Technique is not everything if you want to improve

There are lots of threads discussing the finer points of technique and rightly so on a TT forum.

I have to agree, I have lost tons of games against players that seem to do always the same thing, but they are very good doing what they do best, and I have seen them winning games against very good ranked players, today I saw a 2º division game of one of the players I have lost and he always do the same thing...very heavylong under spin to the backhand, the other player cant make top spin, so pushes long, and he top spins to kill the point, he wins some points not int his fashion but I guess 60% are like this...this is an axample he has very bad technique.

The soul of rock wrote: It really depends on how people take on table tennis. As for myself, most of the time I don't play to win, I just want to enjoy myself. I would rather score beautiful points and lose games than to win boringly (just my oppinion). In the end, it's just a sport, a game. That's why I prefer to learn how to do the loop effectively and "correctly" than think too much about strategy. I guess I'm still young enough to have the luxury of doing so.

Good strategies can take you to a certain level, but then it's hard to go further without "proper" technique IMO. I think that strategies can be developed later on, but it's really hard to break a bad habbit after you get use to that. Trainning in the same hall with the Scottish national squad, it's hard for me not to focus on the technique side. It's really amazing to realize how much power and spin the pros can generate, even with crappy equipment.

The soul of rock wrote: Good strategies can take you to a certain level, but then it's hard to go further without "proper" technique IMO. I think that strategies can be developed later on, but it's really hard to break a bad habbit after you get use to that. Trainning in the same hall with the Scottish national squad, it's hard for me not to focus on the technique side. It's really amazing to realize how much power and spin the pros can generate, even with crappy equipment.

I agree with APW46 in that what really keeps many adult players from improving is hardly their technique (with caveats below) and far more often their ability to read the ball and the larger play. Technique makes it easier to hit a powerful ball but it will never be a substitute for variation and game reading skills. Kids have eternity to grow into these skills, but adult training should as early as possible be dominated by such training IMO.

That said, I also believe that technique does need to fall within certain standards to support good play. The boundaries once certain essentials are met is pretty wide and I think some people draw the lines too narrowly. But in the end, I guess it depends on how you want to play.

But how many of them that you overcome by getting better than them again and how many of them just quit TT completely? Not to disrespect you as I know what's it like to be in English top 100, that's very impressive actually. 

Because they're juniors, they may have focus on the other things as well as going to college. And I don't think that England can produce that many good juniors, honestly. I played against Kenny Lindsay, currently UK no.20, once, and I think he's not even as good as the U18 champion in my home town.

Edited by The soul of rock - 01/16/2016 at 6:22pm

In my opinion, improved technique leads to the potential for more creative play.  Many adult players are capped both in their ability to produce topspin and their ability to play the ball to all points on the table due to technical deficiences.  For example, I have never been able to play a strong backhand down-the-line without having my right foot well in front of my left.  I just didn't understand how it was possible to play backhands down the line out of a forehand dominant stance.  It wasn't until I learned to get my elbow out farther from my body laterally that I learned how to do this. 

Edited by Ringer84 - 01/16/2016 at 6:44pm

I think we also need to distinguish between gameplay and technique also because some people are mixing the 2 things. Techniques are the strokes, timings, footwork and contact on the ball while gameplay involves gameplay tactics like sequencing and chaining of movements, strokes basically responses to an opponent's ball.

NextLevel wrote: Anyone who thinks their advantage is largely technical is missing a lot of details.

APW46 wrote: ...  If you have limited practice time, limitations in the standard of practice partners, but would like to improve your rating, you are far better using your valuable time covering other aspects of TT than technique.   Service/touch/early point strategies and learning How to win are far more beneficial to your game within your level, and seriously, you get far more advantage asking the best player in your club how he got there, than spending hour after hour thinking that if you get a f/hand that resembles WLQ's its actually going to make a significant difference in your results.  ...

To each their own. I can't see myself playing, so having perfect form does not matter much to me.

I think technique is important. Great technique is important in reaching a high level, as any significant flaw in your technique can be exposed. With that being said, I think technique is just one of the many things that make up the game. Just because you copy Ma Long's forehand loop, doesn't mean you will have a CNT-standard forehand. There are so many factors within this sport. I have to agree that strategy is extremely important. If you just senselessly loop every ball without much thought, you will very soon be beaten by someone who has a decent block. The average rally only lasts about 3 shots. A good serve followed up with a good tactic can not only get you points based on their mistakes, but you can get very easy third balls to attack. Having a good receiving game will allow you to take advantage of the spin they put on the balls and also being able to limit their attacks. A good strategy exposes the weakness of your opponent and makes you play to your strength. With a great strategy and decent technique, it is not impossible to beat people who would be considered better than you in terms of technique. A good example in my opinion is Werner Schlager. Most of his strokes were fairly average compared to other international players, but he had fantastic serves which gave him a lot of points and also easy 3rd balls. He always used great strategies and thought about every shot. This led him to success in the 2003 WTTC, even though his technique may not been as great as the people he played like Kong Linghui and Wang Liqin. They were arguably among the best in the CNT at the time. In general, I think to play at a high level, you need to understand that there is not just one key. Not just technique, not just strategy... You need to be at a good level in all of these things to truly be a good player.

zeio wrote: V-Griper wrote: zeio wrote: NextLevel wrote: Anyone who thinks their advantage is largely technical is missing a lot of details. That is the core issue.  Everyone wants WLQ's forehand, but did you know it has a name?  And that there is a full-blown research paper on the bio-mechanics behind its invention?  Many can't even make out the details of the technical aspect of it.  <span style="line-height: 11.2px;">And they expect to mimic that by studying some footage?</span> This I would be interested in. Is it publicly available? Sadly, it is not, and it is in Chinese.

I dont get it. Do you mean wlq forehand is like a new invention difrent from klh?can you explain how is diffrent?