Steps To Begin Improving Backhand In Table Tennis

This video is all about Backhand! I lay out the steps I took to fix my Backhand, as I was struggling with it and had terrible consistency. The steps in this video helped me a ton, and I love using Backhand shots now. Hopefully these steps can help you as well!

[@ShannonMoore-o7x]

This improved my backhand so much!

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Sweet deal! Glad it helped 👍

[@MattCM89]

Another top tier video. Will factor this into my practice. Thanks for the upload 🎉

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thank you again! Hope it helps you out 👍 I enjoy my backhand now with this stuff, lol.

[@TP-mp5lk]

Great video again! Keep em comin! One additional piece of advice: my coach told me to shorten the wrist movement when the opponent plays a faster and/or top spin ball. It prevents hitting with the edge of your racket. Going from ten to two o'clock is usually enough for non backspin balls and gives you more consistency.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks again! And thanks for sharing the advice 👍 Sounds great, and I’ll have to try and remember it when practicing.

[@ianfraser114]

Thanks for such clear guidance. I find it really helpful.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Glad it connected with ya 👍

[@Ba_Thao_Experience]

I really like the backhand in table tennis. I practice it day by day. Thank you for your instruction.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I love hitting a great backhand shot 😄 Thanks for watching!

[@BadDog69]

Finally, a tutorial that talks about brushing the ball, which is very difficult to do without a softer grip.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks for the feedback and for watching!

[@justchill99902]

Golden words. Thank you! Keep us the awesome videos!!

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thank you so much! New video coming out soon 👍

[@narfa]

This is an adorable video. backhand is very unfamiliar, well! I will include your steps in my practice....,Thanks a lot😊😊

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Hah, well thanks! Glad it’ll help ya out.

[@pingpong9668]

Great video! Really needed it because I literally have 0 trust on my backhand

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Hey, I really hope it connects with you like it did for me! Thanks for watching.

[@_jacob5]

thanks for the video! i like the concept of brush and guide. also, the way you explain things is clear.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Glad it was helpful! Have fun practicing 👍

[@MusicianinMe.]

The Kick Drum Sound at 0:50 is just awesome. Awesome tutorial as well 😀

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

The sound was TOTALLY on purpose… 😅 Thanks for watching, and glad you liked it.

[@dmytr022]

backhand is something that I forget how to do so many times. Very annoying)

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

If I’m practicing it specifically, then I enjoy it. But DURING a match…I feel like I never use it when I should be 😅

[@khushilsm1276]

​@@PingPongPowerhouseso relatable for me, like i would literally walk to the side and play with forehand instead of just using my backhand

[@MotoMapperMe]

Same!

[@WisanChananchana]

Thanks for you tips 👍🏻👍🏻

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

No problem! Hope you find them helpful.

[@amaniarman460]

Great video. One recommendation I have is if you could include more action shots of you using It while playing. Thanks!

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Yes, that’s great feedback, thanks 👍 I’m hoping to record some matches from Club play soon, but will try to at least add more Robot play as well until I get some footage built up.

[@lolSnowball]

Amazing! Keep it up We need the same but level 2 difficulty

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Will definitely talk more backhand in the future 👍

[@ashokcmashru]

Very nice video. I have very rigid hand. So very difficult to perform wrist movement. Any suggesion?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks for the feedback. There are some hand/wrist warmups and stretches that could help you (hopefully) get some more movement from your wrist.

[@sayansaesue]

excellence teaching for backhand topspin

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thank you. More videos coming soon.

[@anilsadh6624]

I am 67+ years old and started playing tennis only from last year and literally love playing tennis but my backhand finish is almost zero but sometimes it's awesome but 2 or 3 hits out of 100, please suggest how to improve so that compete with young guys.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

My initial thought is suggesting that you find someone who is willing/able to do “Multi Ball Training” with you. Then have them feed the same ball over and over to your backhand. I suggest this because it’ll remove a lot of the “random” variables (speed, spin, placement, footwork) so that you can ONLY focus on backhand shots and determine what’s going on quicker. And while you’re hitting the ball and trying to get it to land on the table…then also ask your helper for advice on what looks off about your backhand shots. Usually you can find someone to do this if you offer to ALSO do Multi Ball for them after your turn so they can work on a shot that they are struggling with. Good luck!

[@วิชญพฬสวาสุ]

It's backhand drive or backhand topspin ?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I would say this can help with both, but is mostly for Backhand Drive. Backhand Topspin (Loop) will have you dropping your hand much lower before rising up to contact the ball.

[@botao4456]

If you have insane backhand like FZD, use h37 chinese rubber on bh for maximum speed& spin. If not, stay with h35 or soft tensor for consistency.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks for sharing the advice for everyone 👍 Sounds good.

[@teddyhartadi3018]

​😅😅

[@paopao3578]

Backhand is really my weakness. Even in badminton

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

It can be tough, for sure. Hope ya get it sorted out 👍

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

Greg, I have tough time returning serve. I understand if I can't read serve won't be able to return serve. I play table tennis at t.t. club with better player. When better player puts certain spin, my return doesn't EVEN HIT table I am at a lost. suggestions?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

If it’s flying to the left or right, then they are putting side spin on the ball. If your ball is going straight, but flying high off the opponents end of the table, then they are putting topspin on the ball and you’re not closing your racket enough. My advice would be to find a partner who will practice serves with you, have them serve you back/top/side spin serves over and over. Once you have the feel for returning them…then it’ll take practice during a match to watch your opponent serve closely and determine which spin it is quick enough for you to react. Takes lots of practice and focus!

[@cyrillehurstel]

Well done. I got advised in the comments of my channel to watch this precise video 😉.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

That’s awesome to hear 😆 Thanks for watching! Gonna hop over to your channel and check out some videos as well! 👍

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

what spin you put so it hits opponents side and bounces back on your side??

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I mean…you would have to put very heavy backspin on the ball to do that. Not super realistic in a match, though.

[@ShaTenniPo]

Cool!

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks! Hope it’s helpful.

[@robert2780]

thanks

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

You're welcome!

[@simsey33]

4:22-4:32, the topspin balls, you are really using a lot of wrists in these shots. Not sure I would recommend that for beginners. It's obviously something to learn as players advance and you seem to have it working for you but the wrist needs a video of its own!

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I think I was using too much wrist and don’t use that much when I watch my real matches. I think I was over compensating for the settings I had set on the robot…and was too lazy to adjust the settings to match what I was trying to teach/show. I agree with what you’re saying. I’ll try to be better about my examples matching what I wanna show/teach. Thanks for the feedback and for watching!

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

Shake hand grip better than pengrip???

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Shake hand is much more popular, but there are some amazing pro penhold players. Comes down to the player, in the end.

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

ok, next question. take 51 penhold players and 51 shake hand players. CONSIDERING ALL PLAYERS ARE SAME LEVEL.WHICH GRIP IS BETTER? which grip will win majority of times with same level players...

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

Also I have watched table tennis pros on tik tok.see lots of players moving themselves to hit forehand on backhand side. My feet don't that fast. I am lucky enough to get backhand return.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Table tennis is a huge lower body sport. Everything starts from your feet placement, so practicing drills where you move a lot will help a ton.

[@khaizainin74]

Tqq

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

🤔

[@baldmi3603]

Are those Xero shoes?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

They sure are! They come with the small insoles to help them absorb more impact. I really like them for the wide toe box, and they have worked well for me as table tennis shoes. I wanna buy a better pair of table tennis shoes and compare more though, because I’m not sure which would be better in the long run. Have you tried Xero shoes before? (the “KneesOverToes” KZbin channel introduced them to me)

[@baldmi3603]

@@PingPongPowerhouse I like to backpack and have a pair of Xero shoes (Mesa Trail). I love them. No blisters. I since switched most of my shoes to zero drop shoes. Currently I wear a pair of Lems shoes (Primal 2) for table tennis at the club. They work great but after 5 months the soles are showing wear. I am going to try my old Altra Timp instead. I am hoping they grip well. If not or when I wear them out I will definitely look into the Prio. Does the Prio grip well? How are they holding up?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Oh nice! I really like the brand. I have one of their “boot” types (would have to look it up again), and the ones I wear for the gym and Table Tennis. They are starting to show some wear. Have had them about a year? They grip well and I love how much “feeling” they give me when moving around during table tennis (and when doing squats in the gym). They could probably use a liiiitle more cushion for long table tennis sessions…but I’m usually between 2-3 hours at the local club and feel fine.

[@fortitude1208]

Whats your rating

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I’ve never been able to attend a USATT rated event and get an official rating. Hoping I can go to an event and make a video of my experience, now that I have the channel. My best guess is around 1800-1850 if you want an idea, because a couple years ago I played for one day in a league, and I ended up in that range. I’ve played a lot since then, so curious what I would get with some prep for a real tournament.

[@ValtheMatedor]

What racquet do you use?

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Blade: Nittaku Acoustic Offensive FH: DHS Hurricane III BH: Stiga Mantra

[@ValtheMatedor]

@@PingPongPowerhouse any pre-made 5 star racquet for an aggressive playing style you could recommend? Preferably not too expensive...

[@ValtheMatedor]

And thanks for the help, you're a great coach...

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I would highly recommend going to the website “Megaspin” and also googling “best intermediate table tennis runners”. I say this (instead of listing a few options for you here) because reading the comments on each rubber is very interesting and helps me pick what I want. Also, you can pick 2 Rubbers, and a Blade, and that website will assemble it for you if you pick that option at checkout. So it’s basically like buying a pre-made racket…but you get to have all the fun of customizing it 😆 If you really want a suggestion from me, then I’d look into the “DHS Hurricane 3 Neo” Rubbers. Then find an “All Round” or “Offensive “ Blade type to go with them. Good luck!

[@ValtheMatedor]

@@PingPongPowerhouse thank you...

[@mochammadirwan10]

Ok

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

👍

[@Blackain66]

Excuse me sir but your backhand topspin technique is pretty bad still and has WAY too much wrist against normal topspin balls.. Bending the wrist all the way back is really bad and unstable and u only need close to that much amount of writs against heavy underspin, vs topspin there should only be a slight amount of wrist and more force coming from the underarm movement to have a much more stable shot and much better hit percentage. Just watch any pro doing it right and compare it to this. This is a really bad example im sorry.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I totally accept the feedback, appreciate it, and agree with what you’re saying (especially if I watch footage of myself playing). I’m new to making videos and trying to talk and do all the examples using a robot can be tough and I wasn’t good about spending the time to get the best/correct spin to illustrate each talking point (I’m saying I might have been over compensating to keep the ball on the table instead of taking the time to calibrate my robot correctly). I’ll keep trying to improve both my technique and videos going forward! Also…wish I could meet up and play with people who comment on my videos, haha. Would be fun to talk about these things in person.

[@ValtheMatedor]

This isn't a drive, it's a loop drive

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

I could see it being called that since I do use quite a bit of wrist.

[@ValtheMatedor]

@@PingPongPowerhouse yeah, a drive seems like a more flat contact

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

No wrist movement. All swing at elbow backhand and forehand. I have played forehand with red and backhand black why Greg you playing red backhand???

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

My brain doesn’t want a bright color in my hand. It distracts me. So I like black to be facing me while playing so I don’t notice it as much.

[@user-fb1yt9ji4m]

Greg, when I am playing better player.will serve me with specific spin and I return ball into net. I am lost greg

[@shibboleth_without]

it is not ping pong

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

🤔

[@alk672]

Yeah I remember the good times when I was wasting year after year after year trying to get the form of the stroke right. I really thought if only I could get my stroke to look correct - the results will come! That’s not how you learn to play table tennis. Get a real coach and he’ll show you.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Thanks for bringing this up. Would like to avoid that scenario! I know everyone has variety in their form, but if I’m gonna teach it then I want to give someone a starting point. Covering things that go into the form should apply even if we don’t all execute it the same exactly. I’d love to get back into to seeing a coach more often, but I have kids now and live in a State where I have to travel 5-8 hours to get to the coaches at great Clubs. I do have plans to go again, and I want to ask them about this topic you’ve brought up next time I go. Thanks 👍

[@alk672]

@@PingPongPowerhouse why would you teach it? I know people who went through the Chinese system 5 through 18 years of age, made it to provincial level - and they are very hesitant to teach.

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Why would I teach Table Tennis? Because I’ve spent years enjoying this sport and meeting new people to play with. I love the “fast pace” of it. And now, I live in a State in the US where barely anybody plays, and I want to grow the sport here and help more people play here. I would love to find a way to get a 24 hour/7days a week Club opened in my State, as well.

[@paulaxllowther1974]

Great video, but it’s a bat not a racquet

[@PingPongPowerhouse]

Bat, Racket, Paddle… I’ve said them all at some point 😅

[@yous2244]

No all are correct