In our forum, we get a lot of people asking for a recommendation on what rubbers or blade to pick. However the answer I always give is a series of questions. In order to give a helpful recommendation, we need to know more about you, your skill level, your playing style, and other specific needs.

Next time you ask for a suggestion, try answering these questions to give some context to your situation:

1. What is your skill level?
   Do you have a USATT rating? Knowing your skill level is very important. There are a lot of rubbers that you shouldn’t use if you’re not formally trained or aren’t ready for.

2. What style do you play?
   If you’re inquiring about a forehand rubber, what strokes do you play with your forehand? Are you a looper or a hitter? A defensive player? What specific strokes are you trying to improve?

3. What are your goals for this new equipment?
   Are you trying to make your loops spinnier? Are you aiming for more consistency all around?

4. What are you currently using, and what don’t you like about it?
   Using your current setup for comparison is very helpful in knowing specifically what you don’t like about your current rubbers or blade.

By answering these questions, you can give a lot of insight into what equipment you need. Give it a try!

There is a Kickstarter project to fund a new documentary featuring Arial Hsing, Lily Zhang, and Michael Landers. They are seeking to raise $75,000 by July 19, 2012. Please watch the video and have a look. I’ve already got my pledge in, I hope you will too! Note that you can get great prizes depending on the amount you choose to pledge.

Kickstarter

FYI, the Kickstarter fundraising model works like this:

1. The project starter sets a goal (in this case $75,000)
2. People can pledge various amounts towards that goal
3. If the goal is reached by the deadline, the money is withdrawn. If the goal is not reached, then your money is never taken.

It’s a great fundraising model, and I hope we can all make this documentary happen!

All serious table tennis players should set long term goals. Having a goal ensures that you keep making steady progress and spend your practice time effectively instead of stagnating as you practice aimlessly.

To make each practice session more effective, it is important to write out an exact game plan of what to work on. In this article, I’m going to ask you many questions about your game. Get a notebook and write out answers to each of the following questions. Once you have answered these questions, it will be easy for you to write detailed strategies on how to make effective progress.

During the next year, look to improve one level; this is a great starting point. If your rating is under 1000, then a level is about 300 points higher. From 1000-2000 rated, a level is about 200 points higher. From 2000-2600, a level is about 100 points higher. If you’re over 2600, a level is about 50 points. Your goal should be to improve your game, not your rating. Your USATT rating just gives a starting point to make your goal.

Start out by watching players who are one level above you and ask yourself the questions listed below.

Question Time

1.  How are their serves better than mine?

• Do they have more spin?
• Do they have better placement?
• Do they have more spin/placement variation?
• Do they keep with bounce lower?
• Do they disguise the backswing, contact point, and follow through better than I do?

Service practice is one of the fastest ways to improve. You just need a table and a bucket of balls. Focus on keeping your short serves spinny and low with good variation. Focus on keeping your long serves fast as a surprise with good placement.

2.  How are their serve returns better than mine?

• Are they able to attack the long serves?
• Are they able to control the short serves with a variety of returns – flip, drop, and long push?
• Are they able to adjust to different spins?
• Are they able to keep the ball low enough?

The best way to progress your serve return game is to play against many different opponents by playing at different table tennis clubs and tournaments. Instead of merely trying to touch the ball back onto the table, learn how to stroke the ball onto the table using spin. Your opponent’s spin will affect you less and you will be making it more difficult for your opponent on the next ball.

3.  How are their attacks better than mine?

• Are they able to attack with more power?
• Are they able to attack with better placement?
• Are they able to attack more consistently?
• Are they able to attack with both forehand and backhand?
• Are they able to counterattack against an attack?
• Are they able to consistently attack both backspin and topspin?

Most likely, power is not the main problem. The main difference is usually ball placement and consistency. If you attempt ten opening loops in the first game and miss five of them, it’s like spotting your opponent five points before the game even begins.

4.  How is their defense better than mine?

• Are they able to return many different loops?
• Are they able to combine both offense and defense?
• Are they able to vary their defense?
• Are they able to adjust to different kinds of attacks coming at them?

Many attackers only focus on attacking. In tournaments, you cannot always attack first. In this case, you will need to learn how to block, chop, or counterloop. If you have no defense at all, you probably won’t move to the next level.

5.  How is their footwork better than mine?

• Are they able to make small steps and adjust for every ball?
• Are they able to make long dives to save a wide ball?
• Are they able to move forward and adjust in for the slow block?
• Are they able to move in-and-out faster for the short ball?

Footwork is one of the main reasons that top players are very consistent. It puts you in the right place to execute a proper stroke. This takes time to develop. If you improve your balance and footwork, you will see long-term benefits.

6.  How varied are their game patterns?
Most players have very common patterns that they consistently play again and again. Some players have very fast serves followed by hard smashes. Some have well-placed opening loops followed by killer forehand loops. Some have heavy pushes followed by a wide block. If you have several patterns that you can force onto your opponent, it becomes much easier to win a few cheap points each game.

The Overall Strategy

Here’s the plan I’m recommending.

1. Compare to your competition. Once you’ve answers the above questions, you should have a good idea of what your weaknesses are.
2. Choose your path. After you have answered these questions, highlight the areas that you feel are keeping you from that level. Each month, take up the task of improving two of your biggest weaknesses.
3. Review. Every month, review these questions and update your answers based on how your game is progressing.
4. Get help. If you’re able to, hire a professional coach to give you guidance on the specific weaknesses you’ve identified and chosen to work on. Changes take time, so be persistent in practicing and look to have great results within one year.

You can achieve swift progress if you strategically address your weak areas and make the best of your practice time. People who fail to do this will progress very slowly. Make your practices count!

Remember to also keep practicing your strengths! By growing your strengths and improving your weaknesses, you will be on your way to the next level in no time!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Have you worked out your game plan for improvement?

To dramatically pick up your game, you need a solid routine of various types of drills. Here are the drills that I personally use on a daily basis.

(1) Systematic

This is the most common type of drill. I attack my training partner’s backhand while he blocks the ball to specified locations.

During these drills, I focus on:

1. moving into position
2. keeping my balance, and
3. being consistent by making at least ten balls on the table each rally

Systematic drills are the longest and require the highest levels of physical conditioning. Examples of systematic drills include:

• 1 backhand, 1 forehand
• 1 backhand, 1 middle, 1 backhand, 1 forehand
• 1 forehand, 1 middle, 1 backhand, 1 middle
• 2 forehands, 2 middle

(2) Semi-Systematic

This drill requires more concentration because the practice partner has some freedom to change the routine (within stated guidelines), so I don’t necessarily know where the ball is going next.

For example, one drill is:

• 1 backhand (required), 1 backhand (optional), 1 forehand (required), 1 forehand (optional)

In this case, after the partner has given the first ball to your backhand, he/she can decide to give another one to the backhand or go to the forehand instead.

Once I’m consistent, I begin the same drill but I start with a serve, receive, and then continue the drill routine (as opposed to the partner feeding me the first ball directly). Another semi-systematic drill is:

• 1 middle, then 1 backhand or forehand

(3) Open-Ended

This type of drill starts out as systematic but ends with a game-like situation.

For example, I’ll start out with the 4-stroke drill: backhand, middle, backhand, forehand (and repeat). But after cycling through this drill twice (8 hits), on the eighth ball, I’ll hit it anywhere, instead of to the designated spot. From that ball forward, my opponent will play anywhere and I’ll play anywhere, as if it were a real game. This drill is halfway between a drill and a game situation. It combines the fitness of footwork with the creativity of a match.

(4) Random

In a random drill, the training partner can block the ball anywhere on the table.

In a random attack drill, I continuously attack and the training partner will block the ball to random spots, training my footwork and anticipation skills. Random drills are my favorite because they require the most focus.

To judge where he will block to next, I watch his racket carefully. Then I can quickly move my feet into position to prepare for the next attack.

(5) Multiple Locations

In other drills, I always hit to the same spot for the training partner to block. In a multiple locations drill, I attack various spots on the table, and likewise he blocks to various spots, so it’s more difficult for both of us since there’s random elements for both of us.

This drill forces me to make small adjustments with my feet and be able to change location quickly.

Recently, multi-location drills have become more popular at the world’s top training centers.

Examples of multi-location drills include:

• Cross-court, down-the-line
• Down-the-line, cross-court using all forehand
• My forehand ½ table to my partner’s 1 forehand, 1 backhand
• My full-table random to my partner’s 1 backhand, 1 middle

(6) Serve and Free Point

This is just like playing a game, but without keeping score. You start the point with a serve, and just have open play. You can have one person serve the entire time instead of switching servers every two points.

This is important to do on a daily basis because it allows you to experiment with different techniques without feeling the pressure of trying to “win”. This is a great drill for practicing new serves, new serve returns, and other parts of your game.

(7) Serving

As stated in previous articles, serving is one of the fastest way to improve. In a game, I can sometimes win four to five points per game on my serve. This is a daily necessity for improvement. Some of the top Japanese players serve up to two hours per day.

(8) Serve Return

From the beginner ranks to the top level, serve return is the most difficult part of table tennis. Have your partner continuously serve to you so you can practice your returns.

Preparing for the Olympic trials, serve return is one of my main focuses. I benefit the most from having my training partner serve one particular serve over and over again for five minutes. During the five minutes, I focus on returning that particular serve in many different ways. Next my training partner will serve a different serve, and I will continue returning. In the last five minutes, my opponent will do any serve, short or long, and I have to choose the best return.

(9) Multiball

Multiball is one of the best ways to isolate one particular part of your game. Instead of the training partner blocking back my shots, he grabs balls from a bucket and hits each ball out of his hand, ignoring that ball when I return it. This is much easier for the training partner since he doesn’t have to focus on trying to make perfect blocks every time, and can make more precise balls, fast and slow, to various locations on the table with ease. See one of Wang Liqin’s multiball drills:

For example, focusing on footwork, I make a goal to move into position and loop fifty forehands before taking a short pause. This high-repetition practice is excellent for my footwork and consistency for the long rallies.

Another drill that I often do with multiball is looping half-long balls; those pushes that almost come off the end of the table. My partner will feed about one ball every three seconds giving me time to recover after each loop.

Overall, multiball practice is an excellent tool that all pros use constantly.

(10) Two Table

In order to push my footwork to the next level, I like to use two tables. My training partner will start multiball drills from one table while I make larger jumps to cover the distance to two tables, doing only forehand loops for example.

For beginners, I would suggest starting with your partner feeding the balls to the distance to one and a half tables. Once that is achieved, then move to two. Be sure that you have plenty of warm-up before performing this exercise so you don’t pull a muscle.

(11) Robot

Using a robot is the most efficient way to have a quick, one-hour workout when a partner is unavailable. Unlike multiball, I don’t need a training partner, so I can practice whenever my schedule allows. I begin the session with five minutes of forehand and backhand. Next, I do thirty minutes of footwork drills like the Falkenberg or middle/corner; each drill is timed for two minutes with a one minute rest between. Next, I’ll do ten minutes of counterlooping and smashing. The one hour session will conclude with short-game and serve return. Even on my busiest days, I like to find time for a one-hour session at my house.

(12) Matches

While this is not a “drill,” it’s important to include matches in the training mix. In order to link my training together, I like to play at least five to ten matches per week. This allows me to test my game and see how well I can execute my skills. Based on how well I perform in matches, I’ll adjust my practice the next week.

Also try to play in sanctioned tournaments, not just club matches. Tournaments tend to be nerve-wracking and can cause you to play poorly under all the pressure, so it’s crucial that you learn to adjust to tournament settings.

Conclusion

Becoming a table tennis champ is no easy task. It takes a lot of hard work and a lot of training, but you need to use the right training techniques to raise your game quickly. Keep these in your training mix and you’re on the right track!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Do you have all of these elements in your ‘training mix’?

I’m playing a very important match in a tournament. I am losing 0-2 in games and now losing 0-5 in the third game. What should I do?

First of all…never give up! I have won many matches because of a third-game comeback. My opponent starts crying to himself that he should have finished the match and the momentum swings to me.

Secondly, try calling a time out. A friend or coach may be able to give me tips, insights, or encouragement which can really help. If you don’t have anyone in your corner, you can use this time to re-think your strategy and calm your nerves.

Thirdly, consider the reason for this predicament. Is the opponent outplaying you, or are you missing shots that you normally make? If you’re having an off-day, which shots are you missing? Are you making many backhand errors? If so, step around and use the forehand more. If your flips are off, just push. If the opponent is dominating, what particular shots is she winning with? Devise a plan to take away these strengths.

Finally, re-think your strategy. Instead of playing an all-out attack game, switch to pushing and blocking. The current strategy led to this predicament, so a change may be just what the doctor ordered.

It’s always discouraging to be in a deep hole, one game away from losing the match. But don’t lose heart; you’d be surprised how many matches you can redeem if you respond in a smart and determined way!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Have you made any glorious comebacks?

It’s important to know how often to replace your rubber with a new sheet. Use an old one too long and you’ll be playing with reduced performance. Switch too often and you’re wasting money with very little benefit.

An inverted (smooth) rubber lasts roughly 60 hours for the average club player. If the player uses it every day for two hours, it should be changed once a month. If he/she uses it twice a week for two hours, it should be changed every four months.

In order to preserve the performance of the rubber and make sure it lasts 60 hours, it should be cleaned after each practice session and covered with a clean plastic protective sheet. The adhesive sheets are preferred.

Anti-spin rubbers can last 2-5 years. Since there is no friction, the rubber, like a fine wine, actually gets better with age. The only way for the anti-spin rubber to wear out is for the sponge to degrade. Check to ensure that the rubber bounces equally on all parts of the blade.

Pips rubbers usually last about 100-150 hours. The rubber is worn out when the pips begin to break or the sponge degrades, giving it an inconsistent bounce.

A properly performing rubber is crucial to your game. Follow these tips to make sure you’re maximizing your performance. Good luck!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Are you changing your rubber to often or too little?

In this blog series, I will be answering the questions most frequently asked. Should I use a carbon or all-wood blade?

Generally, carbon blades are faster and more suitable for the advanced player. For a beginner, it is best to choose a very slow, controlled wood blade. This will allow the player to develop solid strokes because the ball has more dwell time on the racket. A faster blade is better for an attacking player who makes contact with the ball at the top of the bounce. A controlled blade is better for a defensive or allround player who plays at many different distances from the table.

Wood blades have more feel and vibration than carbon blades. As a beginner, it is important to “feel” the ball. For this reason, I would suggest using an all-wood blade for the first three years. After a player has excellent strokes and feeling, it would be advisable to possibly move up to a carbon blade for added power. At the elite level, players who mainly use power to win points generally play with carbon blades for a hard feel. Elite players who use touch to win points generally play with all-wood blades for a much softer feel.

Carbon blades have a larger sweet-spot due to the reinforced layers and harder feeling of the blade. This will give slightly more room for error if the player doesn’t contact the ball in the center of the racket.

The final factor to consider is the cost. Most wood blades cost between $40-$100. Most carbon blades cost between $60-$200. If a player uses the racket for at least 1 year, paying the extra money is possibly worth it. The racket will last for 5-10 years.

In the first 3 years of playing, I would encourage the beginner to select the 5-ply, all-wood Nittaku Rising blade. For those players wanting to use a fast carbon blade, I would suggest using the Nittaku Survelian. For those players wanting a fast wood blade, I would suggest the Nittaku Ludeack (which I personally use).

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Encouraging and coaching fellow club members at tournaments is one of the best aspects of a competition. In this article, I’m going to outline how to coach another player between games.  If I were coaching a friend or student, here is what I might say:

1. Good game – you ended strong with a nice comeback.
2. He is having difficulty when you attack first into his wide forehand; try to open most of your loops to his wide forehand side. Once the rally begins, your opponent nearly always backs off the table. Once he is far from the table, his backhand with pips gets pretty weak.
3. Remember to keep using your strong loops. Stay close. Be aggressive, and try to play long rallies. You are much more consistent than he is in long rallies.

The above coaching had three parts:

#1 Positive Comment
In part (1), I gave a positive comment of encouragement. Your friend needs to see that you are on his side and that you believe he or she can win. Don’t start arguing; stay positive!

#2 Two Observations
In part (2), I made two helpful observations. You need to pay close attention to the match to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the opponent in order to give sound advice. Remind your player what worked and what didn’t.

#3 Reminder About Playing to Your Strengths
In part (3), I gave a positive reminder of what to focus on next. Keep it brief with no more than three tips, otherwise he’ll remember none of them. Giving your friend positive reminders is one of the best ways to build his confidence.

If you come prepared to be a solid coach, you can be a key part in earning the victories. Many matches have been swayed by an attentive and helpful coach! And if you’re the player being coached, remember to listen to your coach’s advice; they can often see things that you can’t!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Serves are the only part of the game where you have full control. You can dictate how the rally will develop by having a serve strategy and executing on it, so focus on this part of your game. Committing considerable time to this craft can be the fastest way to progress. In this article, I will be outlining nine tips that I personally use to perfect my serve.

1. Use the serves that best set up the point for your game
2. Train them in a tournament environment
3. Miss some serves
4. Use your best serves early
5. Vary the degree of spin
6. Remember to attack
7. Risk a few points
8. Train your serves to perfection
9. Play practice matches

Serves that set up your strategy

The most important aspect to serving is to use the serves that most effectively set up the point according to your strategy. Even if you can’t win the point with an “ace” down the line, at least you can set up the point to play the style you want to play. Take the time now to outline a detailed game plan so that you can have a clear understanding of your style and the strengths in your game. If you are a looper, then most of your serves should be short, low backspin. If you are a pips-out attacker, you should serve mostly fast long with good placement. If you are a chopper, then you should serve deep spinny serves. Once you have determined which serves best set up your game, develop a motion in which you can serve either short or long with the same motion and at least two different spins with the same motion. This will keep them guessing and encourage unforced errors.

Train them in a tournament environment

When practicing your serves, create a tournament environment. First, try to be tired when you serve. Do jumping jacks or footwork so that your hand will be sweaty and it will be challenging to concentrate. Second, practice in tournament conditions. Try to use a tournament table and 3-star balls so that the bounce will be similar to what you will be using in the tournament. If you are trying to serve short, the ball will probably go slightly longer in the tournament. For this reason, I suggest covering the last three inches on the opponent’s side of the table when you serve. This will force you to serve slightly shorter during practice. Third, when doing serve practice, think of specific opponents. What serves have worked well against this opponent previously? How would this particular opponent receive this serve? Fourth, use these same serves at the club. Don’t save your serves for a tournament – be willing to use them in practice matches.

Miss some serves

In practice, you should try to put so much spin on the ball, that you will miss about 25% of your serves. If you are not missing any serves, that is a good indication that you are not trying hard enough. In tournaments, you should usually miss about one serve per match. Anything more is too costly.

Use your best serves early

By serving your best serves early, you can build an initial lead in the match and gain confidence. I recently beat an opponent who had a very tricky serve. In three games, I only returned one out of seven of these particular tricky serves. However, I won the match 3-0 in games. Once the serve started working, he should have continued using it. He wanted to save it for “a closer”, but this opportunity never came because he lost 3-0 in games.

Vary the degree of spin

As I mentioned in the above paragraph, if a serve is working, keep using it! If you change your serve too often, you might confuse yourself. Instead of jumping from one serve to another, sometimes use the same serve with the same spin, but vary the amount of spin. For example, on the forehand pendulum serve, I might sometimes serve heavy back-sidespin sometimes medium and sometimes light. My opponent probably won’t outright miss my serve, but he may give me an easier return.

Remember to attack

Your serve will seem ten times more threatening if it is backed by a vicious attack. If your opponent is trying to keep you from attacking, he will make many mistakes trying to keep the ball short and low. Personally, my serves work the best when my attacking game is at its best.

Risk a few points

During the game, be willing to sacrifice a couple points. Many players are afraid to serve long against a looper, so they always serve short. This allows the looper to stay closer to the table when returning serve and be prepared for the short serve. Sometimes you must serve fast down-the-line or to the backhand just to keep the opponent guessing. You might lose a point, but all your short serves will be much more effective later.

Train your serves to perfection

When practicing serves, train them to perfection. Focus for 30 minutes on one particular serve. Take your time and analyze it serve by serve – what you did right and what you did wrong. Study how the world’s top players serve that particular serve. Watch their backswing, body movement, contact point, racket angle, follow through, and ball positioning. Also, be willing to hire a professional coach to help perfect your main serve.

Play practice matches

The final link to professional serves is to use them in actual games. Use them in practice matches and use them in tournaments.

Use the nine techniques listed above and you will be seeing excellent results within a few weeks!

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.

Most players label topspin shots into several categories such as: loop, block, or smash. However, modern attacking players have developed an offensive block called an active block. Active blocking is a combination of a block, loop, and counterloop. It is best used off-the-bounce against a slow to medium speed loop.

Watch in this video as Kenta effectively uses active blocking to stop his opponents’ attack and take control of the table.

At 1:00, Kenta produces a quick active block of Ma Lin’s loop to the opposite corner, throwing him off.

Kenta wants to make the opening attack, but often his opponent attacks first. By using active blocking, he is able to keep the pressure on. Once his opponent hits a softer loop, Kenta moves in for his hardest attack.

Steps to Learning Active Blocking

1. Start by first developing a controlled forehand block without any backswing
2. Slowly add more follow-though crosscourt, still without any backswing
3. Add some topspin by brushing over the top of the ball while keeping the ball in front of your body
4. Focus on adding 10% spin and 5% speed to the incoming ball

Samson Dubina is an accomplished player and coach. He was the US Nationals Men’s Singles Finalist in 2010. Learn more about Samson.