New ITTF Coaching Rule – Coaching During a Game
The ITTF has passed a new rule, effective Oct. 1, which allows coaching at any time during a match, except during rallies. This is a huge change from the current rules, where coaches can only coach between games and during a timeout (one per match per player). Here is the actual wording of the rule, from the ITTF Handbook section on Advice:
3.5.1.3: Players may receive advice at any time except during rallies and and between the end of practice and the start of a match; if any authorised person gives advice illegally the umpire shall hold up a yellow card to warn him or her that any further such offence will result in his or her dismissal from the playing area (in effect as of 1st October 2016).
I’m not going to hold typos against them too much, but this is an international Olympic sport, making a major rule change, and they have that “and and” near the start in the official rules. Didn’t anyone proof the new rule before it went public many months ago? We won’t hold it against them that they use British spelling for “authorised.”) But let’s get to more important matters.
The reason for the rule, apparently, is because they felt coaches were abusing the non-coaching rule during matches. I’ve been a professional coach for several decades, and while this is sometimes true, it’s never been a major issue. Sure, there are always going to be unethical coaches who find ways to secretly coach players during a match, but it really isn’t that common, and it is obvious if the coach does it too much – and when that happens, we simply call the referee, and the problem is resolved. What’s avoidable is trying to remedy a minor problem by inflicting on us a major problem. (Note that tennis went the other direction – they don’t allow coaching during a match, and it works pretty well for them. We’re going the other way, toward non-stop coaching and chaos.)
Before I go further, I want to point out that I’m not the only one who is stunned at this new rule. There are long threads in online discussions groups where the gist of the discussions is disbelief and disgust at this new rule change. Even the USATT Umpires and Referees Committee has weighed in against it – here are the minutes from their July 7 meeting:
Motion 2: “MOVED that the URC make the recommendation to the USATT Rules Committee and USATT Board that ITTF's new rule permitting coaching at times other than between games not be applicable for United States tournaments that are neither ITTF sponsored nor sanctioned.”
Alas, I’m on the USATT Board of Directors, and I don’t recall this coming to the board’s attention – I only know about it because I happen to read their minutes on my own a couple of days ago. We have no USATT board meeting currently scheduled before Oct. 1, so it likely won’t be voted on before that time. We might do an email vote – but as I said, I just found out about this, and I doubt if anyone on the board knows about this recommendation. Our next board meeting is likely at the U.S. Open in December, though it’s possible we’ll have one before then, or a teleconference. But think about it – if we don’t follow this rule while other countries do, won’t that put our players at a disadvantage when they play overseas or in ITTF tournaments (including I believe the U.S. Open), and have to play under this rule, since they and their coaches won’t be used to it?
I know that the rule was apparently tried out in Germany, but I doubt if the initial findings there would be indicative of how it’ll play out as coaches and players learn more and more how to take advantage of the new rule. Also, there’s the argument that Germans are simply more civilized in these matters than some others might be – such as the tumult that’ll take place in junior tournaments, where parents are watching over the coach’s shoulder and looking for every advantage, leading to coaches using the rule to the limit, i.e. coaching every point, leading to the problems I’ll outline below. I discussed this rule with some of the other coaches at the recent USATT Supercamp, and they too all disagreed with the rule.
Here are some of the problems with the rule.
- It dramatically changes the sport from one where players learn to play tactically to players relying on coaches to tell them what to do every point.
- The focus of the match changes from the players, to the players and their coaches. It becomes less player vs. player and more coach vs. coach.
- It disrupts the continuity of the game as coaches yell out (or signal) coaching between each point, with the players stalling play each time to listen, including regular walks over to where the coach is sitting to better communicate. (Or perhaps just “accidentally” kicking the ball in that direction.) Do you really want to do this, or play an opponent who does?
- Serving will now start with the player looking over at the coach so the coach can signal which serve to use, while the receiver is looking over to his coach to get the signal on what types of receives he should focus on.
- Kids no longer learn to think for themselves, a serious long-term problem. The same is true of adults who rely on such match coaches.
- It encourages all sorts of mind games, such as the coach saying one thing but signaling another, or letting an opposing coach figure out the signal for a specific serve, and then changing it so the opposing coach gets it wrong, thereby messing up his player. The potential for such things is mindboggling. Any coach who doesn’t use such ploys is handicapping his player.
- Things could get downright ugly as coaches yell out things such as, “Play into his weak backhand” or “Serve long – he can’t loop.”
- Coaches and students who speak a foreign language that others don’t speak have a huge advantage. When did learning foreign languages become an important table tennis skill?
- Coaches and students who secretly understand the foreign language used by an opponent for coaching have a huge advantage. Again, when did learning foreign languages become an important table tennis skill?
- Coaches and players have to work out extensive signals. Players will love this. (Note the sarcasm here.) But unless they speak a unique foreign language that others won’t understand, it’s the only way the coach can coach throughout the match without the opponent knowing what’s going on. (Unless, of course, you simply have the player walk over to the coach every single point so the coach can whisper advice, thereby disrupting the time between each point.) Worse, you’ll have to have backup signals that you can change to in the middle of a match, or use complex signaling as they do in some team sports. (Does anyone out there think a good coach won’t pick up on the signals for basic serves, etc., if they aren’t well disguised or changed regularly? I would.) It completely changes the nature of the sport.
- Players will need to bring in coaches who understand the foreign language spoken by the opponents so they can let the player know what the opposing coach is saying – suddenly this becomes as important as the coach’s actual coaching skills. Having sharp hearing will become an important quality in a coach. (The very act of having a coach who understands the opponents’ language would force the opponents to use signals instead of just speaking the foreign language, thereby hampering their communication.)
- No coach wants to coach between every point in a match, and yet that’s what we’ll be expected to do, since otherwise our player is at a disadvantage if the other coach is doing so. This is not something any coach I know is looking forward to doing.
- Players without a match coach now are at a small disadvantage when they play. Under the new rule they will be at a huge disadvantage. Imagine playing some up-and-coming kid with a world-class coach in his corner telling each point what serves to use, where to play the ball, etc. Is that really fair?
- Our next generation of coaches will be non-tactical thinkers, since most of these coaches are former top players, and they no longer will have developed the skill of thinking for themselves.
So ask yourselves this: Is this really what we want for our sport? (Note - here's my August 26 blog where I write about whether USATT should adopt this rule.)
How to Play a Chopper
Here’s the video (8:23) of Timo Boll (GER, world #13, former #1) playing Joo Se Hyuk (KOR, world #14, former #2) in the Olympic Teams bronze medal match. It’s a battle trying to score against a chopper as good as Joo, but Boll wins at 8,9,6 and shows how to wear them down – by constantly attacking the middle (playing elbow). Watch the video and see how over and over Boll goes to the middle, forcing Joo to move, often awkwardly, to cover for it.
Fast Down-the-Line Sidespin-Topspin Serve
Here’s the video (7:50) on how to do this serve. It’s in Chinese with English subtitles.
CoachTube
CoachTube, which doesn’t even have table tennis listed as one of their sports (not even under the “More Sports” tab on the top right), has put up their first table tennis coaching course, “International Table Tennis Skills,” taught by Samson Dubina for $29.99. It includes a two-minute preview video. Course is made up of ten segments, totaling about two hours 22 minutes.
New Post-Olympic World Rankings
Here they are.
Invitation to Umpire at the 2016 Women’s World Cup in Philadelphia
Here’s the ITTF article. Event is Oct. 7-9, 2016. Or you can spectate – here’s info on scheduling and ticket prices.
Zhang Jike Will Retire After Rio Olympics 2016
Here’s the report. It’s not official, but apparently Zhang announced it in a Chinese chat room.
Jun Mizutani vs Xu Xin in Olympic Team Final
Here’s the video (13:10, time between points removed). This was easily the most exciting match of the final as (SPOILER ALERT!) Jun wins the first two, then Xu wins the next two and leads 10-7 match and then . . . we’ll let you watch the tape. If you want to watch the entire China-Japan final, all four matches, here’s the video (2:02:51).
Nittaku ITTF Monthly Pongcast - July 2016
Here’s the new video (7:59, just out yesterday).
Behind-the-Back Trampoline Countersmash
Here’s the video (19 sec, with slo-mo replay)!
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