At some point in your playing career, you have probably encountered a bad slump. How long will the slump last? …sometimes a day, a month, or a year. In this article, I’m going to give you several tips on how to get out of a slump.
#1 Rest Your Mind
After a tough tournament or a sloppy practice session, sometimes it is good to rest your mind. Take off one or two days of training and do another activity, preferably an outdoor activity. Gazing at the stars, going to the mountains, and fishing by a water falls are a few of the many things that help me relax the most.
#2 Re-evaluate Life
After a couple days rest, try to re-evaluate your life goals. This morning I read in Psalm 113:3 From the rising of the sun to its going down, the Lord’s name is to be praised. Personally, my life goal is to praise God with everything – work, school, family, table tennis, and life. You have probably heard the expression, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” So, re-evaluate your life goals and know where you want to go.
#3 Re-evaluate Table Tennis
Next, re-evaluate your table tennis goals. Set a realistic long term goal then make small challenges to yourself of what you need to accomplish to reach the end goal. Continue to remind yourself that the road might be bumpy, but with the right coaching, right training, and persistence, you can reach your goal.
#4 Timing is Everything
About 90% of the time, players go into slumps because of timing issues. In order to correct a timing problem, focus on keeping your racket in front longer. When a backspin ball approaches, move your feet quickly into position, but don’t take your racket back until the ball has crossed the net by at least 12”. Take your backswing just before the ball touches your side of the table. When a topspin ball approaches, move your feet quickly into position, but don’t take your racket back until the ball has nearly reached the net. As the ball approaches, take your backswing back based on the incoming ball. For fast topspin, take a shorter swing. For slow topspin, take a longer swing. Most slump players try to take the same exact backswing for a topspin ball regardless of the speed, high, spin, trajectory, or contact point. Learning how to adjust your swing will greatly increase your timing!
#5 Consistency
Consistency is the main determining element to winning and losing matches. It doesn’t matter if you are a marathon runner or a powerlifter, if you cannot consistenly return serves, loop the ball on the table, block loops, and other skills, then you will not win. Consistency is the key. If you are in a slump, consider how you can make your shots more consistent. Possibly you need to…
Read the spin better when returning serves…
Impart better spin on the ball when looping…
Target placement on your push rather than power…
Focus on relaxing your grip when blocking…
Adjust with your feet better when smashing…
And Take your time between points…
If your consistency improves, winning will easily follow
#6 Advice
Be willing to admit to a friend that you are in a slump. Ask him to watch one of your club matches and give some advice based on what he sees. Sometimes it helps just having someone there to watch and encourage you.
#7 Coaching
Coaching is an absolute necessity. Before receiving professional advice, I was at the bottom of the barrel at the club, with nearly all losses, week after week. After 2 years of coaching, I improved 1000 points because the coach was able to take me where I couldn’t take myself. I wasn’t able to learn all the necessary elements to improving on my own.
#8 Your Arsenal
While you are resting, re-evaluating everything, learning to be more consistent, and asking advice from others, you might want to also consider adding a new tool to your toolbox. The main part of winning is being consistent. The other part of winning is finding ways to make your opponent less consistent. By adding a new weapon to your arsenal, you could possibly win an extra 2-3 points each game. Consider learning a new serve, a blocking variation, a sidespin push, or a deceptive loop. If you are patient yet persistent, learning a new skill can be one of the best ways to start your new year and help you reach your end goal.
