The high-toss serve used to be one of the most popular serves at high-level table tennis, and pretty common at the intermediate level as well. There are still plenty of players who use it, but it is not as common as before. Why is this? First, you should understand what the serve is, and its advantages and disadvantages.

A high-toss serve is just that - a serve where you toss the ball high into the air, often ten to fifteen feet up. They are the most spectacular of serves. They are also the hardest to control. If you want to learn a high-toss serve, watch how the top players do it, and practice a LOT. Here's a video on the high-toss serve (2:22), featuring Japanese star Jun Mizutani.

Most players below the advanced levels can't really control a high-toss serve, and so the serve tends to be easy to attack once you get used to it. But because the serve is "different" many players have trouble with them, even if they aren't done very well. Most high-toss serves are done with a forehand pendulum serve. (For a righty, this means the racket is tip-down, and moves from right to left. For a reverse pendulum serve, the racket would move left to right.)

Advantages of a High Toss Serve

1. A higher toss means the ball is traveling faster at contact, which allows you to put more spin on the ball.
2. The higher toss throws off the timing of opponents.

Disadvantages

1. Less control of depth, making it more difficult to serve short.
2. Less control of height, leading to higher serves that are easier to attack.
3. Reverse pendulum serves are difficult to do with a high toss.  
4. Faster-moving ball makes it harder to do as much deceptive motion as the ball passes by at contact.

From the advantages, you see that you can get more spin on the ball. This is especially effective when going for an extremely heavy backspin serve, which opponents will often put in the net since they aren't used to such heavy backspin - but only if you perfect the serve. It's not easy learning to throw the ball up way in the air and just graze it as it comes down! But if you learn to do so, the serve can be highly effective - especially if you also learn to vary the spin, with varying degrees of backspin, sidespin, and corkscrewspin, as well as no-spin serves that look like backspin. (Not sure what corkscrewspin is, or have other questions on spin? See my article "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Spin - But Were Afraid to Ask.")

However, as you can see there are also disadvantages, and they outnumber the advantages 4-2. This doesn't mean you shouldn't high-toss; it means you have a bit more practice to do. With practice, you can negate the first three disadvantages as you learn to control the depth and height, and perhaps learn to do a reverse pendulum serve with a high toss. (Some players simply use a lower toss for the reverse pendulum serve, and with a high toss only do normal pendulum serves. Not sure what a reverse pendulum serve is? Here's a short article on it, which includes a link to a short video which shows both a regular and reverse pendulum serve.)

The key problem with a high-toss serve is the speed at which the ball falls at contact, which is both the strength and weakness of the serve. While it does allow more spin, the faster-moving ball means you have less time for deceptive motion as the ball goes by, as well as a loss of control. Most players find they get more deception and control with a shorter toss, which is why most serves toss the ball perhaps head high. However, the high-toss serve is still a great weapon to have, either as a front-line serve used over and over, or as a variation to throw an opponent off, which is how I use it. Many players will toss the ball head high over and over, and then, perhaps several times a game, using the same motion, they'll suddenly go for a high-toss, which often leads to a completely befuddled opponent who simply isn't ready for the extra spin (especially backspin) of a properly executed high-toss serve.

Another advantage of the high-toss serve is that since fewer players are using it than before, players are less used to it, and so have more trouble with them. So if you are looking for an extra weapon for your serving arsenal, get high with the high-toss serve.

Do you do the Six P's? Proper Practice Progression Prevents Poor Play. (Or, as I sometimes put it, "...Pathetic Play.") I've actually heard this as the Five P's, but I've added "Progression." Proper practice progression means starting with the basics and working your way up to more advanced technique for all aspects of your game. It also means practicing these shots in context, i.e. game situations. Think of it this way, using the forehand as an example.

• Step One is develop the forehand, usually with help from a coach or by watching top players, and then by hitting forehand to forehand with someone, or doing multiball with a coach.
• Step Two is learning to move and hit the forehand, so you do footwork drills, such as 1-1 footwork, where your partner puts the ball alternately to your wide forehand and the middle of the table, and you move side to side hitting all forehands. You can also do this alternating hitting forehands from the middle and backhand side of the table.
• Step Three is learning to hit random forehands. Now your partner puts the ball randomly all over your forehand (or backhand) court, and you have to hit all forehands.
• Step Four is learning to play forehands in a game situation. For example, you serve topspin to your partner's forehand, he strokes it back to your forehand, and you smash or hit the forehand aggressively. Or serve into your partner's backhand, and play your forehand down the line from your forehand side to his backhand. Or the same thing, but your forehand from your backhand side to your partner's backhand side.
• Step Five is learning to do the shot at a higher level. For example, you serve topspin to your partner's backhand, he returns to your backhand, and you forehand smash. Or, if you can loop backspin, you can do a drill where you serve backspin, your partner pushes, you loop, your partner blocks, and you smash the forehand. (At the more advanced levels, you might loop both the backspin and the block.)

You can do similar practice to develop any stroke as well as footwork. (You should develop strokes and footwork together.) You can also use this principle for developing serves, starting with simple spins, then heavy spins, then heavy and varied spins, then heavy and varied spins with the same motion, then heavy and varied spins from the same motion to all parts of the table, both in direction and depth, and low to the net. When the serve is ready, you practice it with a partner, where you play out the point (or play games), and learn to connect your serve with follow-up attacks. Do enough of this type of practice, and you will Prevent Poor Play. 

How does one play an opponent with a big backhand? There are several versions of this type of player. Some have big backhand smashes and seem to be able to smash anything from that side. Others don't hit quite so hard but keep coming at you with it. Others have big backhand loops. In each case you are faced with an opponent whose backhand is stronger than yours, and is a constant threat to win the point. You have several options, and you can (and should) use more than one of them.

1) Depth

Compared to the forehand, the backhand is often a cramped shot because the body is in the way. And so the enemy of the backhand is depth. If you keep the ball deep on the table, few players can attack that ball as strongly as they can off a short ball. This is the most common reason for an opponent with a big backhand - balls that aren't going deep, thereby giving the opponent opportunities for big backhands. (Note that depth is the first item listed, but keeping the ball low isn't even listed as one of your options. That's because it's assumed that you are trying to keep the ball low. The exception - deep, arcing loops with heavy topspin are effective against most big backhands despite being high.) 

2) Play the Forehand

The most obvious thing is to simply play the forehand side. The problem here is that even with a big backhand player, the forehand might be pretty powerful as well. So figure out early what shots the opponent has trouble with on the forehand, and play those shots there. Often the forehand side isn't as quick as the backhand, and so quick, angle shots there are effective.

3) Play the Forehand, Come Back to the Backhand

Many players have strong backhands when they are in position. So draw them out of their backhand pocket by going to the forehand first, and then coming back to the backhand. (Ironically, this is also an excellent way to play a player with a big forehand - draw them out to their forehand side, then make them play backhands.) 

4) Attack First

If you have good serve and receive, you can most often get the first attack. There's nothing like a good first attack (again, deep on the table) for stopping any type of attack by the opponent.

5) Attack the Middle

Make the opponent move side to side to hit those backhands by playing both wide to the backhand and to the middle. (The middle is the mid-point between forehand and backhand, roughly where the playing elbow is.) This forces the opponent not only to move, but to decide between forehand and backhand. Players with big backhands often favor the backhand even on shots that go somewhat out to the forehand side, and so their "middle" might be toward their forehand side. Find that spot and go for it. The more table the opponent tries to cover with the backhand, the more you can make him move.

6) Consistency

As long as you keep the ball deep on the table, and perhaps move it around some (wide backhand, middle, wide forehand), a consistent backhand can often beat a more powerful one. Don't try to be quicker or more powerful than the opponent with a big backhand; out-steady him while keeping the ball deep and making him move.

7) Changing Spins

Few players have powerful backhands against both backspin and topspin. Find the spin they have the most trouble with, and place it deep on the table. Or go back and forth between deep, spinny loops and deep, heavy pushes to force him to adjust to both.

And finally, there's an eighth option.

8) Develop your own big backhand

Most coaches stress that you should place most shots to one of three spots: the wide backhand, the wide forehand, and the middle. The middle is roughly the opponent's playing elbow, the transition point between forehand and backhand. While most players can cover the wide corners reasonably well (unless drawn out of position first), the middle is often far more difficult to cover, even if in position. It also draws the player out of position, often leaving one of the corners open. While it often takes two shots to the corners to be effective (the first shot is mostly to get the player out of position), shots to the middle are effective on the first shot, and often leave the player open to all three spots on the next shot.

So how does a player cover these middle shots, and recover for the next shot?

How you cover the middle depends on your playing style, but there is a general guideline for most players: If you are rushed or close to the table, favor your backhand. If you have time or are off the table, favor your forehand. (This is especially true if you have a good forehand loop.) But remember these are guidelines. For example, if you have a much stronger backhand, use that whenever possible to cover the middle, and then try to dominate the rest of the rally with your backhand. If you have a much stronger forehand, then perhaps play a step off the table so you aren't rushed, and use that to cover the middle, and then try to dominate the rest of the rally with your forehand.  

But it's not enough to just cover the middle; you have to be ready for the next shot. There are two possibilities: recovering after a backhand, and recovering after a forehand.

If you play a backhand from the middle, then you leave your wide backhand open. If you are relatively close to the table, then you have little time to recover. So the focus here is to follow up by rapidly getting back into position to cover that wide backhand. If you have a strong backhand, then you can take advantage of this situation by often getting two strong backhands in - the first from the middle, and by playing it wide to the opponent's backhand, you likely get a crosscourt return to your backhand, and so get to play a second strong backhand. (In fact, you can keep doing this, locking up the opponent in a backhand-to-backhand duel, if your backhand is stronger. But don't just go to the backhand - also attack the middle, and when you see an opening, or if the opponent is weak on that side, the wide forehand.)

But here's the problem - after hitting a backhand from the middle, if you rush too quickly to cover against a shot to the wide backhand, you might inadvertently leave the forehand side open, and a smart player will follow his shot to your backhand with an attack or quick shot there So your best response after your backhand from the middle is to move back to cover for the backhand, but come to a stop before the opponent hits his next shot. It's better to be slightly out of position but in a ready stance as the opponent hits his next shot than moving into position as he does so.

If you go to your opponent's middle, and he covers with a backhand, then watch to see how he recovers. Most often he'll be open on the next shot on one of the wide corners, and it is your job to see if he leaves the wide backhand open, or covers it so quickly he leaves the wide forehand open. If not sure, there's a simple solution - go to the middle again!

If you play a forehand from the middle, then you leave the wide forehand open. But if you are at least a step or two off the table, you have time to cover for it. In fact, if you are a good forehand player with good footwork, then you very much want to play forehands from the middle of the table, since you really get two for the price of one since you will likely get a second forehand, and you likely can end the point with one of these forehands.

But this often depends on the strength and (more importantly) the depth of your first forehand from the middle. If it is weak or lands short, then it is easy for your opponent to attack aggressively, and in this case your wide forehand is often open. But just as with the backhand, if you try to cover that side too quickly, you'll leave the wide backhand open. So again, come to a stop and get into a ready position before the opponent hits the ball.

If you go to your opponent's middle, and he covers with a forehand, then watch to see how he recovers. Most often he'll be open on the next shot on one of the wide corners, and it is your job to see if he leaves the wide forehand open, or covers it so quickly he leaves the wide backhand open. If not sure, just as before there's a simple solution - go to the middle again! But the danger here is you may let a forehand-dominant player play his forehand over and over from the middle, which is almost always a mistake. If the opponent is looking to play a second forehand from the middle, then go after the corners.

It's a cat and mouse game, where each player is trying to get the initiative, either by attacking the middle or attacking from the middle. If one player can draw the opponent out of position by going to the middle, and then attack an open wide corner, then he's won this cat and mouse game. If the other player makes a strong shot from the middle and follows it with another, then he has won. 

I am often left in open-mouthed astonishment when watching matches as players will return short backspin serves the same way, with simple long pushes to the opponent's backhand, over and Over and OVER!!! There is little attempt to vary these returns or do much of anything to mess up the server. And yet they seem surprised that the server is ready for these simple pushes, usually with a big third-ball loop attack. If the opponent serves and pushes, then perhaps pushing the serve back long over and over will work. But that's mostly at the lower levels. If you want to reach the higher levels, you have to do a bit more with the receive.  

If the serve is long, it's a bit more simple - just loop the serve, forehand or backhand. If you don't loop, at least play aggressive, since a passive return of a deep serve is easy for the server to attack, since he has more time then off a short serve. (Aggressive usually means a topspin return, i.e. a drive or loop, but it can also be an aggressive push.) The same is true of a short sidespin or topspin serve (which is somewhat rare at the lower levels) - you should flip it.

However, against a short backspin serve, you can't loop, and flips are a little trickier. But you have more options to mess up the server, if you only use them. So what should you do against a short backspin serve? There are three main possibilities, but with countless variations. 

1. Push long. Do this to the wide backhand or wide forehand, and sometimes at the opponent's middle (the playing elbow) against a two-winged attacker, so he has to decide between forehand and backhand, and move to do so. Push quick, heavy, low, deep, and wide, with disguised placement. If you do some of this well, but some poorly, your push will be poor; it's better to do all six decently. (Here's an article on this.) Experiment with pushing with sidespin, especially a sidespin that breaks away from the opponent on his wide backhand side. A sudden quick push to an opponent's wide forehand is often a free winner since they get this so rarely.
2. Push short. This stops the opponent from looping. But don't just push short; sometimes aim to push short one way, and go the other. Top players finesse their pushes so sometimes they drop them short at the point of the net closest to their contact point, other times at angles to the forehand or backhand. Often the best move is to fake a short push to the opponent's stronger side against short balls, then go the other way.
3. Flip. This can be done forehand or backhand. These days more and more players attack short serves with a backhand banana flip, using it even against short serves to the forehand. Focus on consistency and control, and save the flip kills for serves that actually pop up at least slightly, or (at higher levels) where you really read the serve well. Learn to aim one way and go the other way at the last second.

Never forget that your purpose in returning a serve is to mess up your opponent. You don't do this by being predictable with passive returns; you do this with unpredictable and effective returns.