#1 Table Tennis Psychologist
Play your best when points get tight
A few rushed points can change a table tennis match. You might force your forehand, second-guess a serve receive, or lose your footwork after an error. Work with our table tennis sport psychologists to reset between points and regain focus.
1-on-1
sessions built for you
24 Hour
response time to new enquiries
WEBCAM
sessions possible
Sessions
at times that suit you
Stay switched on through every drill
You can start a session strong, then lose concentration halfway through multiball, serve-and-receive drills, or practice. A few loose balls turn into frustration, your footwork gets lazy, and you start going through the motions instead of working on what the drill is meant to teach.
Our table tennis psychologist can help you develop ways to stay engaged when training gets repetitive or frustrating. You’ll work on attention cues, between-drill routines, and responses to poor practice points, then use them during your training sessions and tournaments.
Play better when the match demands more
The mental side of table tennis shows up in the moments when technique alone doesn’t settle things. You might tighten up when serving or change your shot selection after making easy errors. We can help you stay focused between points and make better shot choices when an opponent or match pressure disrupts your game.
Handle pressure between points
Table tennis gives you seconds to reset, read the situation, and prepare for the next ball. Develop routines that keep your attention on the serve, receive, rally, and tactical cue in front of you.
Manage match nerves
Tournament nerves can affect your timing, grip, footwork, and willingness to attack. Learn ways to settle your mind before the first serve and stay composed once competition gets underway.
Recover quickly after errors
A missed serve or easy forehand can stay in your head long after the point ends. Build a healthy strategy that helps you acknowledge the mistake, refocus, and prepare for the next point.
Make decisions under pressure
Nerves can make you push when you'd normally attack, rush your serve, or hesitate over a receive. Work on decision-making routines that help you choose your shot and commit to it when the score gets tight.
Adapt to difficult opponents
Defenders, blockers, and heavy-spin players can disrupt your usual patterns and change the pace of a tournament. Learn how to adjust your tactics while staying patient, focused, and committed to your game under pressure.
Build routines for training
Mental skills need practice before you take them into competition. Develop routines for serve practice, multiball, match play, and tournament preparation that you can use during your normal table tennis sessions.
Meet the team that understands what affects your game at the table
Table tennis demands quick decisions, constant adjustments to spin and pace, and the ability to reset within seconds. Our sport psychologists work with athletes on the mental side of performance, using the situations you face at the table.
Brian Langsworth
Michelle Pain
Harley de Vos
David Barracosa
Gareth J Mole
Madalyn Incognito
Darren Godwin
Alexandra Mapstone
James Kneller
Lauren Bischoff
Chris Pomfret
Ready to work with a table tennis psychologist?
Fill out our enquiries form
Tell us where you're struggling and what's been happening in your tournaments or training. You might be losing your focus late in games, getting nervous before tournaments, or struggling to reset after mistakes. We'll aim to get back to you within 24 hours.
Speak with Lizzie or Tara
One of our New Enquiries Officers, Lizzie or Tara, will give you a call to hear more about what you're dealing with and what you'd like to work on. They'll answer your questions, explain the Monthly Options, and give you an idea of what 1-on-1 sessions are like.
Get paired with a sport psychologist
Based on your needs, we'll recommend the psychologist who can best support your development. That could be struggling against defenders, changing your shots when you're nervous, losing your head after a bad point, or finding it hard to close out games.
Begin your mental training
In Mental Toughness Training, you'll work 1-on-1 with your performance coach on the concerns you've identified. You'll practise mental skills and routines that you can use during drills, practice matches, club nights, and tournaments throughout the competitive season.
Reset mentally for the next point
You miss an easy forehand, lose a long rally, or serve into the net, and the mistake keeps playing in your head. That can affect the next serve, receive, or rally. Work on a between-point routine that helps you leave the last ball behind and focus on the next one.
Keep your decisions steady at 9–9
Tight games can change how you play. You might push when you’d normally attack, rush a serve, or hesitate over a receive because you’re worried about giving away the point. Before long, you’re making decisions based on the score rather than the situation in front of you.
Our table tennis sports psychologists can help you prepare for these moments in advance. You’ll work on mental routines, decision-making, and ways to respond when the score gets tight, so you can stick with your tactics, adapt to your opponent, and commit to the shot you’ve chosen.
Reach out to start 1-on-1 mental toughness
Your serves, receives, footwork, and tactics all need to hold up when the pressure rises. Get support with nerves, concentration, confidence, mistakes, and staying composed when things get tight.
FAQs our table tennis psychologist gets
Does positive self-talk help at the table?
It can, but only if it gives you something useful to work with. Repeating “come on, you’ve got this” when you’re struggling may not change much if you don’t believe it. In some situations, it can even make you more aware that you’re trying to convince yourself to feel confident.
A better approach is to use short, believable cues that relate to what you need to do. You might remind yourself to watch the ball, stay patient, commit to the shot, or reset after an error. The cue should match the problem you’re dealing with.
We can work out which situations cause your thinking to become unhelpful and develop language that works for your game. You can then practise using those cues in training, so they’re familiar when you need them during competition.
Why do I play well in training but struggle in tournaments?
Training and competition put you in very different situations. We’ll look at what’s happening in your game, identify the situations that cause problems, and work on psychological strategies you can use at the table.
You might lose focus after an unforced error, become hesitant against a stronger opponent, or start playing differently when you’re ahead. These patterns are usually more useful to work on than trying to “be more confident.”
The goal is to help you handle the pressure without changing the way you play. We’ll work on between-point routines, focus cues, decision-making, and ways to respond when things don’t go your way. That gives you a better chance of taking the game you show in training into competition.
How can I stop overthinking during tournaments?
You can stop overthinking by giving yourself something specific to focus on between points. Instead of thinking about the score, your last mistake, or what might happen next, bring your attention back to the next serve, receive, or rally.
You might overthink more when you make a few mistakes, get close to winning, or face an unfamiliar opponent. Knowing your triggers makes it easier to recognise when you’re starting to get caught up in your thoughts.
We can help you develop a simple reset routine and focus cues that you can use during tournaments. The goal is to get your attention back on playing the point rather than trying to control everything happening around you.
How can I handle nerves before a tournament?
You can handle nerves by controlling your preparation, using a consistent warm-up routine, and focusing on what you need to do rather than the result. You might still feel nervous, but you’ll have a plan for dealing with those feelings instead of letting them dictate how you play.
It also helps to understand what your nerves look like. You might rush your warm-up, overthink your first few points, worry about your opponent, or feel like you need to play perfectly from the start. Once you know your pattern, you can prepare for it.
We can work on a pre-competition routine that suits you, including how you prepare, where you put your attention, and what you do when the nerves start building. The aim is to get you to the table ready to compete, rather than waiting until you feel calm.
Why do I fall apart when the score gets close?
You might fall apart when the score gets close because you start thinking about winning or losing instead of playing the point. You might also become more cautious, rush your shots, change your tactics, or worry about making the mistake that costs you the game.
The important thing is to work out which of these happens to you. Look at what changes when you go from playing freely at 6–6 to feeling under pressure at 9–9. Your thoughts, attention, decision-making, and shot selection can all change when the result starts to feel close.
We can help you develop a routine for those pressure points. That might mean resetting after each point, using a specific focus cue, or deciding in advance how you want to approach important situations so you don’t start changing your game when the score gets tight.
How can I stay focused on my game plan during a tournament?
You can stay focused on your game plan by keeping your attention on a few specific things you can control, including your tactical priorities, rather than constantly reacting to the score or your opponent. It also helps to decide what you want to do before the game, so you’re not making every decision under pressure.
You might have a good plan but abandon it after a few lost points. You might start trying different serves, playing more safely, or chasing shots that aren’t part of your normal game. That usually means your attention has shifted from executing your plan to trying to change the outcome.
We can work on ways to recognise when that happens and bring your attention back. You might use a short cue between points, set specific goals to achieve different things, or create simple reminders that keep your game plan front of mind without making you overthink it.
How can visualization help my game?
You can use it to rehearse specific situations before you face them. Picture yourself serving at 9–9, returning a difficult serve, playing a particular opponent, or responding calmly after making an error.
The idea is to make it specific and realistic. Picture the table, the ball, your opponent, the score, and what you want to do. You can also rehearse how you’ll respond when something goes wrong, rather than only imagining yourself playing perfect points.
We can help you use this as part of your preparation for training and competition. It won’t replace time at the table, but it gives you another way to practise your responses to pressure, mistakes, and situations that you find difficult.
Do I need to be an elite player to work with on performance psychology?
No. You can work with a performance coach at any level if you want to improve how you handle competition or get more out of your game. You don’t need to be a pro player or have a major problem before it makes sense.
You might be a club player who gets nervous in competitions, a junior dealing with tournament pressure, or an experienced player who performs well in training but struggles to reproduce it in tournaments. The specific problem might differ, but the work can still be practical and relevant to your game.
We’ll focus on what you’re dealing with now and give you strategies you can use. That could mean working on confidence, focus, pressure, frustration, or how you respond when a tournament isn’t going your way.
What happens when I see a mental skills coach?
You’ll talk through what’s happening in your game, identify the situations that cause problems, and work on strategies you can use at the table. Looking at a case study from one of your tournaments can also help us understand what’s happening when your performance starts to drop.
You might talk about getting nervous before cups, losing focus after mistakes, struggling against certain opponents, or playing differently when you’re ahead or behind. We’ll look at what you’re thinking, where your attention goes, and how you respond in those situations.
From there, you’ll have specific things to practise between sessions. That could include a pre-competition routine, a way to reset after errors, strategies for staying focused, or exercises to help you prepare for situations that regularly affect your performance.
Do top table tennis players work with performance coaches?
Yes. Many top players do to improve how they handle pressure, stay focused, manage mistakes, and perform consistently in competition. You don’t have to be playing at that level to work on the same skills.
You’ll also find useful table tennis advice to help you stay competitive. That can give you ideas to try, but general advice can’t account for what happens in your own games or why you respond differently under pressure.
Working one-to-one means we can look at your actual experiences and work out what needs attention. We can then focus on performance psychology strategies that fit your game, your level, and the situations you’re dealing with.
