Table tennis grips and playing styles

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Table tennis is unique among racket sports in that it supports a wide variety of playing styles and methods of gripping the racket, at even the highest levels of play. This article describes some of the most common table tennis grips and playing styles seen in competitive play. The playing styles listed in this article are broad categories with fuzzy boundaries, and most players will possess some combination of these styles while leaning towards a "favorite". Many advanced players will also add some "special" shots of their own.

As of 2023^[update], shakehand grips and attack-oriented playing styles are the most popular styles in high-level play. While many argue that this is because shakehand grips and attacking styles have a competitive advantage, it is also true that the shakehand grip is easier to learn as a beginner, and attack-oriented playing styles have broader aesthetic appeal than defensive playing styles. Regardless, players with a variety of playing styles and grip techniques still manage to play and win tournaments at the highest level.

In the 1970s, most European teams focused on training all of their players with the same equipment and playing style: shakehand grip with inverted rubber on the racket, playing a loop-focused attacking style, using the forehand to cover 2/3 of the table and backhand to cover 1/3 of the table. In contrast, the Chinese team maintained a wide variety of playing styles, equipment, and grip variations among their players.^[1] The diversity maintained by the Chinese team is no doubt a factor in their dominance of the sport over the past several decades, and European teams have recently figured this out and followed suit.