My performance against balls hit to my elbow is horrible.  If I do manage to hit the ball back on the table I am almost always off-balance and unable to make the next shot (often not even getting to the ball).

The following video is a two part training session against the robot.  In the first part the robot is set to throw random balls anywhere from my elbow to my Fh power zone.  In the second part the robot is set to alternately throw balls my elbow and then to the Fh power zone on the Fh side of the table.

The things I notice are:

1. My feet actually move after I hit the ball instead of before I hit the ball.

2. In the random ball part I respond to the elbow ball by only moving my right foot instead of moving both.

3. When moving to the right my right foot is very late to move.  My left foot moves more to the right than it really needs to do while the right foot just stays fixed.  Then after I hit the ball the right foot makes a big move to the right taking me out of position and making me late getting ready for the next ball.

Sure there are other things also. 

With alternating balls I sometimes use the correct footwork, but not often.  With the random balls I do not think I ever get the footwork correct.  In games it is even worse.  I know what I should be doing.  I can shadow the footwork pretty well.  But when a ball gets involved it all falls apart.  Is there something I might be able to focus on that would help me move against balls more like I shadow stroke?  Is it just a matter of shadowing the movement over and over until I can do it against balls?  Is this one of those things that I really need to stop playing for a while and just concentrate on so that I do not undo good shadow work with bad footwork during play?

Mark

The robot is a 2050 type so the frequency is set in seconds instead of 0-10.  For the random balls I think I had it set at about 1.25 sec (just slower than normal game speed of 1.0 sec).  For the alternating balls I think I had it set around 1.75 sec (way slower than game speed) to give me time to adjust and reset myself for each ball.

If I try to drill at game speed (1.0 sec frequency),  it is a total mess.

My best estimate is that 1.0 sec would be about 5.5 on the frequency setting of the 10/2040 type machines.  1.25 sec would be about 5.0 and 1.75 sec would be around 4.  It has been a while since I used a 10/2040 style Newgy with the 0-10 frequency settings so that estimate may not be that accurate.

Mark

I found that your paddle tip is moving upward at the end of the looping. I think the problem may be that you held your paddle too loosely or you moved your wrist (flip your wrist) at the end of the looping. Just my 2 cents.

For me, during a game, I hit the ball, then move once (generally back towards a mutual position), then once the ball is coming at me, I move again. The moment my legs stop moving, I'm going to be late for a ball that comes slightly wide.

I don't know if that'll work for you, it's quite tiring and even at my age (I'm 26), after a min and a half at 50+ balls per minute, my legs burn. But since you're practicing now at a slower pace, maybe give it a try. Hopefully it does work for you.

Mickd,

I know exactly what you are talking about.  Right now my first move is so late and so awkward that I have no hope of making that 2nd move.   I once broke down some pro video and noticed that they often make 3 separate foot adjustments between balls.  I would kill for ability to make 1 smooth balanced move between shots.

Did you see anything, or have something I might try in order to get that first move quicker and better balanced so that  I have at least a shot at making the 2nd move.

Mark

I did see some stuff, maybe they can provide a different way of thinking about it. Of course, this is all just my opinion, so take it for what it's worth (not much)!

You mentioned that you often move your legs after hitting the ball. What I noticed was that you were not necessarily doing that, but instead you were starting to move after your backswing. Generally when I practice like this, my goal is to finish moving by the time I finish my backswing. So the moment I start swinging my arm back, I start moving. The moment I've reached the end of my backswing, my legs have stopped moving and are planted on the ground (or more specifically on the balls of my feet).

That said, it's pretty hard, and most the time, especially during match play, I'm still late to the ball. But during practice, I try to get it right.

To help with moving faster, I've been trying two things.

The first is keeping my center of gravity low (only recently I've been doing this, and it seems to help a lot), and my weight forward by standing more on the balls of my feet. I feel like this gives me more of a spring effect when I move, making it easier to move faster.

The second is using less of the side step movement, and more of the 'move both feet together' movement. I try to spring off both of my feet together, and move them into position without one foot first moving towards the other foot before it starts moving. I find that the quicker the ball comes back, the less time you have to do the sidestep. That said, if I was slowing down the exercise, I'd probably do the sidestep.

Another thing I noticed is that you're waiting for the machine to shoot the ball before you start to move. In a real match situation, you'll usually have an idea of where the ball will go before the opponent actually contacts the ball, so you can actually start moving much earlier. Of course, with the robot you can tell by the direction of the head, but I noticed you were (probably on purpose for the exercise) waiting for the robot to shoot the ball. That said, if you have the robot going slowly, if you move too quickly, you'll end up just waiting for the ball, which kind of defeats the purpose of the exercise as well. I usually like to push the speed up so that I can move, hit the ball, then move and hit the ball again without stopping at all (but not feeling rushed). The moment you stop, it kills the flow.

I hope this helps a little. By the way, if I've said anything wrong, anyone, feel free to correct me. I'm also a learner myself, and have a long way to go before getting to a competent level.

Mickd,

Great tips.  Those are things I can focus on and check with video.

Thanks

Mark

Ameentsharma,

Mickd is correct on how the robot is working. 

I took what is my normal Fh cross-court rally position and by trial and error figured out what position setting went to my elbow.  Then by trial and error I determined the ball position for a normal Fh from that same rally position.  The ball to the normal Fh was really just meant to help me get back into position so the next ball was to my elbow. 

I had done some drills where I set the ball to a fixed location that was at my elbow.   I moved and hit the elbow ball and with a longer delay between balls I then just moved back to the original position and waited for the next elbow ball.  That was good for really being able to focus on the details of the initial movement. But after a few balls it felt way too artificial so I decided to try alternating balls.

Mark

IMO, you are great with your age. I see the timer you set the robot shoot the ball each time a little too slow (not the speed, my meant the frequency), it is not real as a person block the ball for you to loop. You need increase the frequency button higher to let the robot shoot the next ball right after your loop ball touch other side of the table 2/10 second.

If you half of your age right now, I will offer you bend your knee and your back down more then you can move easier to loop. (when you bend and your eye close to the net's high, you can move a lot faster).

You are great in my heart.