Keeping the head still on serve

Table Tennis Serving

Last updated 8 years ago

Rama Subramanian

Rama Subramanian Asked 8 years ago

Hi Alois.

Thank you so much for answering my previous question.  I was playing doubles the other day with my friends.  While I was serving, I was all over the place.  Either it landed inside my own net or going out of the table.  I was wondering what was happening. I took a break and returned to play I could get the service on the table.  I felt my head was not still while I was serving.   My question is do we need to keep the head still whil serving or it differs from person to person.

With Warm Regards,

Ram


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario Answered 8 years ago

Hi Ram,

It is best to keep your head still for all players when they are serving.  This allows you to track the ball better and it also allows you to be more balanced and move to the next ball.


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Thoughts on this question

D K

D K Posted 8 years ago

Is it correct to watch the contact point?

I ask because I have two problems:

If I watch the ball and the bat,I hit the bal but not get it in the table.
If I watch the position of my opponent and the table,I can usually get the serve on the table,but only if the bat contacts the ball.
And I usually do not contact it in this case.


Valerio Di Gregorio

Valerio Di Gregorio Posted 8 years ago

I've similar problem. I can do very spinny and short serves but I must not watch the ball or the bat. I need to look at the net and the opponent to find the right position. I always hit the ball without looking at it, it's just about timing and feeling. If I try to track the ball then it's 100% miss or wrong serve. I'm wondering what's the best way to track the ball during the serve. I realized that my way I don't hit the ball with the end of my racquet and this is not ideal. The contact is fine enough to give a fair amount of spin but I want to get rid of any bad habit. Any suggestion?


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 8 years ago

Hi Valerio,

Keep focusing on the ball and watch it in training.  It will feel disorienting at first but with practice it will feel more natural.  You won't watch it all the way to the contact point but by making the effort tot watch it more closely you will get a better at tracking it and this will also help to track the ball in the rally.


Valerio Di Gregorio

Valerio Di Gregorio Posted 8 years ago

Thanks Coach! I also watched the video about tracking the ball that you linked on Facebook. Today I spent a couple of hours with my colleague training on that, I found it very effective. However I miss a lot of balls because I'm anticipating the stroke too much. I need to adjust the timing now :P


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 8 years ago

Well done, keep going with it.



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