(by Steve Hopkins) Lin Shidong entered as the top seed and didn’t disappoint as he won both Men’s Singles and Mixed Doubles, a pair of first place finishes. Shidong was down 0-2 to Sathiyan Gnanadekaran in the opening round, but three strong games set him on the right track again. Shidong went on to win […]
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Felix Back to Top 5, Duda Reaches Top 20: ITTF Rankings
(by Steve Hopkins) No movement in the Top Four as Wang Chuqin, Lin Shidong, Fan Zhendong, and Liang Jingkun hold their positions in that order. Felix Lebrun is the biggest mover in the Top 10, jumping two spots over Ma Long (now 6) and Hugo Calderano (now 7). Harimoto, Gaoyuan, and Franziska round out the […]
Why Rapidly Improving Players Often Don’t Have Good Serves – and Getting the Best of Both Worlds
(by Larry Hodges) Picture two up-and-coming players. One has really tricky serves, often going long, and wins many points when opponents miss the serve or give him easy pop-ups – but when opponents read the serve, they often attack them, putting the server on the defensive. The other has simple serves that don’t directly threaten […]
Felix Flies in France: WTT Champions Montpelier
(by Steve Hopkins) World No. 1 Lin Shidong has pressed through to the Semifinals of the WTT Champions Series Event in Montpellier with relative ease. Shidong has been on a roll – with wins that clearly make him the best player since the Olympics this Summer. However, France’s young star stopped him in his tracks […]
RA Table Tennis Centre
(by Steve Hopkins) Ottawa has a 200,000 square foot sports facility (indoor and outdoor) in the heart of the city. The RA is a multi-sport facility offering Archery, Badminton, Chess, Curling, Cards, Firearm Ranges and Courses, Martial Arts, Pickleball, Racquetball, Squash, and other sports. They have recently added table tennis space offering five or six […]
Two Harimotos Lift Japan to New Heights
(by Steve Hopkins) Table tennis fans have been following Tomokazu Harimoto on the Men’s tour for many years. More recently, his 16 year old sister, Miwa Harimoto, has shined as well. The results of these two at the recent ITTF Asian Table Tennis Championships was historic. For Tomokazu’s part, he won the Men’s Singles title. […]
Adjust in One Game
(by Larry Hodges) Let’s keep this simple. If you lose the first game of a match because it takes you a game to adjust to something the opponent does, that’s okay. Ideally, you’d adjust sooner and perhaps win that first game, but credit your opponent if he’s developed something that wins him that first game. […]
Jha Out in Quarters of Pan Am Championships
(by Steve Hopkins, photo ITTFWorld) Seedings matter. This lesson was all-to-clear for Kanak Jha who continues to rise in the rankings, but has not yet reached the levels he had two years ago. Jha entered the event as World No. 72, and after logging two solid wins (over Ramon Vila and Rogelio Castro), he fell […]
Repetitive vs. Variable Tactics
(by Larry Hodges) Suppose your opponent has a weak, erratic backhand but a strong forehand. Suppose you get into a fast backhand to backhand rally. Should you keep going to his weak backhand or should you vary things by going to the forehand? The same question can be asked of any tactic – if something […]
WAB CLUB FEATURE: Princeton Pong
(by Steve Hopkins) Princeton Pong’s 10,000 square foot table tennis facility is in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. They are located between Philadelphia and New York City – centered in one of the largest population centers in the United States. The elite facility features 14 professional tables, custom sport flooring, high ceilings, great lighting, a player’s […]
MLTT Featured Team: Los Angeles Spinners
June 29, 2025
(by Steve Hopkins, photo MLTT) The Los Angeles Spinners hope to roll through the upcoming Major League Table… Read More
Early Action Underway at the US Nationals
June 29, 2025
(by Steve Hopkins) Action started Saturday in Ontario, California in the 2025 rendition of the US National table… Read More
Japan Takes 3 of 5 Titles in Zagreb
June 29, 2025
(by Steve Hopkins) Tomokazu Harimoto took Men’s Singles and Satsuki Odo took Women’s Singles, as Japan was dominant… Read More
Harimoto Through to Finals in Zagreb
June 28, 2025
(by Steve Hopkins) Tomokazu Harimoto is the highest seed at the WTT Contender Series event in Zagreb this… Read More
Standing Wider Makes it Easier
June 27, 2025
WAIT FUNCTION: Serve short backspin or side backspin to Backhand, Robot plays long backspin push to Backhand, Backhand… Read More
The Plays, Players & Predictions That Will Shape Season 3
June 26, 2025
(by: Major League Table Tennis) Wednesday, June 25 Looking Back at Season 2 | Partner with MLTT | Exclusive Team Merch Looking… Read More
Wait Function – Practice Your Serve & Follow-Up
June 25, 2025
WAIT FUNCTION: Serve short backspin or side backspin to Forehand, Robot plays long backspin push to Forehand, Forehand… Read More
Forehand Counterloop
June 24, 2025
(by: Bowmar Sports) In this Butterfly Training Tips, Bob Chen breaks down how to execute the Forehand Counterloop… Read More
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