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tips on looping underspin (9)

 tips on looping underspin
by db 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by SG 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by NickČ 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by rolly 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by VictorK 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by db 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by NickČ 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by bes 19 years ago
Re: tips on looping underspin
by bes 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by db 19 years ago
 Re: tips on looping underspin
by pkg 14 years ago


The following message (subject: Re: tips on looping underspin) was posted by bes, on 12/23/2005 8:54:40 PM:
Hopefully I won't muddy up the water too much...

Looping backspin is fairly easy to learn (not master, just learn) with the help of a coach. Pefecting it will take lots of practice, but getting the basic stroke down isn't bad.

If you don't have access to a coach, get a player who can hit long backspinning serves to help you - preferably one who can hit consistent and consistently spinny ones. Bribe him/her with money, beer, food, or whatever. Just have them serve heavy backspin serves that go past the end of the table after the first bounce. Once you can loop these, you can make adjustments for more spin or less... I suggest you work on the forehand only until you reach some semblance of consistency and comfort.

Things I don't recommend:

1) Opening the blade, at least not much. I prefer to loop with the blade pretty close to parallel with the looping arm swing.

2) Being lazy, half hearted, or non-committal. This is an aggressive stroke.

3) Changing the blade angle (relative to the stroke direction) during the stroke. I do not recomment fooling with opening or closing the blade during the stroke, or from stroke to stroke - especially when learning.

Things I do recommend:

1) Bend your knees (already mentioned)

2) Start your stroke down low - drop the blade down to knee height. Don't be shy, it is impossible (or nearly so) to generate too much blade speed.

3) The stroke is a whole-body affair. It starts from your toes, through your legs, hips, torso, chest, arm, and forearm. Some even add wrist - don't try this yet. Don't try just "arm-ing" it. Unless you are very strong, with very quick hands and arms, it won't work. In any case, it is bad form...

4) Concentrate on hitting the ball towards the tip end of the blade - dynamics dictate that the tip will move faster than the middle or handle. This is most important when adding wrist, but is a good habit in any case.

5) A lot of racket speed can be generated by hinging the forearm. You still use your whole body, but concentrate on snapping the fore-arm up into a salute. Watch some videos or find pictures of good players. When looping backspin, they mostly finish high - with the blade ear height of better.

Adjustments are critical, but fairly simple. You can make the looping motion at any angle from 0 degrees (straight over the top of the table) to 90 degrees (straight up). The more blade speed generated, the less angle needed.

You need to generate enough blade speed to where your blade is travelling faster than the rotating speed of the surface of the ball - this allows you to lift the ball, or, if you prefer, keeps the ball from jumping down.

Assuming you can generate adequate blade speed, you'll simply need to adjust the stroke angle to the amount of underspin.

So, for example, to lift heavy underspin try a 60 to 75 (or more) degree stroke.

For medium underspin, try 45 to 60 degrees...

For light underspin, 30 to 45 degrees might work...

These numbers are just examples - your milage may (will) vary. With experience, you can adjust the stroke speed, stroke angle, and blade angle to accomplish different strokes, i.e. arching spinny loops, low power loops, or anythng in between.

Oh, the speed of the loops is controlled by torso rotation - the looping stroke as described above, but with your shoulder/arm/blade rotating foreward around your spine. The lift is built in (looping stroke), power comes from body and shoulder rotation (looking down on a RH plaher, the upper body will rotate clockwise).

Good luck, and have fun with it!

bes


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