Receiving Float Serve

JoeMarie Buela Asked 12 years ago

Coach,

I always having a trouble when it comes receiving float serve..

What is the key to receive this correctly.?

Thanks :D

Alois Rosario Answered 12 years ago

Hi JoeMarie,

If you are trying to push the ball you need to have a really vertical stroke and a soft hand to control the ball back short. You can also try coming around the side of the ball on the short push. This will put a bit of sidespin on the ball and help to keep it short.

The better option is to develop your flick. This will make returning the serve a bit easier. Take a look at our lesson on the Forehand Flick for more ideas.

Don't mention it to Jeff but I have problems with this one too.

← Backhand from the forehand side Blade →

Recommended Video

Judging the Length of a Serve

A really important skill in table tennis is to be able to judge if a serve will be short or long. If it's short you won't be able to take a full swing at the ball and hence will need to use either a push or a flick to return the ball. However, if it is coming long then you can make a topspin attack. In this video we give you some tips to help you judge the length of the serve and hopefully this makes you a better returner.

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mohsen dessouki Posted 12 years ago

what do you mean by a float service ?

Jeff Plumb from PingSkills Posted 12 years ago
Hi Mohsen,
A float service is one that has no spin (or very little backspin) on it. You might wonder why this is a good serve. By itself it probably isn't amazing but when you have a very similar looking serve where you can produce a lot of backspin, this becomes a real weapon. If you're opponent is not sure whether there is a lot of backspin or hardly any, it becomes very difficult to return.
If you have picked that there is not much spin on the serve, then you can follow Alois' instructions above.