8 Ways to Win as an Elderly Table Tennis Player

Last Updated on July 10, 2024 by Alex Horscroft

Getting old is no fun, but it is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to table tennis. While you may feel that you have no hope of competing against players in their prime, this is certainly not the case at most amateur levels. I’ve played hundreds of senior table tennis players over the years, and I’m frequently impressed by the quality of their games.

While elderly table tennis players are hindered by slower reactions, less power, and reduced athleticism, they make up for it by leaning on other areas of their game including technique, accuracy, and high match IQ. Here is how you can breathe new life into your table tennis and give youngsters hell.

How to Play Better As an Elderly Table Tennis Player

1. Pivot to a More Defensive Style

The first step is to refine your style. Most of us play an attacking dominant game which is taxing on the body and tough to maintain in old age. As a result, most older players introduce more defensive shots into their game and you should too. This is not to say that you can’t attack — far from it. You just need to be more selective of which balls you attack. 

What’s more, you should also consider picking up different style rubbers as this will help transition your game. To me, there is no trickier rubber to face than long pips. As an attacker, they are a nightmare to face. Therefore, perhaps consider using a combination of long pips on one side and inverted on the other. With this setup, you can exclusively defend, or attack and defend — shape it how you wish.

2. Be Unorthodox & Difficult to Read

Leading on from this, don’t be afraid to be unorthodox. Most younger players are drilled on the “correct technique”, and when faced with a tricky unorthodox player, they look like a deer in headlights.

Of course, your rubber selection helps with this, but so does your shot selection. Sidespin pushes for one are fairly rare but they’re pretty damn effective. I use them every now and again to force a push out of my opponent so that I can attack. Many players are simply not used to dealing with them, so they work a treat. 

3. Rely on Technique

What if I told you that you have a distinct advantage over younger players? Sounds too good to be true, right? Nevertheless, it’s true. At least, it is for those of you who have years of play under your belt. As older players, you have far more table tennis experience (usually!). Not only does this experience help you keep composed during matches, but it also means you should have great technique.

Contrary to popular belief, table tennis is a tough game to be good at. This is because spin is difficult to get a handle on — it’s not as if you can draw from your experience from other racket sports. No other sport comes close to replicating the level of spin that table tennis has. Tennis? Pfft! Please. That’s baby spin at best! As such, there is no substitute for putting in the hours and learning the game, and guess what? You’ve already invested those hours. Put your acquired technique and finesse to use.

4. Use Quality Serves

One of the best ways to use your finesse is to develop a deadly serve. These are free points that are just begging to be won. Think about it. Every point starts with a serve and you get to take half of them. What’s more, even if a serve doesn’t win you the point outright it can set you up for a quality attack. Pretty good right? So invest some time into working on your serves.

It doesn’t matter which serves you choose to do — just remember variation is key. You should be able to serve anywhere on the table with a variety of spin as this will win you the most points.

5. Focus on Placement 

One of the main advantages younger players have over you is their movement speed. They can usually cover the table pretty well, however, even players in their prime have their limits.

Try to move them around as much as possible, and constantly switch between wide on their forehand and wide on their backhand. Also, use their own speed against them. While powerful attacks can be deadly, they can be equally difficult to handle if returned. Often, all you need to do is play a precise block to the opposite position they play the smash from. Their speed does all the work. Just get your racket behind the ball and direct it. 

6. Play Close to the Table

Now to address your limitations when it comes to movement, because you can be sure that any half-decent player will exploit you here. Unfortunately, there’s no magic pill to rewind the years (although that would be cool!), so you instead have to think wisely about your shot execution and limitations.

As a general rule, stick fairly close to the table. While this gives you less time to react, it also means you have to cover less distance. Furthermore, exercise caution at being too forehand dominant (as is typical of attackers). The only reason forehand dominant players can get away with this style is because they have the athleticism to quickly shift to cover wide forehand shots. You, unfortunately, do not have this luxury. So be conscious of leaving yourself too vulnerable.

7. Limit Your Opponent’s Attacking Options

The attacking style is dominant for a reason — it works. More so than other styles. As we’ve already discussed, it’s tough to maintain a highly attacking style with old age, so fighting fire with fire is largely off the table. Instead, you need to prevent your opponent from being able to attack well.

The best way to do this is through effective pushing. What I mean by this is to be difficult and not let them attack for free. Utilize short pushes, play them wide on both the forehand and backhand, and sometimes load up random pushes with heavy backspin. 

The more backspin a push has, the harder it is to attack with speed, making any return your opponent makes more manageable for you. Ultimately though, you want to be unpredictable. While it might seem as though many younger players have super footwork, in reality, most are not that exceptional. 

Many will struggle against an unorthodox and deceptive pusher. I’ve seen firsthand how these younger players lack patience and will attack the ball when their feet are not in the right place. These sorts of attacks are exactly what you want to take advantage of. 

8. Develop Match IQ and Exploit Weaknesses

Similar to having great technique through years of play, you should have also developed excellent match IQ. This is an under-utilized facet of table tennis and can help you beat players much stronger than yourself.

Try to analyze your opponent’s game at every level and look for weaknesses that you can exploit. Almost every player has one or two fairly obvious weaknesses that you can spot if you have a keen eye. Once you’ve identified these weaknesses, form a game plan and put it into action. If this works, great! If not, iterate until it does or shift to a new strategy. 

Final Thoughts

So there you have it! You don’t need to be in your mid-twenties to kill it at table tennis. You just need to be savvy with the skills at your disposal as an elderly table tennis player. Hey! You might even become a better player now than when you were younger!

Other Fun Reads