US Run at World Junior Championships Comes to an End
(Courtesy of Matt Hetherington)  Crystal Wang was the last player standing at the ITTF World Junior Championships in Cape Town from the USA contingent. She reached the last 16 of the Junior Girls Singles after a brilliant and convincing  Round of 32 4-0 win over Russia's Maria Tailakova, currently ranked 167 in the World on the ITTF Women's World Ranking, a very impressive victory especially by such a margin.
In her Round of 32 match Amy Wang almost made it past the post against Puerto Rico's international star Adriana Diaz who is currently ranked in the top 100 players in the World. It was Wang who struck early and despite leveling in the 2nd, the US player soared off to a 3-1 lead. Just one game away from defeating Diaz who reached a height of 80th in the world this year in June, it would have been the perfect upset. Unfortunately the Puerto Rican had plenty more tricks up her sleeve and battled her way back into the match to take the next 3 games and seal a 4-3 victory. An incredible performance... Read More
The Foundry Promises to Be Outstanding Venue
( Courtesy of USATT) The US Open Finals session is moving to The Foundry at SLS and promises to be as spectacular as ever, if not more! With a handful of international stars confirmed in the Open Singles event, both finals are sure to be nothing short of inspiring.
The Foundry is a more spacious venue than previously and is in close proximity to the Las Vegas Convention Center where the main events for the 2016 US Open will be held. Finals night is Friday December 16 and we welcome all players and spectators alike to join us for a night of great table tennis. All holders of a player, coach or tournament pass receive a $10 discount on any tickets purchased for the evening from general admission to reserved seating. 
Tickets will be available from the registration desk at the convention center from December 11 or on the night at The Foundry ticketing entrance... Read More
Lily Yip Determined to Turn New Jersey's Pillar College into Ping Pong Powerhouse
(Courtesy of Kristian Dyer)  Lily Yip is the next coach in New Jersey tasked with building a top-tier athletics program at the collegiate level. Unlike high-profile hires such as Rutgers football's head coach Chris Ash, Yip's program is far from the bright lights of the gridiron in the Big Ten but for this highly-decorated, former Olympian doesn't dissuade her from her mission.
She is convinced that Pillar College (with literally no history in athletics) can become a highly-ranked and respected program in, of all sports, table tennis.
On Tuesday, Yip was introduced as the first-ever head coach at Pillar College, a school based across three campuses in New Jersey and boasts a growing student body of 637 students. Pillar has never had a table tennis team before; in fact this is the Christian college's first foray into athletics beyond intramural sports. They will ... Read More
2016 Annual Topspin Charity Event Puts Table Tennis on Center Stage in New York City
(Courtesy of Matt Hetherington)  The annual Topspin Charity event was staged on the evening of December 1 at the Metropolitan Pavilion at the heart of New York City and featured table tennis in multiple entertaining forms. The annual event helps raise money for youth education in New York City and draws corporates, celebrities and pro players alike to a single great cause.
The high profile event kicked off in the city yesterday evening with the support of Topspin Charity, sponsors, Joola and USATT. A large group of donors, supporters and players descended on the metro pavilion to enjoy the event. Decorated with a multitude of pop-up food stalls, a bar and a large handful of table tennis tables, the event features a Corporate Tournament, Celebrity Tournament and Pro Tournament.
The former NY Knicks star John Wallace showed great resolve in claiming . .. Read More
Who Needs a Bat? Unbelievable Table Tennis Shot with Hand!
( Courtesy of TableTennisDaily) So unbelievable might not exactly be the right word, but this novelty video has some comedy value to it. The player on the far side of the table fumbles his paddle after service and ends up dropping it. 
Rather than stand there helpless he really goes after the return ball...with his hand. In terms of technique he deserves some credit, he managed to hit a hand forehand at high speed with quite good form!
In case you were wondering the point is not legal. You can hit the ball with any part of your hand up to your wrist, however this is not the case when your hand is not in contact with the paddle. 
Either way you have to give him some credit for pulling of a fairly magnificent and clean forehand loop with his hand. His opponent had no idea what hit him and actually missed his return. Seemed he may have imparted a bit of hook on the ball too! ... Watch Now!
Feng Tianwei Shocks Ding Ning in Chinese Super League
(Courtesy of Straits Times)  Singapore table tennis star Feng Tianwei created shockwaves in the Chinese Table Tennis Super League on Sunday (Dec 4).
The 30-year-old, representing the club Ordos 1980, shocked Olympic champion and world No.1 Ding Ning 12-10, 13-15, 2-11, 11-7, 7-5 yesterday. Ding was representing her club Beijing Shougang in the competition.
Feng, the world No. 6, also comfortably beat another Chinese player, Li Jiayuan, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8.  The Chinese Super League is reportedly the world's biggest table tennis league competition. It boasts world-class players such as Chinese world and Olympic champions like Ma Lin, Wang Liqin, Zhang Jike, Zhang Yining and Li Xiaoxia, as well as Ding and Feng.
Feng's performance is a boost for the player following her shock axing from the Singapore national set-up in October. Then, Singapore Table Tennis ... Read More
Devastating John Doe
(Courtesy of Samson Dubina)  The tournament published the draws the night before the event.  You found out that you are going to play against Hou Yingchao in your opening match of men's singles at 9am.  You immediately take out your pen and paper and write down some note of how to play him.  You arrive in the gym at 7:45am and train accordingly.  Just then... Without warning...
You hear a tournament announcement for you to play your opening round against John Doe.  What?  You had mentally and physically prepared to play against Hou Yingchao.  Who is John Doe anyway?  What style does he play?  What should be your tactics?
There are basically two main elements to beating an unknown opponent - knowing your game and learning your opponent's game!!!
The main things that I always remind myself are that my serve is good, I am very confident in serve return, I have very spinny loops, I can move very fast. .. Read Now
Kunal Chodri Interview - Rahul Acharya
(Courtesy of Rahul Acharya)  17 year old Kunal Chodri is a well-known player in the USA Table Tennis community. His near-impossible comebacks and impeccable touch make him one of West Coast's top talents. 
At just 11 years of age, Kunal won the U13 title at the 2011 U.S. Open, thus marking the beginning of a remarkable career. Kunal went on to join the ITTF World Hopes Team the same year, and subsequently, earned spots on the U.S. National Teams for every age category.
I had the opportunity to ask Kunal a few questions. I hope you enjoy getting to know him!
Quick facts about Kunal:
Highest USATT rating 2601
2016 U.S. National Men's Team Member
Four-time U.S. National Junior BoysTeam Member (2016, 2014, 2013, . .. Read More
History of USATT - Volume XVIII - Chapter 11
(Courtesy of Tim Boggan) 1990 Nov. Tournaments
 The Pacific Rim Open, held on 22 tables in two gyms at Benson High School in Portland, Oregon Nov. 17-18 was, by all accounts, a very successful tournament. Nineteen players from Gotemba, Japan won 9 trophies and gave us a truly Pacific Rim flavor. When they arrived at the Portland Table Tennis Club Thursday night, they gave us their level order. We played each of them two games and established tentative ratings for their placement in 4 events apiece. 
Their acceptance letter had indicated a desire to learn improved techniques, whereas it seemed they were the teachers. 
The Men's Open final was a great 5-game match between US Champion Sean O'Neill and Pacific Northwest Champion Quang Bui. Great because Quang pulled out a thrilling 24-22 third game to go up 2-1 at the break. Great because Sean jacked... Read More
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