Category: Table Tennis Tournament Preparation

Table Tennis Tournaments in England (Saturated)

  • November 2, 2018

Back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, I was personally competing in table tennis tournaments in England. It felt as if there were not enough events for me to enter. Today it feels like the complete opposite, table tennis tournaments in the UK have quadrupled in the past 10 or so years.

Table Tennis Populations:

Don’t quote me but from past conversations, I remember the number being around 30k registered TT players. Nationally competing players, common sense tells me the numbers in the junior and Vett’s section is where we would find the most competitors. Due to the ratio of players actively competing, it would make sense to look at implementing systems that cater for a wider scaled audience. For example, female-only events, senior (18-40) only events. many players feel overwhelmed when having to mix with such an ore of mixed ability, age and sex. 

Tournaments:

There are hundreds of tournaments locally and nationally every year. This has dampened the numbers for many events and reduced the quality and level of players entering. Tournaments are very important, no one can deny that! But they can have a negative effect in many ways:
– Reduced personal training
– High cost
– Chasing ranking points 
– Personal value diminished,
– Prestige and wow factor (Gone),
The build-up and importance of an event has seemingly diminished if not gone from most national TT events

Money:

Tournaments are a great way for the association and clubs to raise funds. But I believe we need to grow the sport further by utilising smarter formats. The Current system mainly takes, we must find ways of giving back to the players.

What can be done?

Consistency: Have a national scene event such as GP’s and 4* scattered evenly across the nation (As seen on the pictured map). For example, six GP’s tournaments and they must be set in stone. If funds or a location is lost for one of those then replace it with a location as close as possible and near to identical set up.  
Clubs Unite: Instead of clubs hosting small 1 or 2* events why don’t they combine forces and host big 1 and 2* event together. Costs and profits can be shared between clubs and an increased level of participation surely would be inevitable due to combined forces. This would also reduce clashes in events and make the events a lot more respected by the players.
Carrot: Tournaments are loved by players but there are two things missing in most events these days, reward and match play. Tournaments must find sponsors and other sources of funds to give players a financial reward for competing. Its done in other countries, so for it to be done in England shouldn’t be too hard. Lastly finding better systems where players get plenty of matches. This gives value for money, time and effort spent in attending events.

TTE (Table Tennis England):


Develop a system that provides more; more money, more participants, more value for money. By reducing the quantity the quality will rise and the system can grow once again.

Routes:

Once a solid tournament structure has been developed, there will be many positive growth factors for the sport. We must build up our grassroots and look at ways of keeping young adults inside the sport. Then we can grow our tournament base but for now, I believe cutting back to go forward in the long run.

Table Tennis Tournaments in England has begun running before its fully grasped the art of walking.

Written by Eli Baraty 
eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)                          
Coach Me Table Tennis 
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English Table Tennis National Championship 2018

  • June 3, 2018

 

For the first time in possibly 20 years, I did not watch or follow the English Table Tennis National Championships!

I sneaked a peak on some highlights from Saturday with Craig Bryant vs Alim and 1 or 2 other games but that was enough for me. I felt so ashamed and disassociated seeing the nation’s most prestigious event (for me) the worst Nationals to date!

How can we make it better?
  1. Have a Qualification event: This would give every player in England an opportunity to play inside the nation’s no.1 event. It would provide shock results and make most players feel a part of the event. Implementing an open entry would lead to extra support towards the main event (the players, whether in or out would feel a part of the whole event). It would also open doors for players such as myself, who may decide, they wish to compete again but do not have a national ranking! Or better yet someone like Andrew Rushton who could still push most players inside the top 10 but is unable to play due to the new closed ranking system. Increase the main event numbers, by having 64 players in the draw and the top 16 ranked players gain automatic qualification. Opening the Nationals to every player would be a huge boost for everyone; players, spectators and the organisation.
  2. Venue: I understand this year, it was easy to host the Nationals off the back of the World Cup but as many have said, “the nationals need to feel intimate”. For instance looking at the Ping Pong World Championships at Ally Pally which has a great vibe and family feel, maybe we should look at using that same venue?
  3. Characters, Hype and Charisma: TTE, coaches or the players themselves need to develop some charisma. I’ve read some great stories about players like Chester Barnes how he attracted thousands to come and watch him because of his outbursts and vocal statements. I’m not saying have bad boys to draw in the crowd! I’m just saying it would be nice if we had charisma before and during an event to build hype. For example; Nicknames: (‘The Big Show’ – Chris Doran), TTE: publish some bold statements “World Class players will go head to head” Players: send out quotes “I will not drop a set this year”, Coaches; “My player has a new weapon to reveal”.
  4. Crowds and fans: If you want bums on seats and there are many ways of going about it: 1) Advertise heavily, emails, leaflets sent to every club in England and put adverts on TT websites, newspapers etc. 2) Offer a deal to every qualified coach in England. E.g. a free ticket for the coach and a small discount for every player they bring or push to go, or commission based ticket sales. 3) Send tickets to every club in the country and give them a profit share margin for every ticket sold.
  5. Make it an event: create fun activities for families, mid-game entertainment, food and beverages etc.
Picture
Coppabox Seats

Stay positive

I tried to stay away from the massive negative talk on social media as it really depressed me. I’m a huge believer in our sport. And seeing the most important National TT event in dier state, I felt obliged to offer my solution based ideas and thoughts. Whether TTE takes notice of the outcry from its players and my blog suggestions is beyond me. But at least I’ve done my bit in an attempt to help.

I hope this is a wake-up call for TTE if not it may prove fatal in the (not so long) foreseeable future.

Written by Eli Baraty
eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis 
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China’s Table Tennis Dominance at the World Championships 2018

  • May 11, 2018

China’s table tennis dominance continues as they took both men and women’s team titles the weekend. I watched most of the event with many thrilling matches, but I chose not to watch the final (I knew the outcome prior to the occasion).

The issue for Table Tennis: 

Knowing the outcome is a big problem for our sport or any sport for that matter! For example, if I took a Ferrari and a Ford Focus on a track and announced to all my family and friends come and watch these two cars race, I’m pretty sure no one would be interested. Why, because common sense tells you the Ferrari will destroy the Ford and there’s no point in watching when you most likely know the final outcome. There needs to be uncertainty to increase players and viewers appetite.

Photo Courtesy of Steve Rowe (Aerobic Table Tennis)

 

China has dominated table tennis for nearly 20 years now and from an inside or outside perspective the joy of uncertainty has disappeared!

Some would say well what about someone like Usain Bolt who dominated sprinting for a decade? That was joyful to watch, yes but everyone knows that stint would only last for a decade at most and like any athlete, their time will pass. China keeps producing new table tennis superstars, so their dominance seems unstoppable unlike a top sportsman who’s rain will eventually end. China as a nation continues to dominate and their supremacy is unknown which means it’s down to us to do something about it.

Football:

Why does football as a sport do so well from a spectator’s and players point of view?
1. It’s simple to understand
2. The game has many elements of uncertainty, a team from the lower end of a division can beat a top end team.
3. Countries like Sweden, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, USA, Cameroon etc. Can all beat one another on a given day?

So how can China’s dominance be challenged?

1. Belief: Often I see TT players not believing that China can be beaten before they start they have lost!
2. Time: China seems to have a little gap which I’ve not seen before, only Fan Zhendong seems to be a new generational player. Could we see a small kink in 3-5 years, time or do they have some hidden stars ready to take Ma Long and Xu Xin’s place?
3. United: countries must unite in training regimes to push one another to higher levels.

It’s time to believe, unite and take this possible opportunity to break China’s stranglehold and dominance on our sport.

Written by Eli Baraty
eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis 

World Table Tennis Team Championships 2018

  • May 1, 2018

Table Tennis History

Less than 20 years ago, the World Table Tennis  Championships would include, Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles and a Team event, all on the same occasion! Today the team event is a separate entity and I wholeheartedly agree. I remember going to Manchester 1997 to watch the event where I witnessed Waldner get destroyed by Samsanov in the team category but then go on to humiliate Vladimir in the final of the single event.

                          

Twenty-First century Table Tennis

Today having a separate event allows all players to give their 100%, due to a singular focus rather than multiple categories which takes precedence for certain players.

Some interesting results have occurred already and notably, England has caused the biggest shock of the event beating Japan. At the Beginning of this month, England suffered a shock defeat to a weakened Nigerian team at the Commonwealth games, so…

What has changed in less than a month?

1.    At the Commonwealth Games, England were favourites to beat Nigeria and the whole event (an unfamiliar situation for the players). At previous events England was unseeded and the pressure was on the opposing teams to beat England but on this occasion, the tables had turned. It seemed the pressure of being favourites had taken its toll on the players and on that occasion, they were unable to control nor handle the pressure and bowed out to Nigeria in the semi-final stage.

2.    Often when we suffer a tough loss or go through a negative period, we learn from it and use it to grow and develop ourselves. England TT men’s squad did just that! and clearly picked themselves up brushed off the loss and used it to produce their best result to date.

3.    Liam Pitchford, has become a top 5 in the world team player outside of China. Liam has found a system that enables him to compete with any player in the world outside of China in a team competition. He uses the power of his teammates and coach to push himself beyond his normal capabilities and produces huge results for the team which uplifts the overall team’s belief.

China’s Table Tennis

Unfortunately, China is still seemingly unbeatable with Ma Long and Fan Zhendong currently untouchable… But Ma Long has a newborn baby now and he is around 30 years old now. He surely will be looking to slow down in the near future which effectively leaves Fan Zhendong as a lone ranger. And I believe from what I’m seeing there is not much coming through from behind to back Fan. So, could we see China broken in the next 5 years? It’s a tall ask and one few can truly answer but a small crack in the wall can turn into a major structural issue. Keeps a close eye on table tennis over the next few years and let’s see what unfolds.

Belief

Only time will tell if China will be beaten once again! but the key for everyone as England has shown, you don’t need all the skills in the world to beat the best in the world. Belief plays a huge part and if you have that inner belief you are capable of achieving what is seemingly impossible.

Well done to England Table Tennis Men’s Team for their wonderful achievements over the past 3 years.

Written by Eli Baraty
eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)                          
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Table Tennis Match Play

  • April 19, 2018

How important is table tennis match play?
It’s a hard question to answer, some can perform naturally under pressure and other need to experience pressured situations consistently.

Personal Experience:

I played Senior British League once again this weekend and it was my second occasion this season. Unfortunately, my coaching schedule has moved up a level in terms of commitment and I have limited time to focus on my personal game. Furthermore, I struggle to keep my past fitness routines and this has ham-poured my fitness level and my speed has slightly diminished. In the past, I was able to coach alongside some match play with my former Harefield Students. But it’s been 9 months’ since I left and my game has deteriorated a lot more than I had expected.

Issues included: 

Receive of serve, my serve is weaker and I struggled to control it in terms of placement, height, length, and speed. My recovery was poor and my ability to reach wide balls was at an all-time low. My level of play was poor and at times I felt embarrassed especially when losing all 4 of my matches, 3-0 and 3-1. I was unable to execute my shots and struggled with anyone who was quick (speed) or had the ability to keep the ball on the table (consistency).

While I was disappointed in my performance I had come to terms with reality, I have not trained properly for nearly 7 years and played less than a handful of national events over the past 6 years. It became clear to me; repetition, consistency and regular involvement in anything allows one to perform at a higher success rate.

Being a part of a system but not competing!

If you train every week, three times a week but only play one major event a year, you have many things that work against you.

1.    Unfamiliar territory:

You enter a domain which your body knows the drills and what to do but your mind goes into overdrive and it does not allow you to produce what you practice. The only way to enable your mind and body to work together is by putting yourself in that unfamiliar place constantly until it becomes familiar, allowing you to perform your skills at will.

2.    Tension: 

In the practice hall your ability to express yourself without fear of; being judged or knowing if you don’t perform there are certain negative outcomes such as: out of the event, others saying you played bad, you put yourself under pressure to beat someone you feel you’re better than or possibly beat in practice.

3.    Value:

 When you train you’re inside your comfort zone which enables you to express yourself at will. There is the value of self-fulfilment and personal development but nothing more. At National or International events, there are many added values; beating players higher ranked, reaching far in the event or winning it. Potential sponsorship deals, prize money, news articles with your name in it and video publications etc. Subconsciously all these factors play a role in your mind which subsequently influence your overall performance.

No Hiding?

It became very clear to me if I wanted to play top flight table tennis once again, there is no other way around it but to play competitively on a regular basis.

Timo Boll:

I recently saw an interview with Timo Boll, he was asked how come you are playing so well? Timo replied, I trained for many years and at around age 30 I began to reduce my training schedule. This allows me to spend a little more time with my family and give my body a chance to recover. I had a decline in performance but that’s also due to injuries and once they healed I was able to compete again. I feel my performance escalated because I was mainly competing rather than training. and tournaments became my training.

Should you play only tournaments and not train or practice?

The Answer is a categorical NO! Timo hardly trains now and mainly plays tournaments that’s true. But at the tournaments, he does have a training session in preparation for the event. He has also can tap into his huge memory bank of past training (around 25 years). Timo can play tournaments and is able to sustain his high level of play because of these factors. As for us “normal people” we still need to train to keep our game brains sharp and enable us to compete successfully when we compete.

Tournament Environment:

When I take my players to their first national event which is often small. They can develop a sense of what’s required alongside a more relaxed environment. As soon as they are taken to a larger scale event, everything changes; their view of the game (the realisation that the game is played on a much higher scale than they originally perceived. It takes between 1 or 2 seasons to become accustomed to the new environment and then they start to flourish.

Most good table tennis players have the capability to produce wonderfully executed shots but when it’s in an environment unfamiliar to them are they able to cope?
I believe not! unless they have experience and experience comes with time and exposure.

To enable yourself you must commit to the cause and positive results will eventually come.

Written by Eli Baraty
eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis
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A New World Table Tennis No.1 (Non-Chinese)

  • December 19, 2017
Dima New world no.1 table tennis
Dima – New World No.1

A New World Table Tennis no.1

A new World no.1 Table Tennis player has been listed this month (July 2018). The sport has been dominated by China over the past 20 years. China has predominately ruled table tennis since its existence and non-table tennis players associate the sport with China.

Fortunately, and unfortunately, the game is dominated by China. I say both fortunately and unfortunately because having the largest population on the planet enables the sport to flourish in front of millions. Unfortunately, the sport gains little credibility outside of China which has a huge impact on the sport. and it may be the most dominated sport on the planet by a single nation.

How do sports flourish?

Many sports flourish due to unpredictable outcomes. Leicester FC is a wonderful example of Footballing unpredictability! This gives the sport a sense of “anything can happen” we all love miracles and spectators can watch in hope even if they are the underdogs. Where in sports like Table Tennis, even a non-TT player will say “are the Chinese still the best?” The outcome is known by everyone and this currently disables the sport for both players and spectators!

A new world table tennis no.1

But after 7 years we have a new non-Chinese world no.1 Dimitri Oscharov. Dima has done something which many wouldn’t believe possible. Due to the dominance of fellow competitors: Zhang Jike, Ma Long, Xu Xin and Fan Zhendong but Dima has managed to take the no.1 spot despite this formidable opposition.

What does this mean?

Well, it gives hope!
Everyone on the tour now can see that you don’t have to be Chinese to be world no.1. If you work smart and hard and believe in yourself and your team, you can achieve the unthinkable!

I’ve always believed Dima could reach this position, I don’t think he is the most talented player nor do I believe he is the best player but boy, does he possess desire. The new ranking system is based on the current form of players and their playing activity. There are arguments for and against the new system but I’m swaying towards liking it. I would also hope to see this kind of ranking system implemented in England. Dima’s vision, belief and desire is unquestionably the highest I’ve seen in over a decade. Before Dima it was players like Jean-Micheal Saive, Jean-Philip Gatien and Wenger Schlager. These past European players were not the most gifted like Waldner, Samsonov, Karakasovic and Appelgren. Nevertheless these players they possessed hearts of lions. You could see it written all over their faces and their body language, they possessed the eyes of a tiger.

It can be done

Will seeing Dima’s ‘Grit’ in achieving his goal, push others players to be inspired and obtain that belief required to achieve greatness?

Hopefully, Dima’s achievement will encourage more players around the globe to step up, and possibly then we could see a rejuvenated sport. More worldly competition can also introduce new pathways for growth and development both from within and outside the sport of table tennis.

If you desire something enough it will more often than not, find a way into your life, so go and make your vision happen.

Written Eli Baraty

eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis 
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Senior British League

  • October 11, 2017

I played my first competition (Senior British League) in possibly 5 years last weekend. It was the Championship Division (the second highest division in the country).

My team ‘Wymondham’ was struggling and I was asked to chip in, plus bring one of my star students to aid the team in survival from relegation.

Senior British Leauge - Sponsored by CreoGlass
Senior British League

 

Table Tennis Tournament Facilities:

It was my first time at Sycamore table tennis club and I’m always happy to see dedicated clubs. But on this occasion, the club did not have the appropriate facilities to cater for such an event. Set in two small halls with a cramped feel was a shameful experience, for the Championship Division.

My player Gregoire who plays division 1 in France was in shock and expressed his thoughts:

  1. Two separate halls produced a poor environment & feel
  2. Cramped space disallowed for spectators
  3. Team spirit was poor; players unsupportive, players on their phones instead of watching and supporting teammates, players walking off after losing and not seen until it’s their turn to play!

It was very sad to witness and worse off to hear this from a foreign player.
I would like to see better playing conditions and a system which brings players together in a supportive manner, creating a team spirit throughout the event.

Can you make any suggestions?

To grow our sport, we need to find ways to develop and in order to do this, we must have an attractive seen for the youth to aspire towards.

Written by Eli Baraty

eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis 
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Table Tennis Tournament knock Up

  • April 30, 2017

How important is a table tennis tournament knock up? I have been coaching for over 17 years whilst attending tournaments and events, and I noticed that most players don’t know what makes them perform!.
I believe if you asked 100 coaches if they teach their players/students how to knock up properly and take away anxiety in a tournament, many would say yes but only 1 YES would be correct and productive!

So I’ve decided to write this to help coaches and players.

We all know how important it is to train but we struggle to have the same confidence in tournaments as we do in the practice hall.

Table Tennis Pre-Match Knock up
Pre-Match knock up

 

Three key elements which can help your match play performance:

1. Prepare as you do in practice,
Players become instantly aware of their unforced errors when they are knocking up at a tournament.
Stop paying extra attention to your unforced errors on a tournament day, unless you’re aware of them in practice! We take practice for granted and usually we are unaware consciously of unforced errors. In tournaments, if you look at 95% of players you’ll notice they become hyper-aware of each and every error. It’s as if, all of a sudden we make ten times more mistakes compared to our routine practice?!

This couldn’t be further from the truth and in fact, you probably are making fewer errors due to awareness. I suggest having a simple numbers routine in practice e.g. fifty drives and 10 topspin’s both sides. Count how many open ups you get out of ten both wings and notice your ratio as compared to practice. Once you have your practice routine ratios, you can implement this on the big stage and be clear as to whether you are actually not playing well or visa versa.
Having a clear numbers routine gives you a clear view of where your playing level is on any given occasion

2. Warm up properly
90% of players have a good warm-up routine in practice but as soon as they enter the hall, they grab a bat and ball and jump on a table. Why change a routine on the most important occasions? Stick to your routines regardless.
…

3. Your Trade Mark exercise 
Do a regular footwork exercise which you are good at and one that makes you feel good about yourself and your game. Once you find a routine which compliments your game use it to boost your confidence, in tournaments.

Input equals output

Why do something completely different from the way you normally do it? Makes no Sense right? So the answer is simple, keep it the same and the outcome will generally be the same but if you change the input then the output will generally change.

Written by Eli Baraty

eBaTT (Eli Baraty Academy of Table Tennis)
Coach Me Table Tennis 
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How To Improve Your Table Tennis Ball Placement

  • March 1, 2017

One of the hardest things to improve is your table tennis ball placement. I think most of us see the top player hitting the ball hard,  its visually pleasing and we want to emulate them. I was the same, always looking to hit the ball 100 miles per hour irrelevant of what the ball received!


Your form does not predict results:

I was 18 years old and playing some of the best table tennis of my short. I had worked my way up the Grand Prix circuit winning every band and at Bath Grand Prix I was in Band 1. I was in good form going through the rounds. Players included Craig Bryant, Victor Guang and other top England players, in my path towards the final. In the final, I faced England no.67 at the time. I was on firebombing shout from both wings and felt I would wipe the floor with whoever came my way. Oh, how wrong I would prove myself to be! 

I lost 3-0 and before I had a chance to realise what had happened my first band 1 final was over and done with! Everyone who watched the final was shocked, as to how badly I got beaten (3-0).

Picture
Mitchell Jones & Guarav Aravind Table Tennis Training
Try to Learn from your experience

At the time I just took it on the chin and admitted to myself that he was better on that occasion. I continued playing my usual game, of trying to hit every ball hard. A few years down the line after becoming a coach I reflected on that loss. Then it hit me, that player put the ball in places where I was unbalanced making it hard for me to unleash my bombs. He did not possess power shots like me but instead, he had fantastic ball variation, deception and placement. Today I have learnt to adopt that skill alongside power when the opportunity arises.

How did I improve my placement?

1. Putting targets on the table when doing exercises, for example, a piece of paper and then folding it in half every time you hit it. Or to spice things up you can place chess pieces and attempt to hit targets but alongside a thought process e.g. knock the king down and you win the match.
2. Table restriction put a small towel in a certain area of the table. Or as shown (Picture) put barriers in play to restrict the angles or open the angles for one person but not the other. 
3. Watching the opponent and placing the ball into their crossover section or using the angles, depending on where they are standing.

I have placed some pictures and videos (click here).

Good ball placement in Table Tennis

When you learn to place the ball where you wish it to go. You will often hear players saying, “you make me feel uncomfortable and I don’t know exactly what you’re doing?!

Another Tip, take two pieces of paper one on each side. Both players must attempt to hit the opponents paper. When you hit the paper it must be folded in half, making your target smaller and harder to hit. You can increase the difficulty by varying the location of the paper after each hit.

Table Tennis Angles

Focus on the angles given, you have a right and left-hand triangle angle. For example, if you’re hitting the ball from the right-hand side (your side) you have a wide angle to the left-hand side. 

Deep ball placement

A deep ball means towards the end/edge of the table which can also be seen as good ball placement. When knocking up watch where your balls are landing. Notice if they land short and if so amend your shots accordingly.

Placement can be just as powerful if not better than hitting the ball hard…