Serve and Attack
One of my junior students (age 10, about 1600) is a great rallier, but often just serves to put the ball in play. So now we’re focusing on third-ball attacking. He knows he’s supposed to do this, but to make it a habit, he has to do it in games. The problem is most of his games are either league or tournament matches – and he doesn’t want to lose those. So we’re arranging for him to play regular practice matches once a week where he just plays games, where he can work on new things such as this.

The problem with league matches is 1) they are rated, and players get protective about even league ratings, and 2) if you do poorly, you move down a division the following week. As I explained to him, 1) you shouldn’t take the league ratings seriously (or other ratings, for that matter), and 2) if he moves down a division one week, it’s actually an opportunity, as that means he can focus on beating these “weaker” players with his third-ball attacks.

I’m working with him on three types of third ball attacks:

Coaching Almost Non-Stop from 11:15 AM to 8:30 PM Takes Its Toll
Yeah, I did that this past Sunday, not easy at age 57, and now I’m paying the bill. On Monday I had 4.5 hours of coaching scheduled, but one kid came down sick and so I “only” did three hours – but toward the end my back was killing me. I had to “retire” any looping in rallies with students. On top of that, my right Achilles tendon was screaming, “Stop moving or I’ll throw a fit,” and throw a fit it did as I developed a subtle limp toward the end that wasn’t so subtle later that night.

Anyway, after a good night’s sleep, the back and Achille’s tendon are back to mostly just angry muttering. I only have two hours of coaching today and two tomorrow, and then I can rest them on Thurday and Friday. (I’m normally off those two days, but I’m subbing on Thursday, teaching a class, but that’s not as physical as private coaching. I’ll wear running shoes instead of table tennis shoes – I’m sure Mr. Achilles will approve.)

I remember back in my late teens and early and mid-twenties being able to practice hour after Hour after HOUR, with no side effects. Once, on a “day off,” I played 15 sets of tennis in one day (!) - and had no trouble going back to table tennis training the next day. Ah, the good old days. . . .

But doing those long hours on Sunday (and a growing number of hours on Saturdays and Mondays) allows me to go a bit easier the rest of the week, so I can get more writing and USATT work done. Some of the coaching – group sessions and multiball – aren’t as physically demanding.

Meanwhile, I’m off to see the dentist at noon today – we’ll see what other bad news I can have today! And then I can attack that growing todo list.

Tip of the Week
Everything You Wanted to Know About Down the Line.

Sunday Coaching
Sundays is my “big” coaching day, though to some of the full-time Chinese coaches, it would be just another day. Many of them coach 50 or more hours per week, while I’m only doing 24 this next week. (I’m such a slacker.) This Sunday I mostly coached from 11:15AM – 8:30 PM, with a rare 1.5 hour break in the middle where I’d normally teach the Beginning Junior Class – we had a snow day built into the schedule, but since there were no snow days, we were off yesterday. (Another ten-week session starts next Sunday.)

After doing private coaching from 11:15AM – 4:00PM, and that 1.5 hour break, I worked with the “Talent” program from 5:30-7:00PM, where I supervised shadow practice, serve practice, and then fed multiball for almost an hour. We did a lot of interactive multiball, where I fed the first ball (usually backspin), and the two players played out points. There are 22 kids in the program, ranging from about 7 to 12, all advanced for their age.

For the Adult Training Session (7:00-8:30PM), after the usual stroking and footwork drills, the night’s focus was on “Brick Wall Backhand Blocking.” One player would attack crosscourt from the backhand corner, hitting or looping, using either backhand or forehand (or alternating or switching back and forth as they wanted), while the other player had a simple goal: get everything back. I explained how you watch the opponent’s stroke to see where his shot is going and how hard, and so begin to react before he even hits the ball. Then just stick your racket in the way of the ball, and watch it go back! As I’ve often said, it’s a crime to get your racket on a hard-hit ball and not get it back – see my Tip, Returning Smashes: Reacting and Racket Angles.

More Table Tennis Tips
As noted in my blog yesterday, my new book, More Table Tennis Tips, is out! It’s 200 pages, $11.99, and covers the 150 Tips of the Week from 2014-2016, organized by topic, in logical progression. It’s the follow-up from "Table Tennis Tips," which covered the 150 Tips from 2011-2013. (Kindle version will come later.) By now so I’ll have money for dinner!!! (UPDATE on Saturday morning - kindle version is up!)

USATT Coaching Committee
On Monday I was appointed chair of the USATT Coaching Committee. (This will be my second tenure. I chaired the committee back in 1991-1995, and was on the committee 2010-2013.) This is a big honor, and will allow me to work directly on some of the things I promised to do when I ran for the USATT Board. (I’m also a bit more enthused about this position then I was with chairing the League Committee the last two years – that was important, but not as much my area of expertise or interest.) In particular, I said I wanted to set up a “USATT Coaching Academy.” Alas, many have noted that that makes it sound like an actual building or campus. While USATT doesn’t have the funding for that, I do have plans for the equivalent.

So what exactly are my plans? Well, my immediate reaction upon taking power was this. However, once I was through cackling, it was time to make plans. Here are some.

More Table Tennis Tips
Here it is! And it’s yours now, exactly 200 pages, for only $11.99! I’ve been hard at work (yes, many of those late nights) compiling it in logical fashion, editing, doing page layouts, the covers, inputting edits from the “Terrific Trio” of proofers (Mark Dekeyser, John Olsen, Dennis Taylor), even putting in a few graphics. I don’t yet have a copy myself. I proofed and okayed an online version, and am now feverishly awaiting a hard copy. (A kindle version will come later.) This is my eighth book on table tennis (and twelfth overall). Here’s the description from Amazon:

Here are 150 Tips to help your table tennis game, by Larry Hodges - a member of the U.S. Table Tennis Hall of Fame and a National Coach. They compile in logical progression three years' worth of Tips of the Week (2014-2016) from TableTennisCoaching.com. They cover all aspects of the game: Serve, Receive, the Strokes, Grip and Stance, Footwork, Tactics, How to Improve, Sports Psychology, Equipment, and Tournaments. (This is a sequel to "Table Tennis Tips," which covered the 150 Tips from 2011-2013.)

How to Get Backspin on a Reverse Pendulum Serve
Here’s the article and podcast (7:50) from Expert Table Tennis

A Guide for Parents to Find the Best Table Tennis Coaching For Their Child
Here’s the article from Coach Me Table Tennis.

USATT Teleconference, New Coaching Chair, and the Service Judges Proposal
The USATT Board had a teleconference on Monday night, starting 7PM. (I blogged about the agenda on Monday.) Among other things, we appointed a number of USATT committee chairs and members. At exactly 8:36PM on Monday night I was appointed to my second tenure as chair of the USATT Coaching Committee. (USATT will publish online the full listings of soon of the various committee chairs and members we just appointed.) I’ll blog later about my plans for the coaching committee. My previous tenure was 1991-1995; I was also on the coaching committee 2010-2013.

The meeting was scheduled to last only 70 minutes, but took about two hours. This was mostly because the seven minutes allocated to the Rules Committee Proposal for Service Judges ended up taking something like 40 minutes of debate. The proposal was to give referees the option of appointing service judges on each end of the court at the upcoming USA Nationals, where they can better see the legality of a serve, in particular whether the serve was hidden. It would essentially be a test, and if it works, it would then be presented to the ITTF. The key thing here is that the referee would have complete discretion over whether to call for this, and would not, for example, call for it if there’s no room for the service judges (i.e. the back of the court is a wall) or if there aren’t enough umpires. They would also not use it in “big” matches at this time, with events such as Under 2400 mentioned as events where it could be tested. The proposal will also be tested at the upcoming College Nationals.

There were some objections to this proposal. The main ones were:

USATT Teleconference and Snow
We had it last night. I’ll blog about it tomorrow. Meanwhile, it's snowing here in Maryland, and my coaching (and the Tuesday night League) is cancelled for the day. So I'll get a lot of work done!!!

When was USA Table Tennis Team Strongest?
I’m referring here to the strength of our National Team, and their results at the World Championships in Men’s and Women’s Singles, Doubles, and Teams. (Our results in other events such as Paralympics is a separate issue.) I was asked recently when we were at our best. The answer is probably in the late 1930s.

• In 1936 we won Women’s Singles and Men’s Doubles, and made the final of Women’s Teams.
• In 1937 we swept Men’s and Women’s Teams, Women’s Singles, and Men’s Doubles. Easily the best year ever for us.
• In 1938 we won Men’s Doubles and made the semifinals of Women’s Singles.

By comparison, we won only two titles in the 1940s – Mixed Doubles in 1948 and Women’s Teams in 1949, and one in the 1950s – Mixed Doubles in 1956. (We did have some pretty good performances both decades.) As to the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s . . . less said the better. (I believe Gao Jun, former world #3 from China, after emigrating to the U.S. made the quarterfinals of Women’s Singles at the Worlds one year.) Oh, and Tybie Sommers, who won Mixed Doubles in 1948 (as Thelma Hall) is our last surviving World Champion, and sometimes shows up, medal around neck, at the U.S. Open or Nationals!

Below are a list of World Titles won in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, plus notable performances (semis or better in Singles, finals or better in Teams and Doubles). Note that due to World War II, there were no Worlds held from 1940-1946, which of course cost us a number of titles. But nothing compared to what we did in 1937.

=>1930s

Tip of the Week
Warm Up the Shots You’ll Be Using.

13.5 Hours of Weekend Coaching
My weekend hours keep going up. This weekend I did five hours on Saturday and 8.5 on Sunday! (Of course, to many full-time coaches, it's just another weekend.) On Mondays I have 3.5 hours, then just two on Tue and Wed. I’m normally off on Thur and Fri. Due to the USATT Teleconference, which is normally scheduled the second Monday every month, I had to cancel one hour for tonight, so being on the Board is costly.

On Sunday we had the tenth and final week of the Beginning/Intermediate Junior Class (90 min, 14 players). The first half was “player’s choice,” where the players go to choose what they needed to work on. Then we did what I always like doing at the end of each ten-week session – lobbing!!! We did a demo and I went over how to smash lobs. Then John Hsu, William Huang, and I each took a court and spent 15 minutes lobbing to the kids, who stayed up until they missed three. Wen Hsu took the youngest beginners and fed them multiball lobs. After an hour of training we did 30 minutes of games. The older players did Brazilian Teams while the younger ones voted unanimously (as they do every week) for the ever-popular “Cup Game,” where they make pyramids of paper cups, then line up and knock them down as I feed multiball.

In the Talent Program (22 advanced juniors, 90 min), we did lots and Lots and LOTS of shadow practice and multiball. Then a lot of serve and attack type drills. I spent a lot of time with one of the kids who was really into developing his spin serves. The night before in a league match he’d pulled off a nice upset, with his new reverse pendulum serve winning him a lot of points.

More Table Tennis Tips
The book is almost done! This is a compilation of all 150 of my Tips of the Week from 2014-2016, put in logical progression. It’s the sequel to Table Tennis Tips, which did the same for 2011-2013. Yesterday I finished inputting the edits and suggestions from the Terrific Trio of Mark Dekseyser, John Olsen, and Dennis Taylor, who read the first draft. So the text is now done. Today I’ll be formatting the pages. I also have to do the back cover. (Front cover is done.) If all goes well, it’ll be ready for final proofing in a few days. When it comes out (by the end of this month), I may put together some sort of special where you can get both volumes at a discount. Or why not buy Table Tennis Tips and read it now, so you can go straight to More Table Tennis Tips when it comes out?

Shadow Practice
I’ve been encouraging some of my students to shadow practice. This is a big part of the Talent junior program at the Maryland Table Tennis Center, where the coaches lead the players in shadow-stroking drills, and then feed multiball to each player, with the others in the group lined up behind and shadow-stroking. (Parents take turns picking up the balls so it’s continuous, with short breaks.) Here are three videos I sent to them as examples.

Backhands to Get the Timing for Forehands
I have a new student who has been struggling with her forehand. It’s sort of strange – she has a very good backhand, and we can really go at it on that side. But on the forehand, her shots go all over the place. Sometimes she’ll hit a few good ones, and then she’ll swat it straight down into the net, then loft it way off the end, as if there’s no control over the timing or the stroke. The contrast between the two sides is huge. Her background was that she had trained as a kid in Poland, then stopped for decades, and was now picking it up again.

From a coaching point of view, it was rather frustrating as each session would start with us going forehand-to-forehand, sometimes multiball, sometimes live, and no matter what we did, the balls flew everywhere. Eventually we’d wear down and switch to backhands, where she’d have no problem – though by then she’d be a bit tired, physically and mentally, and so even there it wasn’t as good as it could be.

Yesterday (our fifth session) I had a brainstorm. We so often start off sessions going forehand to forehand and then backhand to backhand, and it made sense here – she needed more work on the forehand, so we should start there, right? After a while we could then go to the backhand for a time, and then come back to work on that problematic forehand again. But more and more I was suspecting the forehand problem was strictly a timing problem, and the changes in stroke were her adjustments to timing problems – lunging forward and swatting the ball into the net when she was too early, lofting it off the end when she was too late. We worked on the timing, trying to take the ball at the same spot each time, but were only semi-successful. So what was this brainstorm?