crowd a few levels below you, the gulf is not as big. The same principles apply, but not as severe.

Well, Aruna has a very good sense to control the game, otherwise he couldn't survive with only a good FH

 

[NextLevel]

Interesting post. I usually stay "Stop playing as if you are playing Timo Boll" when someone is trying to end the point on every shot. I am a big believer that at the lower levels , including my level, that those of us who cannot develop amazing footwork should try to get a feel for playing multiple shots within the point rather than playing every shot with the intention that the ball must not come back. If you play Timo Boll, the rally approach is too conservative and you will lose before you get in your best shots. If you are playing Tommy Ball, then you should just open with decent spin to a good location on the table , expect a block if you placed the ball outside the main strike zones and take it from there.

 

[NextLevel]

By the way I am not KM1976's coach.

 

[NextLevel]

I watched a tourney where a mid 2500s to 2600 USATT level player was playing vs a current pro - Aruna.

The USA player was a teen player at ICC club, they have several players enter this playing class every year. That class would be a number 1 player in at least 1/3 of the world's national teams.

This player was in some rallies with Aruna, who was sometimes playing easy, sometimes giving him a taste of pro level.

The one thing this kid kept saying out loud is "I cannot believe how much spin is on the ball !!" as he struggled to keep even or get ahead in topspin to topspin rallies.

This is incredible as at that club, you have coaches at that club who were good enough to be Zhang Jike's sparring partner and can make that level of spin/pace/placement/amazing rally...

Pro level to even a top elite amature level is too much a difference to really expect to have any expectations to earn many points. You are gunna get what the pro allows you to get an no more. You are not a bad-azz enough to dictate anything. Nothing you do is gunna have much effect. You might get away with one or two here or there, but that is it.

Against the crowd a few levels below you, the gulf is not as big. The same principles apply, but not as severe.

Nigerian play is traditionally extremely heavy spin, heavy forehand oriented. Even the new ball and the European and Chinese revisions to the sport have hardly changed the basic coaching approach to technique.

 

[Der_Echte]

Is NL saying I got my Rambo from Nigerian Phantom Warriors?

NL might have stuck a USB cable into me long enough one day at NYISC when I wasn't looking. Heck, it might have been wireless transfer when I was sitting courtside by table that day...

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