Inverted bh technique?

[speedplay]

Now, those of you who reads my posts will know that I've been bragging about my newly found bh, so this might seem like a strange thing to ask about :oops:

Well, any way, this is the current situation;

I'm able to loop against back spin if I take the ball early or on the top of the bounce, but if I take it late, I'm likely to go long. Unless I make a controlled loop, but as soon as I want to give it more speed, I'm going long. Any ideas on what I should work on here?

Against top spin, I'm able to loop (with speed) if I take it on the rise, otherwise, I'm yet again likely to hit it long. I have problem to make a controlled loop against any kind of top spin aimed at me. Should probably close the blade more, but any other ideas as to what I should do?

High balls, simple can't do anything to these nasty shots, if some one lifts the ball high to my bh, I'm left clueless. What the heck am I supposed to do? hit the ball early? Wait for it to drop, which means step away from the table, or something else? Cause hitting a bh at chin height isn't very comfortable at all!

[Vinnie]

I feel very similarly to you, by the sounds of it. If I have time, I step around and hit it with my FH when it's high, but you often don't have the time.

[pingpongrob]

Now, those of you who reads my posts will know that I've been bragging about my newly found bh, so this might seem like a strange thing to ask about :oops:

Well, any way, this is the current situation;

I'm able to loop against back spin if I take the ball early or on the top of the bounce, but if I take it late, I'm likely to go long. Unless I make a controlled loop, but as soon as I want to give it more speed, I'm going long. Any ideas on what I should work on here?

Against top spin, I'm able to loop (with speed) if I take it on the rise, otherwise, I'm yet again likely to hit it long. I have problem to make a controlled loop against any kind of top spin aimed at me. Should probably close the blade more, but any other ideas as to what I should do?

High balls, simple can't do anything to these nasty shots, if some one lifts the ball high to my bh, I'm left clueless. What the heck am I supposed to do? hit the ball early? Wait for it to drop, which means step away from the table, or something else? Cause hitting a bh at chin height isn't very comfortable at all!

Speedplay I think if you look close at some of my video's you will see the exact stroke for the shot you are talking about. Although your timing should be spot on for this stoke to be effective.

[Der Echte]

Some things that could cause hitting a BH loop against under spin long are:

Too open a blade angle (First two usually come from thinking there was more spin on the ball or not using the right stroke mechanics)
Too vertical stroke direction
Hitting the ball too far in front of the body

I've been known to do each one of them, although usually, I miss hit into the net,  because of either underestimating the spin, mistiming my wrist snap (late or too slow), or not being vertical enough on the stroke.

[speedplay]

Yeah, you are right Der_Echte, it just that I feel strange since I'm able to attack shots that most players at my level struggle with, but I fail at attacking the shots the rest feel comfortable.

Most players at the club are quite capable of attacking top spin from their bh, but they struggle with a deep push. Me, I'm the opposite, I can attack back spin with a good % but struggle to attack top spin. I think I might be hitting it to late, so I don't get to make my full swing with the follow through and stuff like that.

[big ears]

The reason that many players struggle with a b/hand topspin is because they have to be in almost perfect position to play the shot, which is also the reason that many can play this stroke as part of a drill but not when the ball is randomly place such as in a game. Unlike the f/hand, to produce a consistent b/hand stroke a player needs to be behind the ball at contact and the most common problem is that when players finish a f/hand stroke their weight ends up on their left foot (R/handers) making it impossible to move to their left to position themselves for a b/hand stroke, so end up just sticking their bat out instead of playing a stroke. Equally it is as hard to be in the correct position on the b/hand wing when the depth and height on the ball is varied, and players who struggle to execute a decent stroke are simply not good enough positionally, it is not the same as the f/hand where they can run into position, finely tuned ministeps are required without thinking, the positive end result of hours upon hours of practice.

[speedplay]

Yes, I almost figured it was due to poor footwork, which I for some reason can't get rid of when it comes to my bh. I'm willing to run all over the place to get in a good position for my fh, but when it comes to my bh, I'm to lazy to even take a mini-step to be in the correct position. Well, lazy might not be the correct way to describe it since it is all mental.

Biggy, against those high shots, what is your suggestion, should I move in and take the ball right after the bounce, or should I move back and take it on the way down? Obviously, taking it early will put more pressure on my opponent, but it will also give me less time to deal with it, which already is a problem.

[big ears]

Biggy, against those high shots, what is your suggestion, should I move in and take the ball right after the bounce, or should I move back and take it on the way down? Obviously, taking it early will put more pressure on my opponent, but it will also give me less time to deal with it, which already is a problem.

Your game will undoubtably improve if you practice taking the ball off the table as it requires you to make a stroke, but you will also have the option of taking the ball early if you wish. JKC unusually takes most high balls with his b/hand if he can up to about the height of his shoulders, he suffers for this though by being caught relatively square on his f/hand which he takes below peak, unless the ball goes very high in which case he has time to get his feet right and smash as normal on the f/hand. Anyway, given a mid table loose ball on match point, he would take it with his b/hand I'm sure of that. Most top players seem to be clones thesedays but there have been plenty of b/hand orientated players in the past, Grubba for a start.

[Der Echte]

Either on MyTT or on DTTW, there has been some big discussion over who is BH oriented or why it is superior. Might have been one of those Sid generated topics.

[speedplay]

Thanks for the reply Biggy, I simple have to keep on working on my inverted bh, but I'm really surprised at how much (and fast!) it has improved since I begun to twiddle.

@Der_Echte, bh oriented players that are superior or what? Strikes me as odd, cause if they were, the worlds top 100 would be full of them. The one advantage I see for them is that they might be perceived as awkward as left handers, but at the top level, I don't think this is such a huge advantage.