Glass bat
Table Tennis Match Strategy
Last updated 2 months ago
D K Asked 2 months ago
Greetings,
after a loong time I have some questions.
Today I played against a player who started (apparently intentionally) using a "glass" bat.
By that I mean,a bat with rubbers so old that they are rock solid.
Given that I have started with such a bat years ago and that it was exactly the same rubber as I used before,I can tell the rubber being at least 10y old.
And I think he intentionally started using it,because I have played with him just a few months ago,and he had a bat which was worn out but not to this extent.
And I have seen him playing a few matches this year before today, so I know he uses it for longer time, so not " I forgot my bat".
I would like to ask you what do you think about such play and countering it.
I won 3:2,but I was quite angry because of so many balls missed or misdirected because the balls were literally flying everywhere else than where the stroke went.
It was a psychic fight as he literally felt no spins so i ultimately got him with sheer perseverance and using spin to manipulate placement.
Dan K,.
Alois Rosario Answered 2 months ago
Hello Dan K,
First of all, congrats on persevering and securing a win under challenging circumstances. Playing against someone using equipment in such poor condition can indeed be frustrating. A bat with very old and hard rubbers can drastically change the dynamics of the game. Such a bat typically reduces the amount of spin and speed that a player can generate.
The rubber would perform just like an Anti-spin rubber so you should treat it that way. Think about the rubber reversing the spin. They will also not be able to generate much spin.
It's essential to stay composed and not let frustration get the better of you. Getting angry will only impair your judgment and make you more prone to errors.
Since generating spin might be less effective, concentrate on placing the ball in difficult spots for your opponent. Aim for the corners of the table or use short and long balls to move your opponent around.
Mixing up your shots can be helpful. Change the speed and trajectory. Try to take control of the rally early by using more aggressive flat hitting or soft touch shots to avoid giving your opponent the chance to capitalise on the peculiarities of their bat.
Thoughts on this question
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D K Posted 2 months ago
Thank you.
In fact,that rubber had no reaction to spins at all.
its spin was almost solely dependent on under what angle he slammed it.
That player has way over 7 feet and uses rather tennis-like strokes.
RAM with full length of his arm.
Given that he used a basically offensvie rubber on an OFF+ blade,it was very fast empty bat.
I know very well what happens to the spin,it just took me time to adapt.
I used dangerous sidespin variation to make different curves,going as far as sometimes performing backspin shots with a forehand loop motion (by tilting the bat into sidespin too much)
Also,I kept throwing him out by wide serves,as he constantly tried to lift it over.
I have learned containing my anger quite well I would say...
My first coach did not teach me much,but he taught me this - although probably against his will.
Years ago,he tried to do his best to teach me a powerful smash - not against lobbing,but in a situation where he thinks it must be a finisher. Simply against a head-high short ball without spin. For me a very difficult ball,because it cannot be dealt with using slow ball with massive spin.
He once tried intentionally to anger me. He wanted me to go violently,he was trying to get me into the state of wanting to literally kill the opponent with the ball. He wanted me to treat such ball in a real blood-thirsty way. He literally shouted at me to smash like I wanted to destroy the ball.
Kept putting his bat high above his head in a clear display that my smash should hit the wall above him or even the ceiling.
I never fell to his trap.
I completely erased my emotions and kept smashing at my pace,just moderate shots which barely reached him. We got into a real argument because I just do not want to be a defender who uses power.
I wanted to gain so good touch that I will be able to deal with the extra high balls using solely dropshots and off-bounce strokes.
Anything else just not my own raw power.
He is still angry at me for that....but I must say that I do not regret that.
My approach proved to be usable.
Yesterday I defeated a defensive player.
Not exactly a chopper - he is lefthanded,blocks and fishes on backhand,and uses sidespin loops with varying height,length and power from forehand.
After initially brutally losing to him first two times due to being physically unable to close bat against high balls.
Using my touch-and-control strategy,I was able to defeat him.
He is much higher ranked than me.
I performed several high-touch balls,such as a dropshot out of sidespin loop (not lob) or a block around the net (not a hit,passive block) off his sidespins.