How to Hold the Bat: Shakehand and Pengrip

Good, clear, precise

Thanks Gordon!

Thank you!  Comparing the pro's and con's of each grip is a good way to teach the grips.

Thanks Rick.

nice explanation....

awesome i love u guys

Serbian translation can somehow? 

Hi Stefan,

At this stage we don'y have access to a translator.  If any of our freinds are out there and willing to do a translation for you that would be useful.

Hi Taha,

Thanks for your support.  You will find with the topspin against backspin they are still coming forward with their stroke to generate some more speed.  It may be with the twist of the waist or with a slightly flatter contact.  What you need to do is incorporate the twist of the waist into your stroke.  It isn't an added time thing but just twist as you are playing the stroke.

You need to try and find a style that suits you.  Try to keep your thumb down.  It will be easier for backhand with your thumb up but you need to consider the whole game.  The thumb down will be better overall.

thanks i like the video and i learnt good things about it

Great to hear Atharva.  Let us know if we can help in any other way.

Thanks ...

Hi。Iwant to ask why I cannot see video on the internet.I am Chinese.How to solve this problem?

Hi Jeremy,

These videos are hosted on YouTube. Are you able to watch other YouTube videos? If so, I would try using a different browser and see if that helps.

Hi Jeff, Thanks for your reply.

I am not able to watch YouTube videos. I will be really grateful if you try using a diffrent browser to help me.

I love table tennis very much,especially chopping.I am learning chopping recently.I use inverted sandwich rubber for my forehand.I want to ask 1.Which kind of rubber is suitable for backhand?I'd like to use long-pimpled rubber like Korean Player Joo Se-Hyuk .But my coach suggests sandwich rubber in order that I can still attack with my backhand.How should I choose?

2.I feel my bat is a bit heavier when I chop .Do I need to change a lighter table tennis floor?

3.Where can I learn more English words and expressions on table tennis?Could tell me some websites or paper texts?

I hope Pingskills can become better and better!Thank you very much.

Hi Jeremy, unfortunately if you can't access youtube you won't be able to see them online.  The alternative is to purchase our DVD set through our website. At the moment there is a Runout sale on the DVDs so you can get the PingSkills Super Pack (all six of our DVDs) for just $59.95

Thanks Alois for the info.

Now I know why my dad told me to use the shakehand grip.

You just explained why you should put your index finger on the rubber.

Thanks, it helped me out a lot!!! :)

thanx man u r awesom

No problems Farhan.

Very clear, Thank you!

Thanks Sharon.

Good video

Thanks Minh.

thank you master and good job 

haaaahhhhaaaaa can u teach me table tennis

My coach taught me a different way to position the fingers on the back of the penhold bat, and I notice the top penhold players doing this to. It is like a combination of the Chinese and Japanese grips. The fingers are not curled, but straight and rather than being "fanned" out, they are stacked. Is there a specific name for this particular style of holding the bat penhold way?

Hi Billy Bob,

This is a good variation.  The Chinese often use this grip too.

Yes, it's pefect for both forehand and RPB.

Thanks..

This is a great vid - it clearly helped me to differentiate between the two grips

Thanks Kaler.  Glad to be able to help.

HEY COACH/.....I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT I FEEL SOO AFRAID WHEN I WANNA START A PING PONG MATCH.....I HAVE A MATCH IN 1-NOVEMBER-2012....AND NO ONE TEACH ME HOW TO PLAY IT S,SO I LEARNED FROM THESE VIDEOS ...AND I PLAY IT IN MY SCHOOL ..SO PLEASE WHAT SHOULD I DO FOR TAKING THIS FEAR AWAY??? PLEASE REPLY..:)

I NEEEEEDD UR HELLLLPP!!!!!!!!!!!I GONNA BE CRAZZYY!!!

To late for that mate!

The way I grip is that my whole index finger lies flat on the back of the bat, I think it gives me power when smashing. I don't use backhand because I am able to recieve the ball with my forehand just like in the pen hold  grip. Is my grip correct? Will I be able to play efficiently with that grip? Thanks :)

Hi Hamza,

It would be good to keep the index finger down as low as you can on the backhand side of the bat.  This will also free up your wrist when you are playing your forehand and will make the strokes more effective.  It will also let you start to develop your backhand more.  Give it a try.

Pretty good video. Good explanation. 

Thanks Ethan.

thank you very mach

thank you very much 

Hi Alois,

Thanks for the tip on holding the bat handle with a relaxed grip. It has helped my short game very much.

My question is how tightly should I be gripping the rubber in between my index finger and thumb?

Thanks!

You can hold it just as lightly.

Thanks Alois. Keep up the good work!

I am practicing Shakehand grip and started to hold the bat lightly, but about 4-5 times I have observed that the ball hit my Thumb while hitting forehand topspin.How can I correct it, should I hold further at the bat at the top of handle.

Also a question, when making shots if the bat brushes our shirt then is it legal (only black side of bat brushed my shirt but I am making shot with Red side)

Firstly check if you have your thumb in the right position on the bat.  I shouldn't be too much on the rubber but more on the top of the wooden handle.  If the ball is still hitting your thumb it is probably more a matter of getting accuracy with your hitting rather than your grip.  Think about watching the ball closely and hopefully this will lessen the number of times you hit your thumb.

If the bat hits your shirt that is OK.  Just the ball is not allowed to touch anything except the bat and up to your wrist.

Thanks I would watch the ball very close to my hand and then make shots from here on. By the way can the reflection on the table of ball be used as an index while making shots, I found it useful especially when my opponent hits topspin.

I haven't tried it before.  Is it the reflection of the lights?

Yes, especially on Green tables I get to see the reflection and blindly pick that top spin.I guess you pick top spin right out of opponents hand. But I just throw my bat at the point where reflection and ball appear at an angle and somehow it becomes a push.

Thanks Jeff Awsome answer as always, very helpful once again.!!!!

Fabulous discussion on this forum. Thanks to all.

Thank you coach For this lesson. 

No problems.

Love the video tnx for posting it!

Glad you liked it Juliana.

dont you take philippine peso at the your store when i buy it can i pay in peso

Once you go through the payment process Paypal should convert it to your local currency.

nice sir

Very good. Thanks.

hello pingskills.. ive only started playing table tennis since last week and i got alot of improvements thank you...

Thanks Guys...

thanks.it helps me a lot

No problems Dipanjan.

nice video

Good insight into pro's and con's of the different grips, Alois. One of the preceding comments asked whether the bat touching the shirt made the play "legal"... I've often e often wondered: if a player drops the bat just prior to return, can that player validly return the ball with his hand??

Hi Caesar,

You do need to have the bay in your hand to play the shot otherwise you lose the point.

cool

Cool :)

I do the first I do not do the second. Thanks.i am a kid.

Basic information and fundamentals are not only helpful for the beginner but often valuable as a refresher.

Building blocks and solid foundation yes?

Thank you

Happy to be able to help Cornel.

This video is very useful, I like your voice, Alois. But I poor to hear in english. And when I open English (automatic captions), it's difficult to read. It will be very great if you use English as primary language for subtitle. :)

Hi Nam,

We are in the process of doing translations ourselves.  As you can imagine it is a big job, but we are getting through them slowly.

I was shown a grip today that is like the shake hand except the thumb is the opposite side of the pointer and it is on the hard part. It worked for offense, but not really on defense. I intend to use it and turn into more of an offensive player

Easily to understand. I prefer shake hand grip.

Thanks

Glad you liked it Vung.

why CANT i play the video???! plz helP! :'(

What happens when you try to play it?

My First Lesson .... will try this today evening .... keep on sharing :)

Let me know how it goes.

I've just switched to pen grip and am thinking of going premium, 

but I am wondering do the lessons in premium show pen grip tips?

Please help!

Hi Dheeraj,

Most of our lessons are done with the shakehand grip.  We do have a lesson however that explains the difference and you will see that techniques are very similar with the two grips for most things. Penhold Techniques for Table Tennis

I was wondering what the wrist position should be when holding the bat with shakehand grip: 1) the wrist is straight relative to the forearm or 2) the wrist is angled slightly downward such that the top edge of the bat is more in line with the forearm or 3) something else?? Or does the wrist angle depend on the stroke/technique as opposed to a mechanic of the default grip?

Hi Gregory,

Try to keep the wrist in a ‘natural’ position or straight in relation to the forearm.  From there it will change slightly during each stroke.

This basic lesson is so much fulfilling even after working on it for years !!!

Thanks

Ujjval

Great 

Thanks Richard.

Sir

I would like to start by thanking and appreciating your work. As a beginner I should say your videos are significantly useful to me.

Coming to my question I feel comfortable with pen hold grip,  as you have already discussed the disadvantage, I find it extremely uneasy to return the ball if it comes to my left side [I am right handed]. I would be really nice of you if you could give me a word of advice

Regards 

Anirudh Moudgil

Hi Anirudh,

The backhand is a more difficult stroke for the penholder.  Take a look at our lesson on the Penhold Techniques for Table Tennis.  I think this will give you some ideas of what to do with you backhand stroke.

Thanks for the kind words about the site.

Thank You! I guess I'm a bat-strangler but now this is going to change.

Haha, Asa be kind to your bat.

I Loved it.  It was very helpful as are all your videos.  Thanks for all the great videos.  I am a 65 young BEGINNER.  I bought the tt table because my neighbors kids had lost a mother and a father, respectfully.  It was my way of trying to make lemonade. They are all doing well now but now I have fallen in love with the game.  I even got my 90 young Vietnamese next door neighbor to play with me a number of times.

I bought a second hand table then I dropped it and it is in bad shape.  But I can still practice by myself.  I want to buy a better table but that seems daunting.  All the questions manufacturer, type, how much money and most important how to get it home.  

Hi Niki,

I am glad that you are enjoying the site.  That is a wonderful gesture for you to do help out the neighbours and the game must be your reward.

The main thing with a table is the thickness of the top and its portability, if you need to move it around.  There are a lot of good brands out there.  If you find something let us know and we may be able to give you some advice about it.

Thank you for having my back.  I'll let you know what my options are once I start researching tables.

Do you know what video had me coming back to Pingskills?  The one where you teach us how to practice alone.  I found this extremely  useful when the weather is bad or I don't have someone to play with.  That was so darn cool.

Thanks Niki.

thanks alot

I think that it's a good video. 

Thanks Joseph.

I have a shake hand grip, but the tip of the bat is higher than my forearm my wrist is not low is it a defect position? all your videos are very good

This is awesome. Thanks for putting the subtitles. As a deaf player, this helped me a lot! 

Good to know that Manan.

I have a huge problem with my thumb getting in the way.  Funny you should address this grip issue just when I needed to brush up.

Thanks guys love the videos.

This vid improve my skills very well

Thanks alot....

No problems Ahmed.

are you a filipino? cause i am :)

I am Australian but I was born in India.

I THINK IT WAS SO COOL WATCHING AT SCHOOL

 Lots of talking but they should have shown some shots in action it would be much more effective 

Thanks Steve.  We tried to keep this one as basic as possible and then go on to demonstrate hitting in the following videos.

Alois, my coach say that I must hold my racket tightly and she don't allow me to use my wrist in any strokes except serving, why she said that?

To start with it is good to keep control of your wrist for strokes.

Maybe you were holding the bat too tightly.

we hold too tigtly and it's no good to be relax, the arm becomes stiff, like a bird in the hand.!!

Amazing...

hai sir,

What type of grip it should be while playing fore hand top spin and back hand top spin. 

Manish kohli

Try to have a central grip for most of your shots including these two.

hello coach have you post photos? thanks

Excellent Explanation

This is awesome

Sound fundamental lesson!

What about seemiller grip?

Hi Tushar,

It is not one we recommend but it is an option.

Maybe it is good for serving purpose. 

Good

Thanks.

which TYPE OF BAT SHOULD BE USED AS A BEGINNER

Hi Mufaddal,

Take a look at this lesson on Choosing a Table Tennis Bat.  This will give you some good information.

We have the PingSkills Rook which we feel is suitable for beginner players.

Good

Good

Hi guys,

I had a discussion recently about people who slightly alter their shake-hand grip between forehand and backhand strokes. This is mainly achieved by slightly rotating the bat in their hand, where the V between the thumb and index finger moves either to the forehand side of the bat or to the backhand side. In my opinion it will mess up your game because it takes time to change between strokes and it is much more difficult to be consistent with your grips. Just use one grip and it will be much easier to become consistent with all you shots.

One guy argumented that holding the bat in the 'correct way' limited his ability to play backhands, as it puts too much strain on his wrist. Playing forehands with that grip in turn messes up his forehand strokes, therefore he uses two grips.

I still don't feel that he should alter his grip between forehands and backhands, but I can imagine that certain players are better of using one grip that leans slighly to their forehand or backhand to play both forehand and backhand strokes with. We are not all built anatomically the same you know. But it could also be that his backhand technique simply isn't correct, so he tries to compensate this by altering his grip. What is your opinion about this? Should it be possible for everyone to play correct strokes with the grip that you show in the video or are there exceptions to the rule?

Hi,

I thin that there is some tolerance for changing the grip for everyone but the chang need to be very slight and be able to be done in the split second that you have when reacting to the ball.  It is often just a slight shift in the angle that you talk about.  The change can be controlled with the thumb and forefinger.

I think when starting out it is better to have the one grip for both sides till you get the feel of the strokes and the appropriate angle of the racket.

I emphasis though, that I think the change in grip is very slight.

thanks for the video but when i do the shakehand grip it always makes me to put to hands on the bat instead of one

You only need one finger on the bat.  Just keep reminding yourself. It will change.

Your videos are always appreciated.

You didn't discuss the Siemiller (I'm not sure of the spelling) grip, which places the thumb and forefinger on opposite edges of the bat, on the lower side of the paddle. It also has advantages and disadvantages. Siemiller is an American from Indiana who moved rapidly up the ladder but I haven't heard much about him lately.

Mikeobal

Hi Michael,

The Seemlier grip is one that does have a few limitations and not one that we would recommend for players learning the game.  I think the guide for me is that there are no top players using the grip.

Seemiller grip is perfect for serving purpose.

Well coach Alois , I  hope  I learn every single thing about table tennis. I sign up because I wanted to be a good table tennis player. I do not join a club.

Thanks Jae.  I hope we will be able to help you to improve a lot.

Thanks !!!!

HI Alois, I'm a beginner and is struggling with my grip and technique when I have to switch quickly back and forth between forehand and backhand. Am I supposed to be very strict and do both strokes with exactly the same grip or should i twist the grip a little for each kind of stroke? /Patrick

Hi Patrick,

At the start be very strict with your grip and keep it the same. This will help with the switching.

Eventually players will adjust the grip slightly when they have a little more time.

I was very Helpful

This is a very helpful video that discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each grip.  

Hi Alois, since a players grip does not change during play, why don't racket manufacturing companies offer racket handles with moulded individual finger slots like some knifes, machetes, firearms, snow skiing poles, ice axes, wheel barrows,  bmx handle grips and the like. They could send them out plain, customer puts handle in hot water and squeeze, like a mouth guard. The forefinger could slide into a moulded cover, ensuring perfect grip angle, whilst offering protection to finger joint from misjudged block attempts on smashes. 

Also, do you use the same rubber on each side of your racket, did it used to be a popular idea and now it's not?

Hi Dean,

Some manufacturers have tried some shaped handles but not personally moulded I don't think.  Interesting idea.

I used the same rubber on both sides most of the time.  I do at the moment.

Awesome!!!

Coach train me very good and one day I will become a table tennis player.

Respected sir, 

in this video you told about how to grip the tt bat in shake hand way. 

so in that griping technique we r supposed to handle the bat in such a way that one third part of our first finger remains outside of the bat? 

please help me with this. 

thank you.

This depends on the length of your finger.  Keep it as straight as possible and relaxed.

Hi Alois, I have always gripped the bat handle in the same way that you would when holding a tennis racquet. However, after viewing your video regarding the correct grip, I am now experimenting with placing my finger on the back of the bat. To me it feels much more awkward though, and I am having trouble getting used to it. Would you recommend I persist with using the finger on the back of the bat, or revert back to what feels more comfortable for me?

Thanks,

Tim

Hi Tim,

I think that the finger on the back does add a lot of control when learning.  It gives you much better sense of where your racket is.

Thanks for your response Alois. I'll persist with using the finger on the back of the bat then - will let you know how it goes.

Cheers,

Tim

Thank you for reaffirming the grip!!

To sir alois 

Sir I am not getting about the

Pinhole grip can you teach me the service.

Thanks, A lot of help this video was

Hi Alois!

You made very useful video, it is easy to learn. I am a just beginner of table tennis, and from beginning I have question, why the racket has two different colored sides? Red and Black?

best regards and many thanks
Nurlan

Hi Nurlan,

This is so your opponent can tell which side you are using.  Often players will have different rubbers on the two sides with very different effects.

thanks a lot...

I thought one side for attack and another is for block

great job guys, appreciate all your afford

How do I download the videos? I would like to watch them offline.

Hi Elizabeth,

By signing up to our Premium membership you can get access to downloading different numbers of tutorials.  With a monthly membership you will be able to download 10 tutorials per month.  With a Quarterly membership you can download 50 tutorials every month and with Yearly membership you can download unlimited number of tutorials every month.  to sign up you can go to the My info link at the top right of the website.

Please teach the service in pinhole grip.. i have a friend who is always using this service and i am unable to learn it

You could take a look at this one. Penhold Tomahawk Serve in Table Tennis

Interesting video!!  Thank you.

holding it with Red or black side doesn't matter, right?

That is right Muhammad.  The colour doesn't affect the performance of the rubber.

Can a thumb moved slightly "into" the bat increase control over the bat?
I know that it increases the damage of hitting with a thumb,but there must be some reason why Matsushita Koji holds his bat with thumb angled inside.

Wg

Which side of the racket should I use in forehand or backhand? I've seen a lotta players use the red side with their forehand and the black with their backhand. But yesterday I saw a match between Ma Long and Ma Lin where both of them used the red side with their backhand and the black with their forehand. What's the difference between the two sides? What effects does it have on the game play upon changing of the two sides of the rubber? 

The red and black rubber are the same in properties if they are the same brand.
As many players use same or similar rubbers for both sides,it rarely matters.

I have seen your tips in videos. All the clips are very interesting and helpful for the beginners to primary learners. Thanks both to Alois and Jeff. Grateful to you all.

Thank you Hasanur for the kind words.  I am glad you are learning from the site.

It was very usfull.I had bronlem with holding the bat at it helped so much

thanks sir for such a nice video. Now I started following your lectures on pingskills but holding the racket shake hand type i face one problem that is sometime ball hits my finger and it went outside all the time. Tell me some solution to that.

Hi Mohsin,

If the ball is hitting your finger, first make sure your finger is staying low on the rubber.  Then make sure you are tracking the ball well.  If you do this you will tend to hit your finger less.  Focus on where on the rubber the ball is hitting each time.

what is the disadventage of shakehand grip?

Mainly the wide crossover point-the place at the hip at the playing hand's side,where you cannot use neither forehand or backhand effectively. Also decreased usage of the wrist compared to penhold grip.

 hi Alois, loving the tutorials.  i have come back to table tennis for the last year after a long layoff and really enjoying it.  i use the handshake grip however instead of my pointer finger being on my bat, my thumb is on my bat.  i have much better backhand control and attack and my forehand is quite weak.  i have wondered if one of my issues of a weak forehand is the way i grip the bat, what are your thoughts?  i know some ongoing practice would help a lot.  

Hi Liam,

Glad you are enjoying the site.

The thumb up will definitely make the backhand easier and forehand more difficult.  Try to keep it down lower and follow th position in the tutorial.  This will allow equal ability with both sides which will be important as you move forward.

I have also experimented with thumb-up grip.

It definitely decreases the forehand's performance.
Though,it allows better wrist control.
I have found it useful during forehand chop.

Hello!I am so happy that I have discovered this site. What an amazing collection of tutorials. Thank you!

I tend to use a shake-hand/thumb-up hybrid. I know I add my thumb to the back of the paddle when doing backhands, and remove it when I do forehands. 

I'm sure it's horrible form to be switching grips in the middle of a match, but after 35 years, I don't think I can change it! HA!

Anyways, thank you very much for these tutorials. I will be watching all of them!

Glad you are liking them Fred...

Hi alois, I've played table tennis for a long time , but watching this video is still helps. Thanks. 

By the way, I hope i can win the Equipment giveaway, i really need a Bat upgrade here. Hahaha. 

Glad it helped.... There are a lot of people wanting to win that equipment...

I tend to have my finger far on the backhand, but when I use my backhand, that finger automatically goes down so I don't hit the ball when using backhand. It's quite strange but I like that much more than the finger down on the rubber. I just don't like that feeling

The shake hand grip is my favourite.

Hi, Alois. I have just recently discovered your website. The penhold grip is already weird- looking, and that's why I like the shakehands grip.