Last Updated on May 23, 2023
A player should practice different types of ping pong grips to play so the comfortable grip regarding hand moment can be chosen and rehearse for perfect strokes.
There are various types of ping pong grips used by the pro of the gamers. Few of them are discussed below:
Different Types of Ping Pong Grips
Shake hand grip
This grip technique is evolved from western players and get popularity among Asian and European players too.
As the name suggests, the technique to grip the paddle is like shaking hands. The sub-categories of these techniques include deep grip and shallow grip.
Ping Pong Deep Shake Hand Grip
The position of the thumb in this technique is on the paddle’s rubber. It does not allow much wrist flexibility to the player and gives a tight grip to the paddle.
This grip style is popular as it gives a more accurate attack with plenty of force.
When the ball needs to strike from the table edge, this grip helps a lot.
Also, this grip is meant to be ideal for backhand and forehand. It can easily be switch from side to side technique.
Ping Pong Shallow Shake Hand Grip
This grip is popular among the beginners as it gives outstanding flexibility of the wrist which helps in improving the skill of spinning the ball while serving or in loop execution.
This helps return the ball towards the opponents conveniently than other grips. To attack the opponent with the same energy from any position.
The shallow grip gives more exert more force on the strike which makes it perfect for backhand and forehand strokes.
It gives a lot of space on the table which helps attack the ball with the same strength and swing.
Penhold grip
This is another popular grip or holding posture which includes three styles in it: reverse backhand, Korean or Japanese grip, and Chinese grip.
The penhold grip as the name suggests is like holding a pen, the index finger touches the thumb on the front of the paddle and the rest of the hand folds at the back.
Reverse Back Hand Grip
It is as same as the Penhold grip in which both sides of the paddle are used for backhand and forehand stroke, but the reverse backhand grips allow the backside of the paddle as well.
This posture is very helpful in attacking the short balls in critical situations in the game.
Korean or Japanese Penhold Grip
In this technique, the fingers on the backside of the paddle are placed straight.
This allows executing the forehand stroke with a lot more force and power which helps attack the ball from the spot which is far away from the table.
The blade movement got limited as the fingers at the back needs to be straight for the force. It becomes challenging as the angle variates by the direction of the ball coming.
This is a difficult technique for beginners and needs to be master with a lot of practice.
Chinese Penhold Grip
This technique is more popular among Asian players. In this grip, the player holds the paddle in such a way that the blade of the paddle faces the ground.
It is helpful for the players who like to play close to the table.
As compared to the shake hand grip, the Chinese penhold grip offers a more flexible posture to the player which eventually gives the privilege to spin the ball like a pro in the attacking side. It is also helpful in serving the ball.
It is easy for a player to push and block the ball at the back-hand side as it gives freedom of bending the wrist from backhand stroke as well as forehand stroke. It is also helpful in locking away the crossover point.
Seemiller grip
This technique is a variant form of the shake hand grip.
The forefinger tip of your hand is positioned close to the edge or around the edge, index and thumb are held either side at the angle of 90-degree turns.
V-Grip Technique
In this technique, the blade is held between the middle and index finger forming a V-shaped posture.
The grip is formed when the two fingers curled down through blade and thumb is placed anywhere it is comfortable.
The V-shape grip helps spin with more power in attacking which makes it ideal while taking the wide-angle shots, acquiring more stable control over it.
Conclusion
Table tennis or ping pong is a racket sport in which the player uses a paddle as a weapon at hand to serve the ball.
To learn it and master it, the player needs to learn the technique, skill footwork forth moment and momentum of the body during sport is the basic things to learn so one can wield the weapon at hand.
The combination of strokes and how they are executed are the main strategy behind winning the game.
For the perfection of strokes, one needs to learn how to hold the paddle first and master it.
Practice makes perfection, constant practice is necessary, but the point is how a player is comfortable with it.