My reverse pendulum gave me many cheap points in the beginning, whilst not realizing that I did it not properly and always did float serves 😂 . It got better over the years with much training eventually. What I learned is that the position of the opponent can be used quite well to your own advantage in keeping his/her distance and then suddenly introducing really short serves..
That’s great! I haven’t seen the fake reverse serve before. I like to pair a short backspin pendulum serve with a short topspin pendulum, because the short top is less common. I need to think more about placement, I’m mostly just dumping it in the middle to not give them access to extreme angles. Ideally I’d get a long push I can turn the corner on, and an accidental pop up. A slightly oddball pairing is a big ugly backspin tomahawk aimed at their crossover point. It’s just an awkward one to return. That pairs with a short or half-long topspin tomahawk. But I haven’t landed on a good spot to place it. Maybe, if I can reliably keep it short, to their forehand where they’ll either have to awkwardly bend their wrist back or risk going wide off the forehand. Could turn into a “who can hook it wider” battle, but that might just be ok. 😈
Craig Bryant you are a genius and guru in table tennis serve. Your video explanation is quiet clear and impressive. I have gained lot of knowledge from your videos and tried to implement in my matched. It’s quite effective….thanks for sharing your knowledge. Wishing you all the best. Masoom
High toss pendulum with whatever spin into the backhand, especially deep ones, then suddenly changing it into short backspin serve into the short forehand with a bit of opposite sidepsin has given me a lot of aces this season
I try to do all of this except fake reverse (but i use a reverse top serve there), plus the same ideas with backhand. Back vs top vs float is my bread and butter. I've been working on one side short, opposite side long and fast, and it's been pretty effective so far. Great video!
Nice video, I like to probe people's middle, long if they're close to the table. See which way they like to go, then do the same serve but squeeze it over a little. Often get the same shot but slightly more out of position which can yield an opportunity
I use pendulum top spin, under spin and just side spin combinations. Same with my backhand serve, under spin, top spin, combined with short or long serve, and I am able to get the more or less same motion for all of them.
Hi Craig, thanks for the tips! I usually disguise the top/back spin on my tomahawk serve, with a flat one sometimes. I especially look at the answer from the receiver (and how it's evolving) to adjust the next serves. I'm still struggling with the reverse tomahawk. I would love to watch your take about it. Georges
Delivering serves based on what you’re noticing from your opponent, is top level. Great to hear. I was thinking of doing an ‘alternative’ serving video and including this one in it. Keep an eye out.
I was wondering if we could have an in depth video on "contact points" on various serves. For example, where is the contact point for side-under spin in the reverse pendulun serve oposed to the contact point for side-top spin in the same serve. I am trying to improve my service game and I find this aspect hard to understand and execute. There are videos out there on youtube saying different things 😅 . Again an example, for under spins contact back side of the bat, other say front and other say even middle is ok/ whatever works...so for this reason it is very confusing.
Half long topspin hook to fh combined with deep backspin hook on bh works well. High throw can make your serve harder to read, it works against some players. Against slow club players long back and top pendulums to the middle works well, but it stops working as your opponents footwork gets better. One good effect on pendulums is to serve more from the middle to the middle combined with corner to the middle, this small angle change makes it hard for some opponents. Against really good players who attack everything I may get a bit scared and use only short backspin serves but I don't think they work too well.
I started implementing long reverse pendulum serves diagonaly and paralell with both a bit of side under and side top to force my opponent to do something. If they just play passively i get an fairly easy attack. I combine that with short topspin to the forehand and some fake reverse . With the reverse pendulum in general i strugle to get backspin , sometimes i get a pop up, when i thought i should have been more backspin... I feel like if i delay the movement just a tad i can hit the ball with the first part of the movement and get more backspin out of it. And if i wait a bit longer i get top.... the timings hasn't been an easy thing to master tho.
I often hear newer players lament their lack of service ability and how it holds them back. I think instilling this idea of pairings to work on is one of the easiest ways to level up their game as it doesn't inherently require you to develop better technique before you can start to see benefits. Additionally, it starts getting them to understand how to set up points in other areas of play. You have full control when you're serving and depending on what service you present it is very easy to start playing the percentages where it looks like you're predicting where the opponent will play their shot. There is also the psychological damage done to the opponent where suddenly your footwork looks better and you're more often in position to play a very aggressive shot when the reality is you're conditioning them to return the ball in a predictable way.
Hey Craig, I have a question about the grip, when using the hook serve. I usually have a pretty similar grip when I use the hook serve or the short backspin serve. How does the grip impact the hook serve?
![[TH] 2024 PMGC League | Survival Stage วันที่ 1 | PUBG MOBILE Global Championship](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/FVFT-PFwU80/mqdefault.jpg)
Hi Craig, can you use balls with black and white (impact balls)? This way we can see more and better understand spin. Cheers
I’ll get my colouring pens out 👌
My reverse pendulum gave me many cheap points in the beginning, whilst not realizing that I did it not properly and always did float serves 😂 . It got better over the years with much training eventually. What I learned is that the position of the opponent can be used quite well to your own advantage in keeping his/her distance and then suddenly introducing really short serves..
Tomahawk and backhand serves... it's like he was speaking directly to me.
😳🙂
That’s great! I haven’t seen the fake reverse serve before.
I like to pair a short backspin pendulum serve with a short topspin pendulum, because the short top is less common. I need to think more about placement, I’m mostly just dumping it in the middle to not give them access to extreme angles. Ideally I’d get a long push I can turn the corner on, and an accidental pop up.
A slightly oddball pairing is a big ugly backspin tomahawk aimed at their crossover point. It’s just an awkward one to return. That pairs with a short or half-long topspin tomahawk. But I haven’t landed on a good spot to place it. Maybe, if I can reliably keep it short, to their forehand where they’ll either have to awkwardly bend their wrist back or risk going wide off the forehand. Could turn into a “who can hook it wider” battle, but that might just be ok. 😈
Craig Bryant you are a genius and guru in table tennis serve. Your video explanation is quiet clear and impressive. I have gained lot of knowledge from your videos and tried to implement in my matched. It’s quite effective….thanks for sharing your knowledge. Wishing you all the best.
Masoom
Hey Craig! Are you interested in making a reverse tomahawk serve tutorial! Would love to see one day! 🔥🔥
Another great video Craig 👍 would you mind doing a video on the mental side & how to prepare for a match, thankyou
High toss pendulum with whatever spin into the backhand, especially deep ones, then suddenly changing it into short backspin serve into the short forehand with a bit of opposite sidepsin has given me a lot of aces this season
👌
I try to do all of this except fake reverse (but i use a reverse top serve there), plus the same ideas with backhand. Back vs top vs float is my bread and butter. I've been working on one side short, opposite side long and fast, and it's been pretty effective so far. Great video!
Thank you Bryan for these advices! 💪🏻
I like short pendulum and long pendulum with varying levels of underspin coupled with a surprise fast down the line serve
Timestamps
1:45 Pairing 1
5:15 Pairing 2
8:05 Pairing 3
10:00 Pairing 4
Nice video, I like to probe people's middle, long if they're close to the table. See which way they like to go, then do the same serve but squeeze it over a little. Often get the same shot but slightly more out of position which can yield an opportunity
I use pendulum top spin, under spin and just side spin combinations. Same with my backhand serve, under spin, top spin, combined with short or long serve, and I am able to get the more or less same motion for all of them.
Nice advice!
Love that one, unfortunately it also gives me an Idea where I am with my service game
Another great video, great presentation, the 4th pattern not easy to master indeed. Hope there will be more on serve strategy to come :)
Thanks Raf, I’m sure there’ll be more on strategy at some point, yes 👍
Hi Craig, thanks for the tips!
I usually disguise the top/back spin on my tomahawk serve, with a flat one sometimes.
I especially look at the answer from the receiver (and how it's evolving) to adjust the next serves.
I'm still struggling with the reverse tomahawk. I would love to watch your take about it.
Georges
Delivering serves based on what you’re noticing from your opponent, is top level. Great to hear.
I was thinking of doing an ‘alternative’ serving video and including this one in it. Keep an eye out.
Thanks you very much for this lesson ! ❤
Thank you for your input
I was wondering if we could have an in depth video on "contact points" on various serves. For example, where is the contact point for side-under spin in the reverse pendulun serve oposed to the contact point for side-top spin in the same serve. I am trying to improve my service game and I find this aspect hard to understand and execute. There are videos out there on youtube saying different things 😅 . Again an example, for under spins contact back side of the bat, other say front and other say even middle is ok/ whatever works...so for this reason it is very confusing.
Nice idea
Great Video!!
Is it possible that you make a Video about the 2 different hook serves? It would be great!
Keep up the good work! :)
Possible, yes 👍
Really enjoyed it, thanks
thank you
Cheers, Craig ..
I uses short back spin & flat long counter serve
I like to play short or long pendulum backspin to the backhand very wide and reverse side top to the forehand also alternating short and long
Half long topspin hook to fh combined with deep backspin hook on bh works well. High throw can make your serve harder to read, it works against some players. Against slow club players long back and top pendulums to the middle works well, but it stops working as your opponents footwork gets better. One good effect on pendulums is to serve more from the middle to the middle combined with corner to the middle, this small angle change makes it hard for some opponents. Against really good players who attack everything I may get a bit scared and use only short backspin serves but I don't think they work too well.
could you please make a video about pairing a normal pendulum serve with use of side spin as well thanks and cheers
Can you explain how to do the hook with top spin serve,the movement is not clear
It’s on my list 👍
I started implementing long reverse pendulum serves diagonaly and paralell with both a bit of side under and side top to force my opponent to do something. If they just play passively i get an fairly easy attack.
I combine that with short topspin to the forehand and some fake reverse .
With the reverse pendulum in general i strugle to get backspin , sometimes i get a pop up, when i thought i should have been more backspin...
I feel like if i delay the movement just a tad i can hit the ball with the first part of the movement and get more backspin out of it. And if i wait a bit longer i get top.... the timings hasn't been an easy thing to master tho.
Thank you!
Very informative. I like it
As Always Awesome Content. Many thanks
Hello mate. Amazing content 👍👍Thanks a lot for all the effort ❤
Hey, thank you so much 👍
Great video
Please a video backhand topspin against block and against backspin
Graet video, thanks!
Amazingly good
Thanks a lot 😊
Great!
I often hear newer players lament their lack of service ability and how it holds them back. I think instilling this idea of pairings to work on is one of the easiest ways to level up their game as it doesn't inherently require you to develop better technique before you can start to see benefits. Additionally, it starts getting them to understand how to set up points in other areas of play. You have full control when you're serving and depending on what service you present it is very easy to start playing the percentages where it looks like you're predicting where the opponent will play their shot. There is also the psychological damage done to the opponent where suddenly your footwork looks better and you're more often in position to play a very aggressive shot when the reality is you're conditioning them to return the ball in a predictable way.
Hey Craig, I have a question about the grip, when using the hook serve. I usually have a pretty similar grip when I use the hook serve or the short backspin serve. How does the grip impact the hook serve?
Next video coming out, goes into some details around a subtle change with the grip for the hook serve. Keep an eye out.
Fake reverse was mind boggling!
cześć Craig, czy możesz nauczyć mnie dobrego serwu, z pozycji siedzącej. Pozdrawiam
I’ve worked with some wheelchair players before, yes. Feel free to take a look at my website thettserviceguy.com
Fake reverse is insane
👌👌
My opponents have become much better at pairing serves, can please stop uploading these videos?! :D
🤣
this will save lives thanks coach 🫡
😂
Thanks, that was really helpful.