From September 2022, I will be organising a monthly group coaching day in Cambridge. This will involve 5 hours of coaching, focusing on a specific aspect of table tennis, e.g. serving, rallying, topspin vs backspin. The group size will be fairly small – a maximum of 10 players, which will allow me to spend time with each player and give plenty of feedback. Keep reading
At the beginning of June, I had the pleasure of playing with England no. 1 Liam Pitchford. Why the heck was Liam playing with an average local league player like me? Had he seen footage of me on the internet and decided I was an exceptionally good training partner?
Erm, no. Did he need a new coach and after weeks of research and deliberation select me as his number one choice? Nope, don’t think so. Was he harassed and cajoled into making some videos with me for my YouTube channel? Yes, that’s a bit nearer the truth! Keep reading
After my disappointing debut veterans tournament in February, I’ve been working a little harder than usual at improving my game. I’ve been pushing and blocking less and trying to attack more. I’ve made some good progress, but was I ready for my next official veterans tournament? It was time to put my skills to the test again. Keep reading
Some players at the beginner and intermediate levels try to emulate more advanced players (and even professionals) by always trying to hit the ball with lots of power. But playing lots of powerful shots is only effective if you can do it consistently. If you often try to hit balls really hard – but miss way more than you get on – then it’s not much use. And worse still, a focus on power will probably prevent you from developing many other areas of your game. Keep reading
The inaugural Singapore Smash took place last week. This is table tennis’s equivalent of a tennis Grand Slam. A high profile tournament with big prize money, lots of ranking points and all the best players in attendance. It’s the latest attempt to give professional table tennis a make-over to make it more appealing to fans and spectators. Was it any good? Or did it fail to live up to the hype? Keep reading
There is a feeling among some in the table tennis community that switching to a pimples rubber is somehow cheating. I don’t believe this is the case at all. Playing effectively with a pimples rubber takes a lot of skill, adds variety to the sport and gives opponents a different type of challenge to overcome. In this article I explore when you should join the ‘dark side’ and use short or long pimples. Keep reading
On 5-6 February, I took part in my first veteran’s tournament – the VETTS Southern Masters in Crawley. This was an event for players aged 40 and over. I entered the 40+ singles, the 40+ male doubles and the 40+ mixed doubles. How did I get on? Did I take the tournament by storm or did I get a good thrashing? Keep reading
I have decided to enter my first veteran’s tournament – the Southern Masters in Crawley on 5-6 February. This is a tournament for players aged 40+. Do I have any chance of success? Not really. There are some very good players who have entered, much better than me, so to make it past the group stages will be a big achievement. But I am hugely excited. Keep reading
On 1st October 2021 a new rule about rubber colours came into effect. One rubber has to be black, but the other rubber can be red, pink, purple, blue or green. Keen to be an early adopter, for the past two weeks I have been playing with a purple JOOLA Dynaryz ACC rubber. Read on to find out what reaction I had from other players… Keep reading
Dave Harvey has won 7 national veteran titles, in different age categories – 40s, 50s and 60s. As I have now reached the veteran age (yes, I know, I don’t look old enough), I thought I’d ask Dave a few questions about how I might try and replicate some of his achievements. Keep reading