Physical Education 3 Page 1 of 7

Types of Grips and Footwork

LESSON PROPER:
Let’s Begin!

Module 10: Types of Grips and Footwork

Grip in table tennis is the way one player holds the racket. There are three different styles of holding a bat
and different player has either one or both styles of holding the racquet.

Types of Grip

Penhold - Styles have suffered in recent years due to their inherent weakness on the backhand side. This
weakness makes it much harder for penhold beginners to perform well against their shakehand
counterparts. However, this has not stopped the top penhold players from winning the World
Championships, the World Cup and the Olympic Games regularly, as the backhand weakness can be
covered adequately with excellent footwork, or supplemented with the recent reverse penhold backhand
loop innovation.

Penhold
Source: https://revspin.net/dictionary/penhold-grip/#:~:text=Penhold%20is%20the%20Asian

Shakehand Grip - Possibly the oldest surviving grip since the table tennis racket took its current shape.
This is similar to a tennis grip with the index finger extended over the racket head perpendicular to the
handle. This grip allows almost even power distribution over forehand and backhand shots, but has a wider
crossover point in between.
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Types of Grips and Footwork

Shakehand
Source: https://www.greenpaddle.com/blogs/posts/different-types-of-table-tennis-grips

Seemiller Grip - A grip that was made famous by Dan Seemiller, an American champion. This grip is a
variation of the shakehand grip, but closely resembles the western grip used by many tennis players. In the
Seemiller grip, the tip of the forefinger is placed so it reaches near the edge of the bat (or, in the case of
another American champion, Eric Boggan, actually wraps around the edge of the bat).

Seemiller grip
Source: https://web.facebook.com/pages/category/Personal-Blog/Table-tennis-daily-
403374223793862/?_rdc=1&_rdr

V-Grip - An experimental style being developed in China, it is held by forming a "V for victory" sign and
gripping the blade between the forefinger and middle finger, whilst having the other fingers rest under and
on top of the handle; it requires a modified blade to grip successfully.
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Types of Grips and Footwork

V-Grip
Source: https://www.greenpaddle.com/blogs/posts/different-types-of-table-tennis-grips#:~:text=(Sample%20V

Two types of Basic strokes

Backhand – A shot executed where the back of your hand is pointing towards the opponent, to the left of
the elbow for a right handed player and vice versa for a left hander player.

Backhand stroke
Source: https://blog.playo.co/how-to-hold-your-table-tennis-racket/holding-table-tennis-racket/

Forehand – A shot executed where the palm of your hand is facing your opponent, to the right side of the
elbow for a right handed player and vice versa for a left hander player.
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Types of Grips and Footwork

Forehand stroke
Source: https://www.shutterstock.com/search/forehand+push#:~:text=Try%20these%20curated%20collections

Footwork
Footwork - It is the basic step for all strokes.
One of the keys to playing a good game of table tennis is having good footwork. Proper footwork would
allow you to move more efficiently such that you would be able to execute better, more accurate returns.

Side to side Footwork

When to use this? This is the main footwork pattern used in table tennis.
This is done swiftly when you are close to the table. Always move your outside foot whether you are
moving to the left or right.
Starting from your base position, to move from a backhand to a forehand, you move from your left foot to
the right foot followed by your left then back to the right foot, creating short quick steps in a shuffling pattern
from side to side.
As for moving from a forehand to a backhand, you start moving your right foot first before you’re left and
then right and lastly left.

Side to Side Footwork

Source: https://blog.playo.co/how-to-hold-your-table-tennis-racket/holding-table-tennis-racket/
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Types of Grips and Footwork
In and Out Footwork
When to use this? This is employed to return a short service.
To make this return, move your body forwards (IN) to reach the ball to play your stroke and afterwards
return back (OUT) to the ready position.
When moving inwards towards the ball, step your right foot forward positioning your right leg under the
table. After playing your shot, return back to the base position.
Your left foot moves followed by the movement of your right foot under the table. After playing your stroke,
your right foot then moves back outwards and your left foot returns back to base position.

In and Out Footwork

Source: https://www.myactivesg.com/Sports/Table-Tennis/Training-Method/Table-Tennis-for-Beginners/What-is-the

Crossover Footwork

When to use this? When you need to return at a faster pace.

If the ball advances wide to your forehand side, you can use this crossover footwork pattern as it is faster
than using the side to side footwork. As the name suggests, your legs cross over each other for you to
reach and catch the oncoming ball at a faster pace.

To move from the backhand side to the wide forehand side, you cross your leg foot wide to the right side.
Then using the left foot as a pivot, shift your weight to your left foot. You should transfer your body
rightwards and move your right foot across as you play your shot.
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Types of Grips and Footwork

Crossover Footwork
Source: https://www.tabletennisdaily.com/forum/content.php?710-Stiga-s-Xu-Xin-is-the-new-World-Number-1-Table)

One Step Footwork

When to use this? This is used as a last resort when you have no time to react.
Sometimes during table tennis matches, we may not have much time to react. Therefore, you may be
forced to use a one-step movement to move from one position to another. This would generally result in a
non-optimal or an awkward position. It is typically used for employing a blocking stroke.

A one step movement is executed by pushing off with a stationary foot into a wider stance followed by
playing of the ball and finally returning back to base position for better balance.

The goal of proper footwork is to position the body in optimal positions before the beginning of a stroke.
Footwork should never be neglected during table tennis training. Other than improving your footwork, you
may also want to have a look at these solo table tennis drills you can practice without a partner.

One Step Footwork

Source: https://pingpongruler.com/basic-table-tennis-
skills/#:~:text=Before%20hitting%20your%20first%20shot%20it%E2%80%99s%20worth%20getting%20your%20body
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Types of Grips and Footwork
Pivot step
This occurs when you wish to play a forehand stroke from the backhand corner. There are two different
ways to accomplish this. Some players bring the right foot round behind the left and then adjust the left.
Others move the left first a little out and then bring the right round after.

Pivot Step

Source: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Table-Tennis%3A-Steps-to-Success-
McAfee/7fa20455fc7317f15bd0de854596b8404425dcd3#:~:text=figure%203.28