Q&A for How to Be Good at Ping Pong

Never wash your paddle in the dishwasher. The paddle is held together with glue and hot water will undo the glue and your paddle will fall apart. Just wash off your paddle with warm water.

Practice without him knowing, then surprise him with your skill.

Angle your racket down a bit. Hit in with an upward motion while you use your wrist to turn the racket further down when you hit the ball. This will impart a downward spin (topspin) on the ball. Practice makes perfect. A topspin serve can be very effective if your opponent isn't ready for it.

You can get some of your friends interested in it. You can invite them over to try it and see if they like it, which most people do.

First determine your budget and also look into your amount of experience and projected usage. Don't go out and get a $3K table if you're just starting out and don't have people to play against.

You don't need to. You can just play. It's a fun sport. Concentrate when you are in a real match, and that comes fairly naturally.

It isn't possible, given the dimensions of an average throat. If you put it inside your mouth, take it off and brush your teeth, because that object touches the ground really often and is not hygienic at all.

You can look in sports stores for fancy ones or just go to Walmart, Target or the Dollar Tree for beginner, medium, or even advanced level ones.

You can't play a normal match. You could, however, practice your skills (aiming, serving, forehand, backhand) against a wall.

Angle your racket down a bit. Hit it with an upward motion while you use your wrist to turn the racket further down when you hit the ball. This will impart a downward spin (topspin) on the ball. Practice makes perfect. A topspin serve can be very effective if your opponent isn't ready for it.

Play frequently against an opponent that is better than you. The more you play, the faster your reflexes get.

Try to hit the ball as low as possible. Train your reflexes, or give them a taste of their own medicine by doing hard shots as well.

Look on YouTube. YouTube has amazingly skilled players, and there are lots of tutorials.

Position the table against the wall and use the wall as your opponent!

Practice, practice practice!! Plus, it also helps to play against more advanced player to bring up your game. But the most effective thing you can do is just practice your best moves and create a game plan.

When your opponent is very aggressive, you need to tire him out, mentally and physically. Go left, right, left, right in the deep end of the table. Then, after a while, do a short shot with backspin on it. This will either cause him to lose or to pull his back, both resulting in your victory.

Both are equally important! Timing is key for making sure the ping pong ball gets back over to the other side, and footwork helps maneuver your moves well. Practice both!

No, getting a table tennis coach or an experienced table tennis player to teach you is better.

Hit the ball in the opposite direction of the spin to cancel it out. Remember, power will affect how the ball travels, and how it spins. Too much and it'll go out of bounds. Too little and it will hit your side of the net. It's finicky when you first try it out. Over time, your brain will know what to do if you practice enough.

You can add backspin to the ball by slicing underneath it with your racket/paddle.