Over the years, I have heard many disgruntled table tennis players mutter these words “pimples should be banned”. I hear this mostly from players starting their competitive journey, having just suffered an incomprehensible defeat at the hands of a pimple player. I’m going to look at both sides of the argument, before giving my verdict. Keep reading
Many right-handed players do not enjoy playing left-handed players. It shouldn’t really feel that different. A left-handed player has a backhand and a forehand, just like a right-handed player. But somehow it does feel different. I actually enjoy playing left-handed players and have a decent record against them. My best tournament win to date was against a left-hander. There’s a few simple tactics I have developed over the years which tend to work well. Keep reading
Over the past few weeks I have been testing out the JOOLA Proline One blade. This is the successor to the very popular JOOLA Rossi Emotion Blade. It has a 7-ply construction with inner 3K-c carbon and a hinoki outer layer, JOOLA describe the blade as having a softer feel for good control in the … Keep reading
Many of us have contemplated switching to a radically different style, but are often deterred by the question “what if?” What if I change style and start doing worse? Maybe this fear is misplaced. We can find a really good recent example of this in the professional game. Sabine Winter is a two times German national singles champion, who has recently changed playing styles and is having lots of success. Keep reading
In June 2025, I spent a week training at French club GV Hennebont. The training was intense but it was a great experience. In this review I’m going to tell you more about the club, the facilities, the training, the quality of coaching and the cost. There is also some video footage of my time at GV Hennebont. Keep reading
The most common serve in table tennis is a backspin serve, or backspin with some sidespin. The reason is simple. A backspin serve is harder to attack. Many players are not confident with flicks over the table, or even loops from behind the table. As the receiver, how can you return backspin serves more effectively? Keep reading
Having access to a table tennis coach is undoubtedly useful. You will improve quicker and a coach can help you solve any problems you are having with your game. But it’s not absolutely essential. You can still improve a lot without having any personal coaching at all. Here’s a few things you can do… Keep reading
When players I coach progress from beginner to intermediate standard, I encourage them to buy a better bat. But what the heck should they buy? There are just so many bats available – all with different levels of speed, spin and control. For a player who is buying their first ‘proper’ bat, it can be quite an overwhelming experience. But do not worry, help is at hand. In this blog post, I share the advice I give to the intermediate players I coach (including specific recommendations). I hope my advice helps you too… Keep reading
Most table tennis clubs don’t have structured training. The format is usually something like this … You turn up. You find someone to hit with. There’s no coaching. You are free to do whatever you want. In this scenario, some players fall into the trap of training without a purpose. Keep reading
One of the great things about table tennis is that you really don’t need much equipment to play. But some of us, myself included, arrive at a training session with a bag jam-packed with stuff. How do we end up bringing so much with us, when all we really need is our table tennis bat? Let’s take a look inside my table tennis bag. I’ll explain what I think is essential and what is simply useful, but you can probably do without. Keep reading