service rules

How to do a legal table tennis serve

How to do a legal table tennis serve

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One aspect of table tennis gets people more animated than any other. Serves. Or more precisely, illegal serves. I play local league table tennis and illegal serves are very common. I’ve seen full-grown men (it’s always men!) argue, swear, throw chairs and threaten physical violence because of the questionable legality of a player’s serve. So in this blog post, I will state very clearly what the service rules are and encourage you to play by these rules. Keep reading

“Is it ok to use illegal serves?”

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During a recent coaching session, a player asked me whether it’s ok to use illegal serves. He said very few players have a legal serve in his local league. And umpires, who are usually other players, rarely enforce the service rules. He said his opponents have an advantage because they can serve however they want. What should he do? Continue to serve legally or use illegal serves too? Read on to find out my answer… Keep reading