Table Tennis (eBook)

“The service is the most important stroke in table tennis”

The game is opened with a service. It is the only stroke technique that is played without the influence of an opponent. No other technique can be varied so much concerning rotation, placement and speed. It is a stroke technique, which decides the outcome of a game to a large extent. Despite its importance, a lot of amateurs don’t pay a lot of attention to service training.

This technique is special. Some love it, some hate it. As the stroke that opens the game, how important is the serve generally?

The service is without a doubt the most important stroke in table tennis. At the same time, it is also the visiting card of each player because the possibilities of variation are endless. A bad serve is very often followed by the loss of a point in the same way a clever and varied serve often leads to winning a point.

There are good servers and not-so-good servers. At the top level, there are surely differences but not as obvious as with amateurs. How important is the serve for your game?

For me, the service is a very important tactical tool.

You prefer serving forehand, but I think I have also seen you serve backhand. What are the advantages of a forehand serve, and when is it worth using the backhand variety?

I practice the forehand serve much more, therefore I use the backhand variety very seldom.

Have you got one secret serve that you keep for important match situations to surprise your opponent?

I have some service varieties that I use very consciously. I would not call it a secret serve though.

There are only a few players, like Samsonov, Primorac, Saive and now Ovtcharov, who frequently serve with their backhand. Is that because of their aptitude, their former coaches or just coincidence?

I would call it preference; a preference that is connected to their aptitude. Not so much in the case of Samsonov (more a tactical variety) than with other players.

Would you tell younger players to practice forehand and backhand serves equally?

Yes, of course. Personal preferences should be supported.

You played in Magdeburg against the young German, Dimitrij Ovtcharov. When I saw him a year ago for the first time, I noticed his unconventional serves straight away. Side spin serves with the forehand from a low position like you saw during the ’60s and ’70s, and backhand side spin serves that remind me of Stellan Bengtsson or Peter Stellwag. Wang Liqin had big problems with these during the German Open in Bremen. Does this mean that anything is possible with serves?

It shows that serve varieties can be very effective every now and again. The more attention drawn to a special technique, the more it is going to be analyzed and lose its effectiveness. Therefore, all top players must constantly think of new varieties. That is the only way to survive several years as a world class player.

The serve is connected closely to nerves and self-confidence. You have got to be very relaxed and feel loose. Many become too tense when serving and produce direct faults or hand over the advantage to the opponent. Are you familiar with these situations? If so, what can you do to prevent them?

Naturally, I know these situations. I hope that I have learned by now to handle them.

In order to stay relaxed, does it help to shake your forearm every now and again?

Physiologically: yes. Psychologically: no. The basis for each serve, not counting technical ability, is the mental temperament. In my experience, the tension in your hand is rarely a result of too demanding physiological stress on the muscles in your hand.

Which players have the best serves from your point of view at the moment? What is special about them?

Chen Qi or Vladimir Samsonov to name two of many. Naturally, technical ability is very important, but the best servers are also mentally the strongest.

You are playing against an opponent whose serves cause you great problems. What do you do to improve your returns?

I learn from my mistakes.

Have you won matches because of your own good serves?

Yes, there are some players who have had big problems returning my serves. It is only against weak players that this is the only reason for winning a game.

Are there some matches that you lost because of the good serves of your opponent?

Yes, a good serve can be a deciding factor for a game.

Do you think precisely about each serve and which variety you want to use or does it happen automatically?

I always think about which variety I am going to use. The execution should happen automatically.

One of the best servers in the world: Vladimir Samsonov from Belarus

If you look at your service repertoire, how many varieties do you have?

About eight main serves and uncountable varieties.

Some experts maintain that it is better to be in command of fewer service varieties but to execute them perfectly in placement, speed and spin. What do you think about this?

It’s all a question of style. Is it better to play a few varieties well or have many varieties that may not be so good? Both are legitimate and successful strategies.

Can you explain to our readers what an “empty” serve is and how you play it?

If you want to play a serve without any spin, you should not put any rotation on it when making contact.

How do you practice the serve? Is it part of every session?

I play competition-related exercises in each session, so services are always included. Sometimes I practice just serves.

Do you always practice serves in combination with a return or do you also take 100 balls out of a box and just hit?

Both ways of training are important.

What is the secret about the Chinese serves? Their serves are not the most spectacular but are very efficient in games. Is their service practice more extensive and of a better quality?

I think that apart from their technical ability, they also achieve above average rotation due to their rubbers (“China rubbers” have a lot of grip), which causes problems for many Europeans.

We could observe a lot of changes in table tennis, especially with the serves, during the past few decades. In which direction is the trend going to go from your point of view?

Everything that hasn’t been seen for a while will become a trend again for a short while. That happens automatically. I would like to know myself what is coming next.

Service ritual to increase the concentration

1 = Werner bounces the ball on the floor

2 = puts it briefly in his pocket

3 = goes to the table

4 = bounces the ball on the table

5 = goes down into the deep service position

Services with the Forehand

There are surely topspin players who serve more spectacularly. Werner serves very effectively and dangerously. He also serves traditionally with the same grip, which he uses for playing rallies. This means that he doesn’t change his grip for the service to hold the bat between his thumb and index finger. We will only present his forehand serves because he mainly uses those.

The first serve is a forehand backspin serve from the backhand side. The picture series from behind allows a precise view of the speciality of this serve. Afterward, we will compare four variations of this serve concerning their different rotation. At the end, Werner shows us a forehand service where he throws the ball up above his head, which he likes to use in certain situations.

Basic position and backswing: Werner is standing square to the table. One foot is in front of the other. The weight of his bent upper body is on his front leg. Werner is holding the ball right behind the baseline in the palm of his hand just above the table (1). The hand is still down while the upper body is stretching slightly (2). Picture 3 shows clearly that the upper body is still stretching up. Simultaneously, Werner lifts the back right foot to move it slightly backwards. In picture 4, he stretches the arm with the ball and simultaneously moves the bat backwards and up. At the moment when he releases the ball at the height of his breast, he moves his bodyweight to the back leg (5, 6) and lifts the right front leg as seen in picture 7. He always keeps his eye on the ball. The peak of the throw up is reached and is about the height of the eyes. Now the stroke movement starts.

Stroke and follow-through: Werner’s left leg is raised and the wide open bat is directed towards the falling ball (8). Picture 9 shows Werner...