10. People Who Complain About Long Pips/Antispin
These are usually players who use speed glue, and who have never taken the trouble to learn how to play against long pimples or antispin. It's not that hard guys, so deal with it. You don't hear me complaining over and over again about your speed glue, do you? (See previous page!)11. Table Tennis on TV
Firstly, there's not enough of it. Secondly, the TV networks often seem to use commentators who don't have the first clue about ping-pong, apart from the usual factoids that get repeated over and over. After hearing that a smash can travel faster than 100mph for the tenth time, I certainly feel like smashing something!12. Politics
I think this is true of sports everywhere, but sometimes I feel that there is just too much infighting and political backstabbing going on. Meanwhile there are a number of more important issues not getting dealt with. You should be in table tennis to promote the sport, not yourself or your own agendas.13. Lack of Appreciation for Volunteers
Volunteers are the backbone of most table tennis organizations around the world, and generally don't get enough thanks or recognition for the great work they do. Remember that those umpires, tournament directors, referees, canteen staff etc are giving up their own valuable time to allow you, the player, to enjoy yourself. So try to be a bit more appreciative of the good work they do, and more forgiving of the mistakes that they do make.14. Players Who Un-Volunteer
Many tournaments around the world rely on players that lose in a match to be an umpire in the next round, or another event. Those players who disappear after losing make life harder for the Tournament Director who has to find a replacement umpire, and cause everybody else to have to umpire more often. Show some character and do the right thing - you lost, now pay the penalty!15. People Who Think They Are a Champion
I think it's great that just about everybody has played ping-pong at sometime or another, and that it's possible for everyone to play and enjoy the game. But the flipside is that some people don't show the elite players the respect they deserve. When's the last time you heard weekend tennis players saying they could train a year or two and take on Roger Federer? Or thinking that they know everything there is to know about the sport? But you hear the table tennis equivalent of this all too frequently.Let's get it straight - table tennis is easy to learn to play, but very difficult to master. It takes years of hard training to get to that elite level, so thinking that you will do this in a year or two just shows your lack of understanding about the sport.
Conclusion
Phew! It feels much better to get all that off my chest. Now it's time to get back on the table again!Got a pet peeve of your own? Feel free to state your opinion in the forum, and I'll add it to a readers' list!
