I recently held a training camp in Cambridge on the topic of service. I was fortunate to have three very strong servers to help me deliver the training camp – Ferenc Horvath, Adam Fuzes and Craig Bryant.  As well as teaching service techniques and tactics, we also talked about the mental side of serving. This included developing a service routine and using visualisation before serving. We also had an interesting discussion on gamesmanship – how to psychologically unsettle your opponent. Or what I call “the dark arts of serving”. Below are some of the psychological tactics which players u ..read more

Table tennis players can spend silly amounts of money on table tennis equipment. I play with JOOLA Dynaryz AGR rubbers, which aren’t cheap. When I buy new rubbers, it will cost over £100. Ouch. Hello overdraft, nice to see you again! Since I spend more money than I should on table tennis rubbers, I really try to look after them. I want them to last as long as possible and retain their grippiness, so I can get lots of spin on my shots. Taking care of my table tennis bat doesn’t take much effort or cost much money. Here’s what I do (and you should do too). Clean with breath Table tennis rubbers ..read more

Photo courtesy of Pawel Meryn. I recently ran a coaching day on the topic of returning serves. I asked the players in attendance if they practised returning serves. One player raised his hand. The other nine players did not. Interesting, but not entirely surprising. This quick poll is fairly reflective of the amateur table tennis community as a whole. From my experience most players don’t practise returning serves. Maybe everyone is already very good at returning serves, so no extra practice is needed. Or maybe players are avoiding practising an essential – and very challenging – part of ..read more

What table tennis rubbers are most popular with amateur table tennis players? To answer this question, I conducted a survey, asking players what rubbers they currently use for their forehand and backhand.  I sent the survey to subscribers of my mailing list and YouTube channel, various table tennis Facebook groups and users of the Table Tennis Daily forum. In total, I received 594 responses from players from 70 different countries. The highest number of responses was from the UK (38%), USA (12%), Germany (7%), Australia (4%) and India (3%). Overall, 68% of responses were from players in ..read more

I recently posted a video on YouTube of me playing a match against Jarek Chrzanowski. Jarek likes to go back from the table and will return all my hard attacks with mid-height lobs. He’s like a brick wall and I find it really hard to get through him. In the video, I asked viewers to give me some suggestions of tactics I should try when I next play Jarek. And the response was fantastic. I got over 100 responses (and increasing). Some were short tips. Others were very detailed. But almost all responses were constructive. When I put out a video like this, I’m always a little nervous about what o ..read more

Have you ever tried developing a new shot (e.g. a backhand flick), but found it difficult to actually use it in a competitive match? You can play the shot easily in training drills – and even in a practice match – but when it comes to a league or tournament match, you dare not use it.  A player I coach, Brian, has been developing his forehand loop. It’s still a work in progress but he’s actually quite consistent with the shot. But in a recent match against a chopper, he had many opportunities to use his forehand loop, but something prevented him from playing the shot. Instead he kept pus ..read more

A player I coach, Paul, had a frustrating experience in his league matches last week. Paul is in his early 60s and  is very competitive – maybe a little too competitive – and this can often result in him rushing his shots, playing too aggressively and making too many errors. He is so eager to win, he often defeats himself. And this is what happened last week. He arrived at his league match, determined to play a slightly more controlled game. And he started well, winning the first game of the evening 11-5. But it all went downhill from there. In the second game, he lost the first three po ..read more

Modern table tennis is all about attack. Topspin, flick, smash. Attack this. Attack that. Don’t push! Attack, attack attack. When players train, they almost always focus on their attacking shots. A pushing drill? Nah, that’s for wimps. A blocking drill? Pfft, waste of time. Is defence important any more? Is there any benefit in practising our pushes, blocks, chops and lobs? Well, yes, I believe there is a huge benefit. Let me explain why… The decline of the defender? Back in the 1920s-1950s, there were a lot more defensive players. Defensive chops were just as important as attacking drives. W ..read more

We all know the magic ‘p’ word needed to improve at table tennis. PRACTISE. The players who really improve, practise a lot. But there is another ‘p’ word, which is also vital to improvement. PERSEVERANCE. Having the drive to keep trying, even if something is difficult and you are not initially achieving success. I want to tell you about a player I coach, who is the embodiment of perseverance. Her name is Uma. I first met Uma in April 2019. She booked a coaching session with me and explained she was a beginner. Normally when an adult player claims to be a beginner, she or he usually has some e ..read more

I am delighted to announce that my new online academy – Tom’s TT Academy – is now live! In Tom’s TT Academy you will get access to exclusive coaching content, including the following… Training drill library – There is a mixture of drills focusing on different aspects of table tennis. Each drill includes and video demonstration with key coaching points. In-depth courses – 30-60 min courses, filmed from my real group coaching sessions Coaching clinic – get feedback from Tom on anything you need help with in your table tennis game Member groups – Connect with other members, share your own tips ..read more