Playing with Long Pimples Part 4 - The Art of Twiddling

Which side was that? Joo Se Hyuk hitting the ball below the table.

Photo by: Mariann Domonkos, courtesy www.ittf.com

This page has moved to here.

Greg is now running the About.com Table Tennis site, and as such a number of these articles will be transferred over to About.com. Please feel free to join me at About!

Do you agree? Disagree? Have a comment you'd like to add to this page? Email me and I'll add your two cent's worth below.

COMMENTS

Wednesday 6th July 2005

Narciso III Kit Adiaz wrote:

...1) To provide a wider variety of possible shots by being able to use different surfaces at different times on the player's forehand and backhand...

Again, I find your article very interesting! (The Art of Twiddling)

I actually had a hard time deciding, back then when I was purchasing a new racket, on the rubber surfaces that I would place on my blade. I finally decided on buying a Sriver (MAX) and a Tackifire Special Soft (2.1mm) on the basis that I could try playing with both surfaces on both wings (BH/FH). Since the Sriver was a thicker and somewhat stiffer surface than the TSS, I could use it for drives and smashes, while the TSS could provide me with somewhat better control (less thick rubber) and spinnier services.

They're both somewhat similar rubbers, but I found out by twiddling that I could hit the ball better because of their small differences which count when you're trying to win the point.

I'm still trying to master the art of twiddling. ;) It's actually hard, since you'd have to decide which surface to use for a particular shot, and you'd also have to physically master the skill of flipping the racket while in a game. Else, you'll end up with a paddle on the floor. :)

Once again, I'm thanking you for putting up a wonderful resource!

Sunday 19th March 2006

Bob Sollish wrote:

The long pips articles are great - but I have one thing to add. I know a few players (myself included) who only use one side of the paddle at a time for forehand and backhand. (I use a modified Seemiller grip)

For players like myself long pips adds the greatest possible variety from the inverted side - and it also adds a different strategic dimension to twiddling. Opponents can't count on one of my "sides" being inverted and the other long pips. They can't avoid the long pips.

I play a lot of 3 and 4 ball attacks looking for the long pips to generate pop ups for the inverted side. I have also read of penholders (Chinese style) who use long pips on the other side for the variation.