Tip of the week: Fundamental versus Creative Tactics (By Larry Hodges) Fundamental tactics are the standards used against specific playing styles. If you are playing a chopper, fundamental tactics include attacking the middle (roughly the elbow, the transition point between his forehand and backhand chops), moving him in and out, giving dead balls to a […]

Coaching Tip of the Week: Footwork: Wide Stance and Two-Step? (By Larry Hodges) The history of footwork in table tennis could take up a book by itself. If you watch videos of the best players in the world every 20 years or so, you can see the footwork techniques developing, though some of it is […]

Coaching tip of the week: Did He Really Force You Out of Position? (By Larry Hodges) Players are often caught out of position, leading to the opponent hitting an easy winner to an open part of the table as you lunge for the ball. But did he really force you out of position? For example, […]

Coaching tip of the week: Looping Slightly Long Balls (By Larry Hodges) When a student pushes against a slightly long serve (“half long”) or push, I almost always remind them that they should usually loop such balls. Inevitably, the player will respond, “The ball was too short, I couldn’t loop it!” But the ball was […]

Coaching tip of the week: Whenever You Miss, Shadow Stroke (By Larry Hodges) This is a bafflingly simple and short tip. I’m always amazed that when a player misses a shot, he expects it to fix itself. Instead, whenever you miss a shot, make a habit of shadow-practicing the shot as you should have done […]

Don’t Learn to Play Every Style – Learn to Adjust (By Larry Hodges) Many players believe that they need to learn to play every style. Well, according to my calculations, there are as many playing styles as there are players in the world. No, you don’t need to learn to play every style. It’s true […]

Coaching tip of the week: How to Develop a Nasty Forehand Flip (By Larry Hodges) A nice forehand flip is a valuable weapon, especially if you can also flip with the backhand (which is usually easer than a forehand flip). It means that you can attack any short serve, so opposing servers are in constant […]

Coaching Tip of the Week: Six Ways to Learn Tactics (By Larry Hodges) Constantly think about it. What works for you, and against what types players? What works for others against you, and how can you adjust to it? You should constantly experiment and learn from it. Study others. What do your opponents do against […]

Coaching Tip of the Week: What to Watch During a Point (By Larry Hodges) If you watched the movie Forrest Gump, you were told to “Never, ever take your eye off the ball.” And some really do this. But is this what you really want to do? Some find that watching the ball constantly helps […]