Receiving
When i play my neighbor, he always gets me with his killer forehand topspin and with his various types of spin- what can I do to prevent or maybe cure this?
Hi Hanson,
Dealing with spin is a difficult part of the game.
To deal with a player that is doing a lot of topspins you should try to place the ball lower and away from his forehand. Also if you can you can keep the ball closer to the net so that they don't get a full swing at the ball.
We have a series on Receiving Secrets which explains how to recognise and deal with spin. This is part of our Premium membership. If you join the Premium membership you will gain access to the whole site as well as the Receiving Secrets section.
Struggling to return spin serves? You're not alone! In this video, we break down how to read spin, adjust your bat angle, and return serves effectively—so you stop giving away easy points.
🔹 Skill Breakdown: How to identify different types of spin and adjust your return technique.
🔹 Common Mistakes: The biggest errors players make when returning spin serves—and how to fix them fast!
🔹 Viewer Q&A: Answering your top questions about handling tricky spin serves.
🔹 Train Smarter: Drills to help you practice and improve your serve returns.
Mastering serve returns is one of the fastest ways to level up your table tennis game. Try these tips and let us know in the comments: What’s the toughest spin serve you face?
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Hanson Church Posted 11 years ago
Thank you- my parents wont let me get a member ship and I wouldn't be willing to pay for it but I will try to keep the ball low when I play him. I have been playing against my brother and i serve short, slice it, and when he hits it long i attack. This often works. Believe it or not, I was playing against my brother in slides which wasn't smart and I might have brusied or brken my foot! I won't be able to get into real ping pong for a while. thank you for your help!
Dhruv Maniar Posted 11 years ago
Target his backhand and work on placement of the ball.If he comes all the way to one side of the table to return the ball with forehand which he was supposed to return with backhand....he probably cant reach the other corner in time.So try to place in the other corner and keep it very fast or very spinny and close to the net.