Strategy
Coach
Do you think that it is good to have a motivation in order to win?
Everyone is continuously telling me that I have to be motivated and believe in myself on order to be good.
But they also constantly condemning my defensive style. They say things like "Defender is not a ping pong player","Using pips is not fair, it should be forbidden","You should not play any other strokes that topspin or smash","Do a topspin and make an error rather than doing a succesful chop","Do not go back from the table and try to catch opponent's attack rather than throwing it back" etc.
The result is that I am more negatively motivated: One of main reasons why I decided to be a defender is to show them that even the chopper can win.
What do you think about this?
And are you somehow motivated?
How?
(Thanks for answering)
Hi D K,
Playing as a defender is a legitimate option and using pimples is also a good way to do this. Don’t worry about what others think if you are sure that is the way that you want to play.
Let us know how you are progressing.
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D K Posted 10 years ago
I am absolutely sure that I want to be a defender because of my very bad eyesight,so I chop in order to slow down the game.
It is because when the ball is too fast,I can not see it. Also,I cannot see the oponent's bat because it moves too quickly for my eyes.
But the main problem is that I have to train only with a robot
No one wants to play or train with me,because everyone of them wants to play or train a looper.
That is good. Don't worry as you improve players will want to train against the chop.
Jean Balthazar Posted 10 years ago
Hi D K,
It looks like you're part of an endangered species! :o) Indeed, being confronted to pure chopping defenders becomes rare these days. But then, when it happens and you're not used to it, you're screwed. So from that point of view alone, your club partners should be glad to have a guy like you to practice with. Maybe once they will have badly lost against such players a couple of times, they'll reconsider the merits of having you around.
And if they keep bugging you to change your style while you're enjoying it and it fits your physical limitations, well maybe you should consider visiting other clubs and see what the atmosphere is like elsewhere.
Abdul Raqueeb Posted 10 years ago
can you plz come to mossford
thx for videos
Dieter Verhofstadt Posted 10 years ago
Hi DK
In our club there is a chopper and my regular sparring partner outside the club is an all-rounder who used to be a chopper but tries to adapt to the modern game.
It is absolutely okay to be a chopper: just like topspin, backspin is an attacking weapon, trying to force the opponent into a mistake.I don't see the difference between a ball going into the net due to backspin or a ball going out due to topspin. Only because backspin slows the ball down, it doesn't add speed to spin, like topspin does. Still, backsping is an attack feature.
I'm not a fan of pimples or anti-rubbers because on a lower level it adds randomness, not skill, to the game. Still: they are legal and you can try to become a good long pimples chopper like Yoo Se-Hyuk. I'm sure the Chinese have one like that in there training camps, even if none of them plays this way.
I've been in other sports and hear players lament about opponents not adhering to "the form". They can only win against players who respect "the form". The only thing you need to respect are the rules and some good sportsmanship. The rest is tactics and excuses for not coping with tactics.