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Tactical Versus Strategic Thinking |
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Written by Team JOOLA USA
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Wednesday, 06 February 2008 |
| By Larry Hodges, Head Coach at Club JOOLA in Rockville USATT Certified National Coach and USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame Member |
Tactical thinking and strategic thinking . . . what’s the difference?
- Tactical Thinking is developing tactics for a specific match. For example, if you have a strong backhand, and your opponent has a strong forehand, you might serve short topspin to the opponent’s backhand to force a backhand-backhand exchange, which is tactically to your advantage.
- Strategic Thinking is developing your game for the future. For example, in the above example, you increase your chances of winning by using your current strengths. However, if you instead served short backspin and got your opponent to push it back long, you’d be able to loop. This might not be a current strength, and might not be the best tactical thing to do – but it would enable you to develop your loop, and make you a better player in the long run.
You should develop your game with strategic thinking, and then apply your game with tactical thinking. Many get this backwards and develop their game based on their current tactical situation, and so never develop a strategically sound game that will win at higher levels. It’s better to play most practice matches with strategic thinking, and important matches (tournaments and important league matches) with tactical thinking. |
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