When people ask me what I do for a living, and I tell them I coach table tennis, more often than not the response is, 'Oh, I play table tennis'. What they really mean is that they have knocked a poor little cellulose ball about either on holiday, at home in the garage, at work, at a youth or sports Club, and have enjoyed it. Table tennis is played in all walks of life and appeals to all age groups. There are competitions for those under eleven years of age to veterans of over forty. In fact, table tennis can, and does, span a lifetime of enjoyment. You can find competitions to suit all abilities whether you play at school, college, work, youth Club, in a holiday competition, or in an organized tournament. Such is the span of table tennis. Many people start playing table tennis just for fun but, as they improve, their interest snowballs and they become fanatics of a fascinating sport. My intention in this book is to give the aspiring player an insight into the various styles of play. There are many books about table tennis for the beginner covering only the basic strokes. In this book, although I will remind you of these basic principles, I will be moving on to intermediate and advanced stages of play.

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