Rubber advice for a teammate

[biaxialerzug]

Hello everyone,

I am looking for two new rubbers for my teammate and doubles partner for the new season. His setup is currently as follows:
Wood - Donic Carboev
VH: Andro Impuls Speed 1.8 mm
RH: Andro Impuls Speed 2.1 mm

I would describe his playing style as offensive, whereby his forehand is better and more secure. He can hit well with his backhand, but is generally not as confident as with his forehand and may sometimes be insecure in the game, so that he tends to play a passive ball instead.
He describes his problems as follows:
1) He has problems getting into counter-attacking duels on the backhand. If the opponent just plays the ball in or blocks his backhand, it is difficult to counter-attack or topspin.
2) Long and fast serves with a lot of spin to the forehand (left-handers) cause problems in the reception.
3) It is difficult to get out of backhand duels or when he is held on the backhand.

His TTR (Germany) is just under 1600, but with training and a good season, he's been just under 1650.
In my opinion, he has a good hand, especially on the forehand. He is quite tall and has good power in his forehand shots thanks to his long arms.
The fact that more training would probably also bring more confidence to the game would be another matter, as he usually only plays matches at the weekend/week and trains during the week when he has the opportunity. I would therefore be happy to receive a few suggestions on how to build up a little support or confidence through the choice of rubbers. He wants to keep the blade for now, as he has been playing it for about 20 years. As the blade (if I have understood it correctly) has a Kevlar and a carbon side, I would be happy to receive suggestions as to which side might be better suited for which side of play.

Many thanks in advance!

 

[Topspinslinger]

The strokes you said he wants to improve in are all matter of regular training with different partners including left handed players.

As for rubbers these are soft and not that quick. I'd stay with soft rubbers that have more speed. Examples are Yasaka Rakza 7 soft, Xiom vega europe and many more.

 

[ck1407]

For the highlighted backhand challenges, you may want to observe him play on the sideline. It might just be him being to close to the table. Topspin balls will kick forward so if he is too near, he won't have enough room to execute a backhand comfortably.

If he still faces such challenges after having a comfortable backhand exchange with opponents, then it may be time to upgrade the rubber so that he produces shots that are tougher for the opponent to put the ball back on the table

 

[Tyce]

I'm surprised he uses a thicker rubber on backhand, is there a reason for that? Flipping the blade is not a good option to test due to it being a combo (two different sides) but I would think a strong FH is the logical candidate for thicker sponge.

 

[biaxialerzug]

For the highlighted backhand challenges, you may want to observe him play on the sideline. It might just be him being to close to the table. Topspin balls will kick forward so if he is too near, he won't have enough room to execute a backhand comfortably.

If he still faces such challenges after having a comfortable backhand exchange with opponents, then it may be time to upgrade the rubber so that he produces shots that are tougher for the opponent to put the ball back on the table

So you would consider a harder rubber on the backhand?

 

[biaxialerzug]

I'm surprised he uses a thicker rubber on backhand, is there a reason for that? Flipping the blade is not a good option to test due to it being a combo (two different sides) but I would think a strong FH is the logical candidate for thicker sponge.

Yes, me too. I told him to flip the blade, maybe he feels more comfortable with the other side on the backhand.

 

[ck1407]

So you would consider a harder rubber on the backhand?

Harder rubber will be the simple answer since you get more out of harder rubbers compared to softer rubbers as long as you execute good techniques. But there are details to look out for too since better shot quality can come in the form of speed, spin or precise placement(due to good control/feeling).

With the above 3 factors in mind, you can discuss with your teammate which attributes will compliment his style of play. It will be ideal for a player to have all 3 but we tend to excel at 1 or 2 area(s) more compared to the others so equipments that compliment your strengths and style will give players a good morale boost and enhance his game.

Prefer to loop kill? Go for a rubber that gives spin and speed
Prefer to have topspin rally, spin and good placement should be of priority
Prefer a close to the table play style involving blocks and topspins, speed and placement will be the way

To conclude, rubbers of similar hardness can produce different effects. Classics like nittaku fastarc g-1, yasaka rakza 7 and donic barracuda serve different purposes for different play styles. By knowing your play style well, it will give you a better idea on what sort of harder rubber you will want

 

[biaxialerzug]

So we chose Timber 5 and Faster C1 for FH and BH (1,9 and 1,7). It was a good decision, it's a solid setup and he is happy. Thank you for your help!