Off to Veep
I'm off to the Veep taping this morning, leaving at 5:15 AM. I'll be there all day (and perhaps partially into the night) today and tomorrow. I'll say hello to Julia Dreyfus for you! I'll ask if I'm allowed to post anything about the taping, but I'm probably going to be sworn to secrecy. Or perhaps I'll come up with some wild, imaginary story about it and see if anyone believes me. (Julia, the Vice President, is hijacked by lizard-like ping-pong playing alien cyborgs! I play the lizard-like ping-pong playing alien cyborg leader!)
Don't Think About Form When Playing Matches
Here's a Guest Posting by Des Preston that I found interesting - and I agree with it. It comes at a timely time since (as noted above) I'm leaving at 6AM for the Veep posting.
I love the tips you give to your readers and I'd like to share one that I often remind myself of. A lot of intermediate-advanced players 1800+ spend too much time thinking of their own technique/form during matches. At the 1800+ level, unless you are purposely trying to fit a certain shot into your game, constantly reminding yourself of your own technique can be a hindrance.
To help me pay more attention to my opponent and less time watching myself I switch the wording around in my head. If I miss a shot or make a weak return, instead of saying, "Open your paddle more" or, "C'mon swing like this!", I think to myself, "Ok his serve has more backspin on it than I thought," or "His blocks are mostly dead." This way I'm thinking more about their shots, and letting my own subconscious figure out how to handle it.
At a lower level this may be difficult, but once a player has all the shots they need in their arsenal, this might be a better way to think. It's less taxing on the player's mindset as well. I feel like I'm not blaming myself, I'm just pointing out that the other player did something I wasn't expecting.