Profound knowledge of the different table tennis techniques can instantly turn any beginner into highly skilled athletes and can greatly help any experienced player improve his game. This can include all the basics that must be learned by all who are trying to play table tennis as well as the advanced methods of playing the game.
The basic table tennis techniques that must be mastered by all table tennis players are divided into two general categories, the offensive strokes and the defensive ones. This includes a wide variety of styles and plays that can be performed either with a forehand or a backhand.
The first type of techniques include methods that are used offensively or to attack the player's opponents. This is used to force the opponent to defend or to make a mistake. By mastering the different offensive strokes, any player can transform into an efficient attacking machine.
The Drive - this is the basic way of returning the ball into an opponent and is divided into a speed drive, a loop drive and a counter drive. A speed drive focuses on creating a shot that is fast enough so that it will not be easily returned by the opponent. It is done primarily by aligning the racket as perpendicular to the direction of the stroke as possible. The loop drive is the exact opposite of the speed drive. Instead of creating a fast return, it makes a curved one and can be easily recognized by the arc that the ball creates. Lastly, the counter drive can be any of the first two drives and is used to counter attack on the opponent's drives.
The Flip - is quick wrist action that is usually used in situations that leaves a very little room to maneuver thereby requiring a very quick movement and reflex. It can either be any of the different kinds of drives except that it is compressed or shortened in execution.
The Smash - is used when the opponent's return shot bounces too high or too close to the net. It can be likened to a smash in tennis where the player attempts to input as much force and speed into the ball so that it will not be returned by the opponent.
Mastery of the different defensive techniques is quite important especially for beginners. This helps in negating or minimizing the effects of the attacks of the opponents. With a thorough knowledge of these, a player can literally become a wall in which no opponents' attacks can get through.
The Push - is used to create offensive opportunities after an opponents attack. It is usually done by imparting a small backspin on the ball creating the impression that the ball is floating back to the opponent.
The Chop - this is considered to be the defensive counterpart of the loop drive. It is done to match the opponent's topspin by doing a very significant backspin. This can be very hard to execute but can prove to be very effective if mastered and done properly
The Block - is a simple shot that is used to return the opponent's shot with as much the same speed and energy as it was executed. It is done by just placing the racket in front of the ball and letting it back to the opponent's side.
Mastery of these basic table tennis techniques can make any table tennis player proficient in the game. Also, it can lead to an easy learning of the advanced moves which is based from the basic ones.