Preparing for a tournament takes many forms: it is not just a matter of getting on the table and hitting as many balls as possible.
To start, you need to consider what brand of table and ball will be used during the tournament, as small differences in the way they play can make all the difference in tight situations.
As he becomes England’s No. 1 for the first time in the monthly Table Tennis England rankings (ADD LINK), we spoke to Tom Jarvis and Pathway and Senior Squad Coach John Murphy to find out the importance of training with the equipment you’ll be using during the competition.
We see Tom and John work on refining Tom’s serves so that he has the confidence to take them into matches, knowing how the match balls and tables will behave.
It’s just one example of the ‘no stone unturned’ mentality that has helped Tom climb into the top 50 of the world rankings and become the top-ranked English player.
Tom explained: “By playing on different tables and with different balls, you’re trying to figure out how these balls are going to bounce on this table and where my technique needs to be to make sure I can get it short, long, medium or kick it whenever I want and rely on that when it’s close.
“You have to be careful and know what ball you are playing with and try to prepare yourself with that.”
John added: “Your timing and action are very important and it is also important to adapt, to learn what the ball does and to be able to touch the ball in the right place to achieve the desired result.
“Sometimes you have to play long serves, sometimes you have to play short serves, sometimes you have to use the sides of the table. It’s trying to understand the table and the conditions right away and trying to execute your technique when serving.”
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