Mid-Distance Loopers: Strengths & How to Beat

Last Updated on April 24, 2024 by Alex Horscroft

The mid-distance looper is well-versed at looping on both flanks.

They prefer to play a little deeper than most players, roughly 3-6 feet from the table. This gives them more time to execute loops. Despite looping on both sides many still have slight favoritism for their forehand.

Banner image — credit: XIAOYU TANG | CC BY_SA 2.0 | unedited

The Mid-Distance Looper in Action

Check out the above vid of Dimitrij Ovtcharov demonstrating his offensive prowess! Of course, he does come close to the table and drift further away for a lot of rallies. But for the most part, he’s a mid-distance looper.

Ovtcharov is well-known for having an exceptional backhand. Other such players include Zhang Jike and Kenta Matsudaira. Matsudaira’s in particular has always fascinated me. I recommend you check it out!

Strengths of the Mid-Distance Looper

1. Good Footwork

Mid-distance loopers have decent footwork compared to other styles. They rarely have bad positioning and will give you a lot of trouble if you keep playing balls to the same area.

2. Able to Attack Any Long Ball

Due to possessing high-quality loops on both sides, mid-distance loopers can attack any long ball. They can also load up their loops with heavy spin — they have little issue against backspin. This makes them dangerous almost everywhere.

You need to be particularly careful when returning serves. It’s not always easy to keep serves short and mid-distance loopers will eat up long serves for breakfast.

3. Outmuscling Opponents in Longer Rallies

Mid-distance loopers feel right at home in longer rallies. They really find their groove when looping and don’t make too many unforced errors. So don’t make it a battle of attrition as I don’t fancy your odds, that is, unless you’re a mid-distance looper yourself!

How to Beat the Mid-Distance Looper

1. Play the Ball Wide

As mid-distance loopers like to take a few steps back from the table, they have a greater lateral distance to cover than many players. Therefore you should exploit this as much as you can.

Remember, often, mid-distance loopers are fairly equally skilled between their backhand and forehand side. This means you have more freedom to play to the forehand side than say against a one-winged looper for instance.

Don’t be afraid to use a little sidespin here and there to help work these angles. For most, fades are a little difficult, but hooks are excellent shots to use against the mid-distance looper.

2. Play the Ball Short

These players are seeking to initiate spinny loop openers from backspin so keep your pushes short. Always try to attack first. But if you fail to do so, and are being undone by their openers, start using banana flicks to bypass them. This way you give yourself a fighting chance in the topspin exchanges.

3. Force Close to the Table Attack

Leading on from pushes, you can try to force close to the table attack with quick counter drives straight off the bounce. Mid-distance loop openers don’t like to attack here, and they might get a little frustrated.

4. Overpower Them

While mid-distance loopers are becoming increasingly more offensive in today’s game, many still lack true power. Therefore you should overwhelm them with your own power shots. Loop kill backspin and topspin balls, and smash anything that is a little too high.

A word of warning regarding smashes. Smashing heavy topspin balls is difficult, and you may lose more points than you win. Therefore I recommend instead smashing weaker loops — those that bounce fairly high or only have moderate spin.

Speaking from experience, receiving smashes as a looper is jarring and annoying. It completely disrupts rhythm and my follow-up is usually weak. So even if the original smash doesn’t win you the point, the successive one just might!

Closing Thoughts

Mid-distance loopers can be a little intimidating to play against because of their high-quality attacking consistency everywhere on the table. With a lot of other styles, you can default to pinning them on the backhand, but this is often not the greatest idea for this kind of player.

So get in the first attack, work those angles, and punish any weak loops that come your way!