First bounce for a short serve
Table Tennis Serving
Last updated 8 years ago
Khuong To Asked 11 years ago
Hi Guys,
Just a quickie, where do you bounce the first ball to get a really short serve - meaning landing on the opponents side of the net really short so they come in more.
Cheers, Khuong
Alois Rosario Answered 11 years ago
Hi Khuong,
You need to get the ball to bounce quite close to you on your side. If you hit it close to the net on your side you have to hit it slowly which gives your opponent more time to see the spin.
Ideally aim about 10 cm or 6 inches away from your end line.
Thoughts on this question
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Ilia Minkin Posted 8 years ago
But isn't such serve too dangerous?
1) It is easier to flick flat since the ball is close to the net
2) It opens up ridicoulously wide angels both for short pushing and flicking
3) Gives very small time for the server to react to return
So isn't it better to keep the first bounce closer to the second half of the table, so that it limits the opponent's short game options? Of course, it should be at least double bounce.
Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 8 years ago
If you can also keep it low then it is difficult for them to attack if it is short.
Jeff Plumb from PingSkills Posted 8 years ago
Interesting question Ilia. I feel that in general the serve with the second bounce closer to the end of the table is more difficult for the opponent. And the faster you can serve the ball but still have it bounce twice the better too. As Alois said though, having the ball low may be more important than the length and speed.
Ilia Minkin Posted 8 years ago
Jeff, thank you for your comment. The question is how to do a serve that is at leas double bounce and not too close to the net. Im thinkng about very heavy backspin that slows down the ball after the first boun, or heavy sidespin/backspin that jumps to the side a lot. Both are tricky to do. Any other options? I hate flicking at me so much that I often opt for longer attackable serves. Im on the way to a table tennis camp, going to experiment with the serve a lot, also interesting what coaches there will say.
Ilia Minkin Posted 8 years ago
And of course I agree that keeping the ball low is important.