March 13, 2023
Tip of the Week
Study the Player, Not the Ball.
Serving Tactics Lecture
Here’s my lecture (52 min) at the Samson Dubina Elite Camp in Akron, OH, on Feb. 19, 2023. (I linked to this last week, but it was buried in my writeup on the Elite Camp so many missed it.) As I wrote last week, “I meant to keep the talk to 30 minutes, but there were a number of questions, and the reality is I could have gone on for about fifty hours.”
USATT Coaching Committee
I discovered last week that, due to term limits, my eligibility for the committee ended on March 1, and so I resigned this past Friday. I was on the coaching committee 1991-1995, 2010-2015, 2017-2023, and chaired it 1991-1995, 2017-2019. I’m eligible again in two years.
Weekend Coaching and Active Feet
I coached in six junior group session this past weekend, 10.5 hours total. The MDTTC junior program is divided into four groups: Group 1 (“Select,” roughly 1700-2450, 18 players); Group 2 (“Progress,” roughly 1000-1700, 22 players); Group 3 (“Intermediate,” under 1000, 19 players); and Group 4 (“Novice,” beginners mostly 6-8 years old, 11 players). I worked with all four groups this weekend, which is fun – except for the part of trying to remember about 70 names! (I’m terrible at that.) And there’s also Fun in Fundamentals, which was the primary focus all weekend, as it usually is.
I’ve focused a lot these past few months on “active feet” – and there’s been a marked improvement on that. The hallmark of poor training is players who lunge for the ball instead of stepping. But the stepping has stepped up and the lunging has taken a plunge! I will be doing a Tip of the Week sometime soon on “Good versus Bad Lunging” – but the key point is that you always start by stepping in some way to the ball while staying balanced, and only lunge as an absolute last resort.
Singapore Smash 2023
Here’s the ITTF/WTT home page for the event taking place March 7-19, with results, news, and video. Here are some interesting links:
- Singapore Smash 2023 Gears Up to be a Smashing Hit.
- First Round Action at Singapore Smash (by Steve Hopkins, also linked below)
- Mima Ito vs Lily Zhang (23:25) in round of 64.
- Quadri Aruna vs Ruwen Filus (11:27) in round of 64 – 11-9 in the fifth. See the last point and what Filus does after losing last point – and how close his racket came to hitting the photographer!
PingSunday/EmRatThich
He’s been busy this past week.
New from Samson Dubina
- Parents' Guide to WINNING (3:20)
- How to Structure a Training Session (6:55)
- Table Tennis Recognition
- 5 Levels of Communication
- Losing Close Games? (6:26)
Butterfly Training Tips
- Backhand Flip with Ching Nam Fu (78 sec)
- Forehand Flip with Wenting Zha (72 sec)
- Forehand Short Push with Wenting Zha (66 sec)
- Stroke Chemistry & Footwork with Zhang Tianrui (65 sec)
- Handspeed Random Training with Oscar Birriel (65 sec)
New from PongSpace/Angela Guan
- Angela Guan Match Analysis (1:35)
- Four Keys to Return Tricky Serves (1:36)
New from Pingispågarna
- Multiball exercise to Improve Timing (3:08)
- How to Do Multiball (3:53)
New from Ti Long
- How to return 3 types of serve (Forehand Pendulum, Tomahawk & Backhand) (13:16)
- the French and the Germans challenged to return the service technique of Ti Long (4:39)
How to Return Any Table Tennis Serve
Here’s the article by Tom Lodziak.
Tactical Analysis | Ma Long vs Fan Zhendong | How Ma Long Destroyed Fan Zhendong
Here’s the video (6:38)
Nutrition Recommendations for Table Tennis Players—A Narrative Review
Here’s the journal article from MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute).
My World Hopes Experience
Here’s the article by Kef Noorani
19 State Championship Events Awarded to USATT Clubs
Here’s the USATT news item.
New from Steve Hopkins/Butterfly
- First Round Action at Singapore Smash
- ITTF World Rankings – With an Eye Towards 2024 Teams
- Boston Bruins’ 4th Annual Pucks and Paddles Raises $150,000
- TTBL: Surging Ochsenhausen Takes Second Position
- WAB CLUB FEATURE: Calgary United Sports Table Tennis Association
- WAB CLUB FEATURE: Central Florida Table Tennis
New from the ITTF
- Ander Cepas, Spanish Hero at the Costa Brava Spanish Para Open
- Hopes Squad Kicks off Training Camp in Singapore, Joining the Excitement of Singapore Smash. Three USA players are taking part – Kef Noorani, Tashiya Piyadasa, and Irene Yeoh.
- Celebrating International Women's Day: Striving for Gender Equality Every Day in Table Tennis
- High Class Entry for Costa Brava Para Open, All Roads Lead to Plaja d’Aro
- Singapore Smash 2023 Gears Up to be a Smashing Hit
Ovtcharov Plays Outstanding Table Tennis for 2 Minutes Straight
Here’s the video (2:12) from Taco Backhand.
Born to Play Table Tennis
Here’s where you can buy the shirt!
Father and Son’s 12-hour Table Tennis Marathon
Here’s the article from Table Tennis England.
Kremer Wins O's '23 Ping-Pong Title: “It means everything.”
Here’s the article on Dean Kremer winning the Baltimore Orioles ping-pong championships! Here’s my blog about my exhibition for the Orioles in their clubhouse ten years ago – maybe it’s time for another visit!
Blondie on March 12, 2023
“Best Stunt Work and Special Effects.”
Cat Toilet Paper Pong
Here’s the video (14 sec)!
Ping Pong Death Match with Aliens
Here’s the video (47 sec) from Steve Worthington!
Pool Level: 9000
Here’s the video (8:03) from Pongfinity, where they combine pool and ping-pong! (They should just call it pool-pong.)
***
Send us your own coaching news!
