Backhand: Ma Long vs Zhang Jike.

[zookato]

But yeah in terms of general use, when they are closer to the table, Chinese backhands are far superior.

means, how create penhold?=Chinese. so they must be grateful with Forehand coz penhold it's more powerful then Backhand.

i think they are a bit farther from the table also.
as BollForte94 says "only timo boll and maybe michael maze has backhand from the europeans", but Chinese more control

 

[sidthelefty]

i think ma longs is better but jikes is faster due to his rubber

 

[Lan]

after wttc 2011
I pick ZJK.

 

[WiWa]

Gotta go with ZJK. His flips easily beat Ma Longs in terms of spin because his BH generates most of its power with the wrist, whereas Ma Long has a longer loop. That way he can create more power, but since BH is a help-shot for the Chinese, he often doesnt have enough time to play a proper powerful loop in a rally. ZJK showed that he can play powerful backhands from any position and even change the direction in the last second. That plus the fact that I prefer his flip makes this an easy choice for me. Ma Longs BH's are mostly powerful cross shots, while ZJK places them everywhere with a ton of topspin.

By the way very nice thread I'm curious to hear more opinions on this matter. Maybe we could compare them to Wang Hao's backhand as well

 

[YosuaYosan]

Ma Long is more allrounded, he can attack and block very well, but Zhike has the kinks..
I love his backhand flip and backhand loops.. Very aggresive..

Yep, I vote ZJK..

For defensive backhand, Joo is da man

 

[ttmonster]

Zhang Jike went back hand to back hand against Wang Hao in the WTTC finals and won ! So I guess the answer is obvious.
1. Zhang Jike's Flip is out of the world . He sets up the point with this and wins it with control which I guess very few players have done in recent history.
2. Off the table also his looping is more consistent than others may be at par with Wang Hao.
Ma Long off the table back hand is good and looks awesome when he makes it , especially because he is so stylish .
but overall IMHO its zhang Jike and wang hao who are currently vying for the honors with Zhang Jike winning because he was more effective when it really mattered. And talking about Europeans its been Kreanga , Maze , Timo and Dima but then they haven't had as much success as ZJ and WH due to whatever reasons so I would go with Zhang Jike at this current time .

 

[Michal_Z]

Well I think maybe is talking about those powerful backhands that a lot of Europeans do even when they are pushed far off from the table. Chinese players generally play it safe and half lob it back if they are back from the table and pressured on their backhand. But a lot of European players like Kreanga, Bastian, and Mattenet just unleash giant backhands that are usually good at getting back on the table. Ma Long and Zhang Jike are just starting to get good at that.

But yeah in terms of general use, when they are closer to the table, Chinese backhands are far superior.

Scylla and you forgot Dima Ovtcharov ..
but to topic:
I like more Ma Long backhand. but.. if you ask me who has better - Ma Long or Zhang Jike .. I would say Zhang has a better backhand..

 

[WiWa]

50-50, ZJK is catching up

 

[Michal_Z]

Yea, I made it even

 

[MildSeven]

I'd rather have Ma Long's BH but in the end I'm not sure which one is more effective. Although not as spectacular, ZJK's BH effectiveness probably doesn't lose out to Ma Long.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

Maybe I am missing something. Zhang Jike just won the world championship with an awkward forehand. His backhand is better than anybody else's. Wang Hao's is close, but if you watch the backhand to backhand trading in the world championships between Zhang Jike and Wang Hao, Jike overpowers him, over and over again. Wang Hao was scared of his getting off the first attack with his backhand which he did repeatedly. That is why, in the world championship final, Wang Hao started serving from the center of the table. He was trying to slow Jike down and make it so he could get better angles towards the forehand side with a good enough angle to the backhand side to keep Jike from going so deep to the forehand to take the backhand on his serves.

There are a few Europeans with good backhands. I saw many of them named but Werner Schlager was left out and he has one of the best backhands.

But Ma Long's backhand should not be compared to Zhang Jike's even though he has tried to emulate what Jike is doing. Over two years ago the Chinese coaches realized that Ma Long had a weak backhand and that it needed a lot of work. Jike's backhand which is sort of like Ovchtarov's backhand (banana loop close to the table), is what they were trying to get him to copy. But Ma Long cannot generate anywhere near the amount of speed, power or spin that Jike gets. And it is not as consistent.

Ma Long's forehand is second to none. But his backhand still needs some work. Zhang Jike's forehand is still awkward even though he has worked on it a lot and it has a lot more power than it used to. But he is so backhand dominant that you can sometimes se he has trouble switching to the forehand and the transition is sometimes still a little clumsy. It has gotten a lot better but it is not his forte. So Ma Long's forehand should not be compared with Zhang Jike's because it is much better.

But Zhang Jike's backhand is that much better than Ma Long's and more. Liu Guoliang knows that Zhang Jike's backhand is better than Ma Long's.

 

[Alborz]

ZJK's backhand have more control , spin and speed.

originally posted by UpSideDownCarl:
... Zhang Jike just won the world championship with an awkward forehand...

i'm pretty sure that it was not awkward.his forehand is better than many top players.

 

[Scorpnox]

LGL said during the Trials which players have the 3 best backhands for him: he said, Ovtcharov, Whang Hao and Zhang Jike... Ma Long wasn't even in the list...
He said Ovtcharov has the best backhand because it's pure talent, not by training...

 

[Mikael Berglund]

This is a non-discussion. ZJK has the world's best backhand and Liu Guoliang has also said so. Watch the Chinese trials for WTTC 2013.

 

[Sali]

I disagree ZJK has the best legs and the shortest reaction time, his backhand is of course good but not that good as ovtcharov or kreanga. And it does not matter what chińskie coatch sad about chinese player

 

[RIPPER]

ZJK bhand is better

 

[Tommy Lee]

If only compare the backhand, obviously Zhang Jike's is better, Jike's backhand had more power, more spin and more aggressiveness .. Only focus on the backhand in CNT: Wang Hao (in top form) > Zhang Jike > Yan An ≥ Ma Long, Zhou Yu and Fan Zhendong also are good backhand players

 

[Alborz]

Zjk = wh > ya > ml