"I had trouble with his serve" is likely the most common reason given for losing a competitive match. There's a good reason for this - receive is the only time when the opponent can throw just about any spin at you, along with varied serving motions, placements, depths, and speeds. I know when I don't play for a time, returning serves is the most difficult thing to get back.

So, when you go into a match, when the opponent is serving, your first priority should be to get used to his serves. At the start, that usually means focusing on pure control. Just get it back at first, playing it mostly safe but with good placement, without worrying too much about being aggressive. If the opponent has tricky serves, then you may have to play much of the match that way.

It's only when you feel comfortable against the opponent's serves that you should begin to up your receive game. If you are playing someone you are used to, it might be from the very start. If the opponent has very good serves and perhaps not an overwhelming attack, you might play safe the entire time. But once you do get used to an opponent's serves, then it's time to consider turning your receive into a weapon where you use it to control the point, whether it be by playing aggressive with loops and flips, or controlling play by varying short and long pushes.

But only after you are comfortable with the opponent's serve! If that never happens, then you need to find someone with good serves like the ones that gave you trouble, and practice against them.

The stronger the player, the more predictable their attacking shots tend to be. Why? Because that’s what makes them consistent. They may be able to make a dozen strong loops in a row, but they often all come out about the same.

So, guess what? All you have to do is make one good block. Just one. Then remember the feel and contact of that one. And repeat. This is true of most shots, but even more true for blocking.

Two tips here. First, keep the racket low when blocking  or you’ll tend to loft the ball off. Second, the sound of your block should be the same each time. But that sound should also match the “feel” of the shot – if you get one, you get the other.

Once you’ve made that one good block, often all you have to do the rest of the way is that same block, over and over. The main adjustment is moving to the ball, i.e., footwork, especially side to side. (You also have to move or reach in for shorter loops.) If your opponent is making lots of strong loops, you can’t get to all of them. But once you make that one good block, then you should be able to block most of them.  

We’ve all had those matches where the opponent was just quicker, and we felt rushed in every rally. So, what can you do in such a match? Here are some tips.

1. Observe opponent’s stroke so you can see as early as possible where his shot is going.
2. Shorten your strokes.
3. Take half a step back. That’s not so far that you’ve given up the table, but it gives you that extra split second needed to react.
4. Cover the middle with the backhand.
5. Play more backhand if you are at the table, more forehand if you are off the table.
6. Put the ball in the middle of the table to cut off extreme angles.
7. Keep the ball deep.
8. Slow play down with soft, deep topspins (depth is again key).
9. Play more backspin.
10. Serve and receive long.
11. Use opponent’s own speed against him by simply rebounding his shots back with your racket – be a backboard.  

Stand up and walk across the room. Now look down at your knees and feet. They point forward, right? That’s how the human body evolved for walking. Alas, this doesn’t work for table tennis. If you stand with your knees and feet pointing forward, you’ll struggle to rotate the body properly on both forehand and backhand shots. This is especially true on forehand shots, where the body rotates more to the side. (It’s also true on backhand loops, especially at higher levels.)

Instead, point both the feet and knees slightly out to the side. This gives a much more natural swing. Not doing this is one of the biggest problems for new players – fortunately, most coaches (not all) correct it quickly.

But the forehand isn’t a static shot, and neither are your feet and knees. The knees especially rotate with your forehand shots. Watch how top players do this. The best way of looking at it is that the whole body needs to move together. But to do so, you need to make sure the feet and knees start out properly. And the rest will likely come naturally.

Nearly all players reflexively set up to cover against the crosscourt shot. They are ready for down the line shots as well, but players tend to play more crosscourt, and crosscourt gives opponents a bigger angle you have to guard against. And so players guard that side more.

You could just go down the line. It’s slightly riskier since there’s less table, and it gives your opponent a potential wide crosscourt angle. So it can be a gamble if you aren’t careful. But there’s a simple way to make it pay off almost every time.

Since opponents are already inclined to cover against the crosscourt shot, give it to them – or at least fake it. Set up for that shot, even aim your racket that way. You don’t have to wait and see if the opponent is moving to cover against that– he is. If you wait to verify, it’s too late. Instead, at the instant you expect him to be moving to cover against your crosscourt shot, that’s when you change directions and go the other way. Then watch your opponent lunge and flail at your shot!

You can do this with both forehand and backhand. There’s a simple way to learn how to do these shots, where you set up one way, and then, at the last second go the other way. It’s an ancient secret, but I’ll give it to you – practice! If you practice it in drills or in practice matches, it’ll be there for you in the big matches.