Serving tricks

Aryaman Kumar Asked 10 years ago

Hi Pingskills

During a friendly match my competitor executed a serve that was very tricky.

I wasn't able to judge the spin of the ball.

The ball, after the the second bounce, curved to the left side of my table.

By looking at the first two bounces I thought that it was either a no spin serve or a topspin serve as the ball went straight without any sign of a sidespin serve but after the second bounce I was able to figure out that it was a sidespin serve as the ball curved the other way (not so much but a noticable amount)

Can u please tell me how to execute that serve?

Thanks

Alois Rosario Answered 10 years ago

Hi Aryaman,

To get the sidespin on the ball you need to brush the ball on the side to make it rotate on its vertical axis. If you are looking down on the ball, then contact the ball at 3 on the clock face with a fine brushing contact.

We have lessons on this in our Serving Secrets section where we go through the serves in detail as well and we show you how to execute the sidespin serves.

Recommended Video

5 Essential Serve Strategies in Table Tennis

Serving in table tennis is about much more than just getting the ball into play; it's about setting the pace, controlling the game, and exploiting your opponent's weaknesses from the very first touch. In This Video, You'll Discover:

- The Danger Zone: Learn why serving to your opponent’s comfort zone is a mistake and where you should aim instead.
- Wide Serves: Understand the tactical advantage of serving wide and how it can open up the table for your next shot.
- Targeting Weaknesses: Tips on identifying and exploiting your opponent's weaker side with precision serves.
- Varying Your Serve Position: The benefits of serving from different positions and how it can confuse and unbalance your opponent.
- The Crossover Point: How to target the elusive crossover point (the transition between forehand and backhand) to force errors or weak returns.

Watch Now

Thoughts on this question (2)

Tushar Verma Posted 10 years ago

Heavy Sidespin are very effective in game if someone did not judge them and tried to chop or push as they go out of the table.

Aryaman Kumar Posted 10 years ago

Thanks for the advice