Wrist Work and Contact Angle

Table Tennis General

Last updated 14 years ago

Eric DSouza

Eric DSouza Asked 14 years ago

Hey Alois and Jeff,

I would like to know how much ( if any) and how the wrist is used for the forehand and backhand counterdrive and topspin.

I would also like to know the proper contact point with the ball for forehand and backhand counterhit and topspin.

Thank you

 


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario Answered 14 years ago

Hi Eric,

For the counter drive you really don't need to move your wrist through much at all.

For the topspin you can start to use your wrist.  Initially keep it fairly still, especially for the forehand.  Yuo can start to add more qrist when you have the control.

For the backhand tospspin the same applies but use even more wrist here.  Try to get the wrist to follow right through.  This will help to generate more spin and get the ball to dip.

The contact point for all your strokes remains fairly constant.  If you clasp your hands in front of you this will give you an indication of where your contact point should be.  When your hands are clasped you can move them in and out from your body.  There can be this sort of variation depending on the extent of your swing.  A little closer for more controlled shots and further away for more powerful strokes. This applies for pushing as well.

For the forehand this contact point (where our hands meet) moves around as we turn our waist but the contact point is still in front of our body.

Try it out when you are hitting next.  If you are not sure what I mean let me know and I will explain further.


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Eric DSouza

Eric DSouza Posted 14 years ago

Hey Alois,

Thanx for the answer, I just realized that I framed the second part of the question incorrectly.

If the ball were to be considered as a clock face,  which points on the ball would be the contact point with respect to counterhit, counter drive and loop?

Also which point on the ball would I need to hit in order to lift the ball, all of this ofcourse during a practice session?

What exercise or routine would you reccomend to do for judgement on brushing the ball?


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 14 years ago

Hi Erik, Yes, sorry, I mis-interpreted your question. For the counterhit you are looking at contacting the ball at the back of the ball, so 9 o'clock (looking at it from the RH side of the player). The bat would come almost straight at the ball. For the topspin or counter drive, the contact point would be more around the 10 o'clock. For a loop the contact would be around the 9 o'clock again but the bat would brush up more vertically on the ball. Again for lifting the ball, this is very much like the loop so at 9 o'clock with a brushing action. The easiest way to practice this is to get someone to feed different spins to you and for you to topspin or drive or counterhit the ball depending on the type of ball you receive. It is best done with a multi-ball feed. Practice one type of stroke at a time till you are confident with all of them. Then you can start to get the feeder to vary the spin. Hope I got it this time.

Eric DSouza

Eric DSouza Posted 14 years ago

Hey Alois,

Thank you very much, that very well answered my question.

Another question on equipment, for looping ( from anywhere from close to table to mid distance), what rubbers would you recommend, I unfortunately went in for a fast blade with low dwell time and was wondering what rubber I should pair it with as it will be another 4 months before I can go in for another setup if need be.


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 14 years ago

Erik, Out of the rubbers we recommend I would say Pryde would be the best for this situation. It will give you good feeling to counteract the fast blade.

Ji-Soo Woo

Ji-Soo Woo Posted 14 years ago

I use Pryde with a fast blade.  When I first got it I was warned by someone on a forum that everyone they knew who tried it had trouble creating spin.  Indeed, the first couple of times using the rubber, I was hitting with great power but not generating much spin.  However, over the next couple of sessions, I found myself generating more spin than ever before.  And you'll LOVE the speed glue sound.  I highly recommend this rubber!  ;)


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