National Players Teach You How to Handle Long-Pips Players
This is a brand-new, technique-focused column in a question-and-answer format. The mystery figure answering is a former national team member, a veteran coach. So the “Reaching the Summit” column was born.
Can you briefly say what spin long pips produce when adding force with different strokes? I have no problem against defensive long pips now, but against those who attack with long pips, the rhythm and spin get muddled fast.
Long pips itself has no spin — only reverse-spin. If you serve a flat ball (no-spin) over, however the opponent adds force, the return has no spin. But when long pips hits hard, when the ball comes, you still feel it a bit heavy. That is not spin, just a “sink” somewhat like raw rubber. If the opponent uses long pips to fire a fast ball over, you need not watch his bat angle. This ball over is a flat ball, but a bit heavy. If you do not loop, do not push, only push or attack, you easily net it.
How to play long-pips opponents? Against long pips, no sidespin — or his return will float. Also not near the net, or he easily fires actively; try to play the arc longer. When serving, fire little, do not serve dead-spin, or he easily borrows pace and spin. Best, serve a slow long no-spin ball; he can only lightly bump it over, and you just slam it.
(Heima’s addition: the above is the method against most long pips, but some weirder cured illegal long pips may differ in performance. The above only gives the main idea.)
If you serve a flat ball, no-spin, over, the opponent receives, and your return often goes off the table — that is not because his return is topspin. It may just be: you loop with an underspin-looping stroke, so it goes off; or because your body does not brace, and you lean back finding the ball, so it goes off. Generally, long pips only has reverse-spin, not easily creating spin. A long-pips chop and attack work the same in principle. If the previous ball is underspin, the long-pips return — whether attacking, looping or chopping — is topspin or no-spin.