Forehand Loop Against Topspin in Table Tennis

Layla Sun (Tranlated by Kyra Tsen)

"Forehand Loop" is one of the most important strokes to attack and score in modern table tennis, and it is a must-learn shot for anyone who is serious about playing table tennis. Compared with the Forehand Drive, the Forehand Loop has higher speed, spin, and power. You will need to make small adjustments with your hand and even fingers the moment you contact the ball.

However, you may not know that there are some secrets in developing your Forehand Loop technique. As you play a Forehand Loop, you may feel yourself releasing energy from deep within your body. But this interesting and impressive experience requires a solid understanding of the basics. If you are still a beginner player, it is recommended to learn the #beginners techniques first. Only in this way can you develop the full potential of your power, and avoid injury. Establishing a good foundation of the basic skills is definitely the key to developing, experiencing, and enjoying advanced table tennis techniques. At this point you will have learned how to "release" your power.

Do you know how aggressive you can be when playing a Forehand Loop? Just look at Fang Bo's Forehand Loop in the picture below! 😉😀😃

Chinese player | Fang Bo

Forehand Loop Breakdown

Forehand Loop Against Topspin

The Forehand Loop can be broken down into five parts – the Stance (Ready Position), the Backswing, the Strike, Follow Through, and the Finish & Recovery. The following explanation applies to right-handed players, while left-handed players will do the opposite.

1. The Stance (Ready Position)

Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Bend your knees slightly, and lean forward, with your heels lifted slightly. For right-handers, place your right foot slightly behind your left foot (to generate power). For detailed instructions, please refer to The Ready Position of Table Tennis.

2. The Backswing

Before hitting the ball, rotate your body backward, and bring the paddle back and slightly down. Put a little more weight on your right foot, as shown in the figure above, during the Backswing.

3. The Strike

The rapid release of momentum begins in the legs and hips. First, use your leg to get power from the ground. Rotate the hips, waist forward and upward to create topspin on the ball. The weight of your body is now transferred to your front foot. Now coming to the forearm, follow the weight transfer between the leg and hip rotation. The angle of the elbow will be between 130-160 degrees. Make contact with the ball at 1 to 2 o'clock position with more spin instead of impact. The diagram below demonstrates the contact position on the ball and the racket angle.

4. Follow Through

Continue the movement of your stroke. The end of the Forehand Loop should have your racket higher and slightly left of and in front of your forehead. The weight of your body has been transferred to your front foot.

5. The Finish & Recovery

Always return to the ready position and be ready for the next shot.

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Demonstration video

Check out our video for the Forehand Loop demonstration. Observe the kinetic chain of motion - from the ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, to elbow.

Forehand Loop GIFs

Even top pros learn these basic and standardized skills in the beginning, and now they play very coordinated and close-to-perfect shots. But have you noticed that there are still differences between each player? See GIFs below! This is also one important lesson - appreciating how unique we and others are, because everyone is inherently different.❤️❤️😀

Chinese player | Zhang Yining

🏓How solid and beautiful her Forehand Loop is!

German player | Timo Boll

🏓He has small but precise movements.

Chinese player | Ma Long

🔔Compare the difference between Forehand Drive and Forehand Loop

🏓This video is at its normal speed. An important skill in playing table tennis is to be fast!

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More Details for Learning Forehand Loop

1. The Contact Position on the Ball and the Racket Angle

The possible contact positions on the ball lie between 1 to 12 o'clock. The top position is referred to as 12 o'clock, and the bottom position is 6 o'clock. The red lines represent the racket angles. For forehand topspin, you hit at between 1 and 2 o'clock position. When encountering strong topspin or high bounce, you can close the racket angle more and hit at the top position (12 or 1 o'clock); if it is weak topspin or lower bounce, hit the ball in the middle position (2 or 3 o'clock).

2. The Optimal Timing for Looping

Another key to playing a loop well is hitting the ball at the right timing. The trajectory of the ball can be divided into 5 timing positions - Early Rise, on the Rise, Highest Position, on the Fall, and Late Fall. So what exactly is the best timing position?

Timing Position of the Ball Trajectory in Table Tennis

Most of the time, we hit at its Highest Position. The ball spins the least at this position and you are more likely to control and return the ball efficiently. Now your next lesson is to react quickly, move fast, and return the ball exactly with the right timing, which is SUPER hard!

Nice and Smooth Forehand Loop

Finally, let's take a look at the Forehand Loop training video of Chinese player Sun Yingsha. It's unbelievably PERFECT! 😮 👍

Sun Yingsha Multi-Location Forehand Loop Drill

After reading the materials and notes, watch again the previous Forehand Loop GIFs of the top players. Do you have any new findings or insights? Feel free to leave a comment below and let us know what you think!

If you like our article, don't forget to share it with your friends too! 🙏😊❤️