Returning Spin Serves

srivishnu subramaniaum Asked 14 years ago

when the opponent serves a heavy side spin serves in such that the ball tends  to my right or left, how to counter the spin and when to keep my wrists strong or loosely push

Alois Rosario Answered 14 years ago

Hi Srivishnu,

The basic idea is to angle your bat to negate the spin.  So if the ball is going away to your right, you need to face your bat towards the left and vice versa.  The amount of angle depends on the amount of spin.  Think about the angle that the ball is flying off at.  Then adjust your racket so that that angle will take the ball back onto the table.

You need to have your hand very relaxed.  This will absorb some of the spin as well. It will also allow you to adjust the angle of your bat more easily.

One of the other key things with receiving serves is to get a lot of practice against different serves.  See if you can find someone with good serves and practice receiving them as often as possible.