Tips for new players

New and young players who begin playing in a club often soon discover that the ball's spin has a large impact on the game and find this difficult to control and handle. When a player first learns the most fundamental shots it is important that the equipment, the racket and rubber, provide as much control and predictability as possible. In this way the player can more easily learn the relationships between angles, spin, speed, etc. In this phase we recommend a basic racket with a high level of control such as the Stiga 2 or 3 star rackets.

When a player has played for about one year and wish to begin to practice some more advanced shots and generate more of their own spin, then it is important to upgrade to a racket which enables this. It is simply not possible to get the type of results with shots such as the loop, the cut, or spinny serves with a rubber lacking some spin. Still, the racket should not be too fast or sticky (high spin) since the game can then become too difficult to handle for a developing player. In this phase, we want the player to see the connection between different movements and speeds with the results of the ball in the air, its bounce on the table, and on the opponent's racket.

A suitable racket for a player in this stage could be a Stiga 3 or 4 star or similar racket.

The rubbers on a racket wear down over time, partly from play but also from exposure to air and dirt. The rubbers do not last forever. When a player notices that their play is effected by the wear of the rubber, then it is time to change the it. When this happens depends on the frequency of play, how the player cleans and keeps the rubber, as well as how choosy the player is that the rubber behaves as new.

A rubber might need to be changed about 1-2 times per year if the player plays 2 times per week. Normally, the more sticky and spinny the rubber, the more often it needs to be replaced since the stickiness dissapears over time.

Good footwork is very important in table tennis. Players will learn small, effective movements front-backward and also side to side. Shoes with a low profile and good grip to the floor are excellent table tennis shoes, whether they be called table tennis shoes or not. Other types of shoes that often work well are badminton shoes and other similar indoor shoes.