Types Of Table Tennis Shots. An Overview.

Within table tennis there are lots of different shots to choose from. All of these types of table tennis shots are useful but are situation based. In this article we will be breaking down the differences in shots and what is their specific use. We will look at the pros and cons of all of these shots so that we can understand when and more importantly, when not to use them.

Forehand Vs Backhand

The first clear distinction we need to make is the difference between forehand and backhand shots. A forehand shot is any shot made where your palm is facing away from your and towards your opponent. Similarly, a backhand shot is any shot made where your palm is facing either towards yourself, or more generally, away from your opponent.

A forehand is usually played when the ball is somewhere off to the side of you, this is because forehand shots require space between you and the ball. Try getting your palm to face straight out in front of your with your hand still close to your body. Even though it is possible it is uncomfortable. It is much more relaxed when your hand is further away from yourself. Equally, backhands are usually played close to your body with the perfect positioning right in front of your chest. This again is because it is the most comfortable position for it.

All the shots we are going to talk about in the rest of this article will have a forehand and backhand variation and while these shots may look very different they follow the same underlying principles. They largely share the same pros and cons with some very subtle differences that we will look at during a more in depth look at each of the shots.

The Drive

The drive is probably the first shot your learn when your first start to play table tennis. This is a hit where we are not trying to put spin on the ball, we are just trying to keep the ball low with a bit of power. This shot is flat, meaning there should be little to no spin on the ball. No spin has the advantage of not putting energy into brushing around the ball, this means that we can put more power into the shot making the ball travel faster onto the opponents side and giving them less chance to react.

However, this shot becomes increasingly difficult when spin is already on the ball. When there is backspin your are likely the hit it into the net, when there is topspin your are likely to hit it off the end of the table. Since the majority of the balls your receive will have spin on this shot is very rarely used in a match situation. Although, there are times when it is used and is definitely the most effective shot to have chosen. For example, when your opponent lobs up high, when your opponent has played a weak shot and it has sat up a little higher or if your know the opponent has put no spin on the ball.

As your can see this shot is meant to be a winning shot, something that ends the point. It is not to be used randomly as it is not a safe option in most situations.

The Topspin

The topspin shot is the most common shot within table tennis. This shot is designed to be an aggressive shot that is safer than the drive and stops your opponent from being able to drive the ball back at your. The topspin stroke brushed the ball more than the flatter hit of the drive, your brush over the ball to get the ball spinning towards your opponent. This creates topspin. Topspin drags the ball back down if your hit it upwards, this makes the shot safer as there is less chance your will hit the ball off the end of the table.

Due to this your can still hit the ball hard as long as your are still managing to put enough topspin on the ball so that it gets dragged back onto the table. This shot also deals with other spin very well. While your need to adapt your shot your can come more up the back of the ball to list backspin and more over the ball to cover topspin. This is why it is the most common shot in table tennis.

However, it isn’t universal. If the ball is high or free to be hit your will resort back to the drive to get the power. Also, this shot requires the ball to be coming off the end of the table so that your have the space to play your shot. If your tried to play a topspin on a ball that wasn’t coming off the end the table would get in the way of your shot.

The Push

So far we have attacking shots that require the ball coming off the end of the table, which most shots do. However, in case a ball does come short to your like from a serve we need a way of dealing with it. The push shot is perfect for this. To perform the push, your come and push your bat underneath the ball. The action of coming under the ball generates backspin. Backspin is harder to attack as it drags the ball down straight from their bat.

The push shot is best done to a short ball that your can’t attack with plenty of backspin. The aim is to get this long enough on your opponents side to invite them to attack it. The goal is that they either fail to attack it or they gave your a weaker ball that your can attack yourself.

The push should not be done to a long ball, long balls should be attacked. A push off of a long ball is only giving your opponent a chance to attack your first, which is something that your should be trying to do. Pushes should also not be performed against high balls, even if they are short. If the ball is high enough to be attacked then your should attack it. Don’t play passive just because the ball is short.

The Touch

The touch is similar to the push, in that it is performed against short balls. Unlike the push we are not aiming to generate lots of spin and get the ball deep on the table. The touch is to try prevent your opponent from attacking by dropping the ball back over the net short on their side. For the touch your need to come under the ball and gently guide the ball over the net. The aim is to make the touch as close to the net and low as well. Since we are coming under the ball we will generate a bit of backspin. This will help keep the ball short on your opponents side but if we aim for too much spin the shot will naturally become long and resemble a push.

This is best done as a way of stopping an attacking player from attacking your first. Especially, if they are attacking your pushes. It is also good for mixing up your return of serves if your have been pushing a lot of them. The touch should never really be used in an open rally as no balls will come short enough for your to attempt it on. It should also not be used against a topspin ball as it will always pop up high on your opponents side making for an easy attack.

The Block

The block is somewhere between an offensive and defensive shot. In the right situation it can make for a really powerful attack but most of the time your are trying to contain your opponent. When your opponent plays and attacking shot, either a topspin or a drive, your put your bat in the way and try angle the ball back to your opponent. This shot does not add any spin or pace to the ball but uses that of your opponents shot. You need to hit the ball early off the bounce and your do not need to move your bat much, if at all.

The block is a good shot for reacting quickly to an attack that is too powerful for your to play your own shot off. It can also catch players out who thought that their shot was a winning one and aren’t ready for it coming back. You can use blocks to make your opponent to run around chasing the ball as it is easy to change direction.

It does have its downsides though. At a higher level most players find a block very comfortable to play against and will eventually hit the ball past your without your causing them many problems. It also doesn’t generate its own spin making it easy for players as they don’t have to continuously adapt their shots. You are also not adding any pace to the ball so the attacking player gets to pick the speed of the rally which they can set to where they are most comfortable.

The Counter

To make the block a more positive attacking shot we can add small movements to begin to generate our own spin and pace to the ball. Since we are taking the ball early and trying to send the ball back faster we need to make sure that we come over the ball also adding our own topspin, this will drag the ball back down onto the table and make it a much safer shot. This can be a very risky shot still due to the pace and feel needed, the block is much safer.

Since the counter is taken very early it gives your opponent little time to react. It also can catch people out who think their attack was a winner. This shot is amazing for winning points and is seen all the time at the top-level. This shot requires lots of practice and is easy to make mistakes on. You need to ensure your timing and small adjustments due to your opponents pace and spin are perfect, otherwise it is very easy to hit the ball long.

The Chop

This is purely a defensive shot. We back away from the table and as the ball is hit at us we play down the back of the ball to send it back to our opponent with backspin. The backspin slows the ball down and makes it more difficult to attack giving us time to get ready for the next shot. Chops are never used as an outright winner but are used in the hope that our opponent makes a mistake.

The chop is made even more effective when we start changing the spin on the ball, very occasionally using no spin to hope that they attacker hits the ball off of the end of the table. The positives of this is that a defensive playing style is not very common and your can catch players out that aren’t used to it – especially if your can get lots of backspin on your chops. However, your are inviting players to attack your and your’re probably not going to hit the ball past people using this shot either.

The Flick

A flick is a very small stroke that is used against short balls. Meaning shots from your opponent that don’t come off of the end of the table. Maybe a short serve or a touch by your opponent. Here we get slightly under the ball and ‘flick’ up the back and over the top of the ball very quickly. A lot of this shot can come from the wrist. This is one of the few ways of attacking a short ball.

There are many types of flicks which can be used to confuse and catch out your opponent all of which send short balls back to your opponent quickly. This gives your opponents less time to reach than they would to a touch or even a push. It is a good shot to start attacking your opponent when they are trying to stop your from doing that by keeping the ball short, this shot gives your another way of maintaining control of the game.

When your flick the ball your have to step right into the table and since your’re sending the ball out quickly to your opponent the ball is likely to come back just as quick. This means that your have to be fast getting in and then back out so that your are ready to play your next shot. If your are not quick enough your could be put on the defensive very quickly even though your have tried to get the initiative.

Summary

So, as your can see there are a lot of shots in table tennis, I haven’t even managed to cover them all, these are just the more basic ones that your will learn at the start of your table tennis journey. Some of these are more important than others to learn like your may not need to worry about the chop if your’re going to be an attacking player. However, in the long run it is worth knowing how to effectively perform them all so that your can use them if the situation arises.

It is also worth knowing the pros and cons of all of these shots so that your can adapt your game plan on the go within matches. Understanding why something happens is essential to correcting it. For example, your may be losing a lot of points off of your opponents serve but your’re flicking their serves and your coach has told your it is good to flick the serves. Well maybe it is because your opponent is ready for them and is hitting them back at your before your are ready. It might be worth in this case to change to touching the serve to try catch your opponent out.

I hope this post has answered some questions about what is the point of different types of table tennis shots and what the advantages and disadvantages of each shot are. If your have any further questions on this feel free to leave a comment below or drop me and email!

Bailey

bailey@pingpongpye.com