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[729 fx]

The Loop For Beginners

Discussion here is for shakehanders. Penholders can used the same, albeit on the forehandside only unless playing RPB style.

The loop is the primary attacking stroke of most of the current players today. A loop is basically emphasizes topspin over forward motion. So, a stronger upward motion is required in the swing, brushing the ball instead of hitting it.

Depending on the characteristic of the incoming ball, the loop must be modified to hit the ball correctly. If a ball is coming in fast and high with heavy topspin, the paddle should be more closed and the swing should go forward more. However, if a chop came floating your way, then an upward swing with an open the paddle is used. As the ball touches the paddle for only a short time, as well as meeting on a more perpendicular path(as opposed to the highly parallel paths during a drive), good timing is critical to avoid completely missing the ball altogether. This means keeping a sharp eye on the ball throughout the stroke is important.

FOREHAND LOOP - From the ready position, bring the right foot slightly back and at the same time transfer your weight to it. Rotate your body backwards, bring back the paddle and position it slightly down, depending on which spin you are hitting against. Bend your knees slightly. Start the stroke by rotating the waist and hips forward, and start straightening out the knees to add more force. The forearms should gradually accelerate from the backswing to contact, snapping for maximum speed when you meet the ball. Hit topspin balls at the top of the bounce or while it is dropping. Hit backspin balls while it is dropping. Follow-through forward more for topspins and upward more for backspins. The weight should be completely transferred back to the left foot after brushing the ball.

BACKHAND LOOP - To start, the backswing goes in front of your legs, where you drop your right shoulder a wee bit and keep the eye on the ball no matter what the other parts of your body are doing. Rotate your waist to the left and transfer the weight to the left foot. Against topspin, unwind your waist and hit the ball at the top of the bounce or while it is dropping with a forward motion, but remember to just brush the ball (not driving it). Snap your wrist at contact for more power. Against backspin, apply more of an upward motion, but also add a bit of forward force when follow through.

The Chop

Used mainly by defensive players. Basically this stroke is an extreme backspin shot (compared to push which is not that powerful), the ball tends to travel in a very flat trajectory and bounce low. Chops are always taken when the ball is dropping, often below the table. Any higher than the table and the stroke becomes a push. Defensive players who chops do so to force the other player into an error, and to do this, vary the amount of backspin or change the direction of the shots. Matches against two equally skilled choppers used to be a very long affair till the ITTF comes up with the expediate ruling.(Please refer ITTF Ruling for more details on the Expediate Rules).

FOREHAND CHOP - Put your weight on the back foot when backin up against an incoming ball and bring the arm back and paddle up, while rotating your waist. When the ball has dropped to about the table level, rotate your waist, bring the forearm down, and snap your wrist at the point of contact, which should be at the bottom-back of the ball. The paddle should be open at this point. When chopping, remember to brush the ball just enough to return it over the net. Do not add extra impact that would hit it too long or take away the backspin. The follow-through should be long enough that the arm nearly straightens at the finish of the stroke.

BACKHAND CHOP - Just like the forehand chop, bring the paddle up and the wrist back while rotating the waist. At the same time transfer the weight to the back foot and snap the wrist and follow through all the way. BTW, the point of contact during a chop will depends on the topspin of the ball, that is the more topspin on a ball, the lower it should be taken during a chop and vice versa. This means against a loop, one must bend his knees in order to get low enough to return the heavy topspin. The farther you are from the table, you need to chop down on the ball harder.

[729 fx]

I notice the slight disparity of the stroke movement between a shakehander and a penholder (cpen/jpen).

For a penholder, the wrist is more mobile and flexible, therefore when performing the loop/chop, the stroke hinges more on the wrist/arm/shoulder.
For a shakehander, the waist is used more for the turning of the body whilst the wrist/arm/shoulder movement is minimal due to the non-flexibility of the wrist when holding the bat shakehand style.

[lexlibris1299]

A player should have different variations when using a loop or chop to avoid your opponents from reading your styles. In chops, you can use slowball-but-strong-underspin or fastball-but-weak-underspin. In topspin, you can use an straight-fastball-topspin, slowball-sidespin, or fastball-sidespin.


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