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TABLE TENNIS TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
2024-11-07
Almost everyone has played table tennis – after all, you can find a ping-pong table in many community centers, recreation and social rooms and even in private garages. However, professional table tennis is not particularly popular in Poland. High time to change that! Find out how to conduct table tennis training for beginners and infect your protegees with this interesting sport.
TABLE TENNIS TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS – GETTING TO KNOW THE BALL AND RACKET
Despite appearances, table tennis is a very technical sport. It also requires tactics and proper motor preparation. However, it is a good idea to start training by getting used to the ball and racket. Different types of motion games help to better understand rotation, ball behavior and bounce angles. Thus, they improve the so-called feel for the ball which is extremely important in the later stages of training.
The first table tennis training sessions can consist mainly of motion games to facilitate familiarization with the equipment. After a general warm-up, each trainee should be given a racket and a ball. What exercises can be done with them?
• Racing for the racket. The rackets should be placed on the tennis tables. Training participants should sit cross-legged a few meters away from the table. On the whistle, stand up, run to the table and pick up your racket as quickly as possible, making the correct grip.
• A walk with the ball. Place the ball on a racket placed horizontally and move around the room as long as possible, preventing the ball from falling to the floor.
• A more difficult version of this exercise can be performed then – move from standing to sitting, then to lying down, and then standing up again all the while keeping the ball on the racket.
• Ball-bouncing. Bounce the ball alternately with the forehand and backhand. Next, bounce it high, then low.
• Bouncing the ball off the wall. Start at a distance of about 50 cm and gradually increase the distance, taking care not to let the ball fall to the floor. An element of competition can be added to the exercise, e.g. bouncing the ball 10 times from the greatest distance.
• Table tennis relay – trainees are divided into groups that compete against each other in races. They must complete an obstacle course in a relay, all the while bouncing the ball on the racket. Tasks may include, for example, a run with a bench crossing, a run with a hurdle crossing, a race with bouncing a ball in pairs, etc.
TABLE TENNIS TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS – LEARNING TO DRIVE
Once a player has become accustomed to the racket and ball and his or her muscles have warmed up sufficiently, he or she can move on to learning how to perform drives. When doing so, be sure to maintain a proper grip on the racket. The trainer should monitor the technique of the exercises at all times. What can they look like?
• Learning simple drives in pairs. Trainees line up at tables. One by one, they bounce the ball off the table surface and then drive it through to the other side. The partner catches the ball and then performs the same exercise. The next step is to drive the ball after a throw from a partner or trainer. The ball should go into the middle of the opposite half.
• Drives between partners. Trainees should try to keep the ball in play for as long as possible. An element of competition can be introduced by seeing which pair makes the most drives without dropping the ball on the floor.
• Trainees can then move on to drive the ball diagonally. Drives should be made first with the forehand and then with the backhand.
• Another exercise should be to drive the ball in pairs, where one player passes the ball diagonally and the other passes it in a straight line. The end-point of this set of exercises can be a simplified game played in pairs to eleven points. The game starts without a serve – simply by dropping the ball into your half and driving it into the opponent's field.
TABLE TENNIS TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS – WHAT DO YOU NEED?
The above exercises combine fun, familiarization with table tennis equipment and the basics of correct playing technique. They are suitable for children or young people as well as adults. A dynamic table tennis lesson should effectively encourage continued exploration of the sport.
Importantly, you don't need much to play table tennis. Basic racket and ball familiarization exercises can be done even without a tennis table! A table is necessary however to learn drives. Other than that, just remember to stock up on the right number of rackets and balls – the latter like to get lost, so it's worth buying more in advance. You can find all the necessary table tennis equipment in our shop!