There can be varying gap lengths between the thumb and the index finger. The style, usually referred to as the Chinese penhold style, involves curling the middle, ring, and fourth finger back. The index finger can slightly overlap with the thumb. It incorporates the Japanese or Korean grip, Chinese one, and reverse backhand grip. The other three fingers loosely wrapped around the … Similar to the traditional Chinese penhold grip, it requires players to have a large reserve of stamina and fast footwork in order to make up for the poor reach on the backhand side. Different Types of Table Tennis Grips Table tennis is a racket sport, which means that a player’s main weapon at hand is his paddle. For the shallow shakehand grip, the thumb rests or relaxes on the blade. It would be ideal for a beginner to listen to the advice of his or her coach on what style of grip to use, but sometimes, it would be best to just find a grip one is comfortable with. Table tennis is a racket sport, which means that a player’s main weapon at hand is his paddle. The advantages of this type of grip is that while it has the advantages of the traditional Chinese penhold grip, it removes the normal penhold weakness in the backhand, allowing users of this grip the capability to produce heavy topspin backhand strokes with good power and wide reach. Thousands of satisfied customers. The V-grip is when the blade is held between the index and middle finger, spread apart at first to form a letter V. When the blade is in place, the index and middle fingers curl down the blade, gripping it, and the ring and pinky fingers are wrapped around the handle of the paddle. Another limitation of the reverse penhold backhand grip is that it is actually quite difficult to produce topspins on the backhand side that do not have a little sidespin to them. An Introduction to Grips In high level table tennis, there are two main grip types, the shakehands grip and the penhold grip. Aside from the shakehand and penhold grips, there are also a few more unusual and infinitesimally rare grips that rarely make it onto international scenes due to their unproven effectiveness in matches. Whether you are just starting out the game or battling it out on the international circuit, Tennis grips are absolutely indispensable. However, the shallow shakehand grip differs from the deep shakehand grip in where the thumb rests. This would be effective against short balls that one’s opponent lobbies over. Use this for the serve, volley, overhead, and slice (all the pros do). Like the traditional Chinese penhold grip, it is difficult to perform consistent backhand topspins with this grip, not including professional players who prove that it can be mastered. This grip is currently being used by players who prefer to play with heavy topspin on both sides, in other words, players who favor an attacking style. Grab the paddle’s handle between the space of your thumb and the index finger while curling the last three fingers over the handle. Even though many players have this way of holding the racquet, their style of play is entirely different. Putting aside skills, techniques, and footwork for the moment, one of the most initial and basic things a player has to learn is how to actually wield his weapon, i.e. Its historical record dated many years back and has turned into a well-liked sports activity throughout the ages. The defensiveness of this grip also lessens the chances of the player having to attack balls from over the table, which is why wrist flexibility is not an issue for this grip. Subscribe to the Green Paddle newsletter to learn more about special promos and sales reserved only for VIP customers! This type of grip is more popular with Western players. The two variants of this are whether the ring and pinky finger stick close to the middle finger or whether they are fanned out on the blade. To have this kind of grip, one should place the thumb and index finger on either side of the racquet and the rest of the fingers should be placed at the bottom part. Account Shopping Cart Support. You can choose one out of six different blade handles. Some of the advantages of this grip, as reported by Tom Veatch when he went to China and first observed this new grip unver development, would be an extended reach, more leverage, and more power and spin in attacking. Besides the common ping-pong grip types, there are also several less commonly used grips, such as the Seemiller grip, V-grip, and pistol grip. This grip also allows users to attack short balls with his backhand, since wrist movement is flexible. How to Prepare for a Major Table Tennis Tournament? A correct shake-hands table tennis grip should have… Your index finger on the backhand rubber. The second most popular type of grip would be the penhold grip. Not all blades can be found in these 6 handles because it depends on each blade produced but as a general rule you can find european handles and asian handles. Liu Shiwen, Zhu Yuling, and Ding Ning, the rank first, second, and third, respectively, of international table tennis women’s players from China, all use shakehand grips as well. There are several top players who use penhold grips who win World Championships, World Cups, and Olympic games on a regular basis. Choosing Your First Ping-Pong Paddle. Players who use this grip also prefer blocking and countering from either side. The index finger and the thumb are usually at the front of the handle, and the other three fingers are folded behind the rackets head. This technique gives great loops on the forehand side. The first grip we’ll discuss is the eastern grip. Table of Contents (Types of TT Grips) : The Shakehand Grip Technique; The Table Tennis Penhold Grip; The Table Tennis V-Grip; The Table Tennis Seemiller Grip; 1) The Shakehand Grip Technique. The advantage of the shallow shakehand grip over the deep grip is that it allows for a quicker readjustment of the paddle’s angle, since the grip is loose. Each of these two types has several variations, which we will look at in detail. Table Tennis Grip Types: Pros and Cons. But before one learns about angles and swinging, one of the most foundational choices a player has to make, or one that is made for him by his coach or trainer, is how to hold the racket. This type of grip is also favored by players who like smashing, driving, or hitting the ball, which is a stroke that requires medium to fast speed and little to no topspin. Also, ever since table tennis introduced the two-color rule, which states that a player must have either black or red on either side of the blade, the strategy of twiddling the blade with combination rubbers is now less effective, since the opponents can keep track of the rubbers. This grip is mainly experimental, and whether or not it will prove to evolve into a majorly popular grip in the future remains to be seen. Shakehand grip looks easy and it is a very versatile style. Although there are other grips - notably the "penhold" grip used predominantly by the Chinese, Japanese and the Koreans - I'll be concentrating on the western grip that I use. Best Price Guarantee. The style of play among penhold players can vary greatly from player to player. The V grip in table tennis is so called because the blade is held between the index and middle fingers, which are spread apart similar to the ‘V for Victory’ sign to begin with. 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