Footwork Problem + Reading Serves

Hi Alois and Jeff,

Last week, I joined a small table tennis community. It was really exciting. Once I played with one of the players there. He put heavy spins on his serves, I can execute them. But, he played with long serves and short serves. How can I read it? It was so difficult for me. And also my footwork was really bad because I really nervous played in front of a lot of people there. So, I he can execute the ball easily to the right side/ left side of my table. How could I overcome my footwork?

Thanks in advance! :D

Hi Archel,

Your right foot controls your position for the return.  Your left foot doesn't have to move too much.

If the serve is short then move your right foot in close to the table even under the table.  If the serve comes long then move it back.  By only having to move the one foot it becomes a little quicker to move into position.

When you get nervous the first thing that often stops is your feet.  When you are in this situation again, try to jump around a little bit before the point to keep your feet moving.