Beginner's Guide to Serving in Table Tennis/ Ping-Pong

Ping-pong beginners often concentrate on their rallying strokes (fun), and do not give much thought about their serves (boring!). In this article I'm going to explain why this is a mistake that you should avoid. I'll also give you some theoretical and practical tips on how to improve your serving, and discuss what to do once you have mastered the serving basics. This information can be broken down into the following topics:

• Why is the Serve Important in Table Tennis?
• How to Improve Your Serve - Theoretical Advice
• How to Improve Your Serve - Practical Advice
• How to Troubleshoot Your Serve

Once you have mastered the 4 basic serves, along with the no spin variations, and can troubleshoot them when necessary, you will be ready to begin working on your advanced serving techniques. These include the use of the forehand pendulum serve, and the forehand reverse pendulum serve, (currently the most popular serves in advanced table tennis) and other less used variations. These serves and their use will be the subject of attention in the advanced section of this site.

Next: It's always great to have good serves, but don't forget your opponent will probably have some too! With that in mind, it's time to take a detailed look at improving your return of service in ping-pong.

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