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BTT excelled at 26th Joola natt
BTT excelled at 26th Joola natt
by BTT
The Joola 26th Annual North American Team Championships (NATT) took place at the Gaylord National Resort in Washington, DC over this Thanksgiving weekend. A total of 912 table tennis players from 226 teams around the world participated, including players from the U.S.A., Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, Jamaica, Austria, Japan and China. They competed for championships across 17 divisions, each based on the team players' average USA Table Tennis ratings.
BTT members, trained at different clubs in NJ, earned 2 championships, 2 silver medals, and 1 bronze medal after three days of intense competition. Thanks to the great support and guidance from their coaches at MPTTC and Joyous TTC, every member worked together with the rest of the team members and played great matches. BTT's participation and achievement in this event highlighted the NATT’s commitment to strengthening collaboration among table tennis 🏓 players!
Team Captain James Yang alongside Anna Naumova, a recent BTT member, and another team member in Matchpoint TTC 6, claimed the Championship out of 16 teams in Division 9. James was the defending champion in Division 9 from 2023.
Team Captain Enya Li, along with Rassi Zhou and another team member in Matchpoint TTC 7, secured the Championship out of 16 teams in Division 12.
Aaron Li in Matchpoint TTC 4 along with 2 other team members, took second place out of 16 teams in Division 9.
Andy Liu and Max Liu, along with three other team members, took second place out of 16 teams in Division 2.
Team Captain Ishan Rangda in Matchpoint TTC 2, along with two other team members, secured third place out of 16 teams in Division 6.
Team Captain Marvin Yu in UIUC along with three other team members played great games in Division 2, where the highest team average rating is above 2300.
Team Captain Emma Yang along with David Su and Jason Mei, a recent BTT member in Matchpoint TTC 1, advanced to Division 3, where the team average rating is above 2100.
Peter Liu in Matchpoint TTC 3 along with two other team members played great games in Division 7, where the highest team average rating is close to 2000.
Angela Li in Matchpoint TTC 8 along with two other team members and Sam Liu in Matchpoint TTC 9, a first time participant in this event, along with another two team members both played great games in Division 12, where the highest team average rating is about 1000.
Team Captain Alex Zhang in Matchpoint TTC 13, along with two other team members, competed at this event for the first time.
Below are the experience shared by several of our members:
Photos by Sunrose Stuido & BTT family members
From Ishan:
My experience with the team was enjoyable, as I had the chance to play with players of various ages and skill levels. While there were both strengths and weaknesses in my performance, I ultimately learned an important lesson: losing isn’t the end of the world. Instead, it’s an opportunity to grow, improve, and come back stronger next time.
From Peter:
I have been to 3 JOOLA tournaments now and I had a very fun time at all of them. My first JOOLA got me to a rating of around 700. My second got me to around 1400. My third got me to around 1800.
I went against many people with different playing styles, which helped grow my abilities as a table tennis player. My teammates each year were also very nice and supportive. All in all, JOOLA has always been a fun experience for me.
From Andy & Max:
Joyous Table Tennis Club Team Won Silver in Division 2! Our table tennis team led by Joyous Table Tennis Club, made up of five dedicated members. We battled through seven tough matches by leveraging each other's strength to reach the semi-finals.
In the final, our team came out strong, securing a 4-2 lead after the first half. However, after three days of intense competition of a total of 50-60 games, fatigue began to take its toll. We lost two consecutive matches, bringing the score to a tense 4-4. Andy Liu (BTT member) played the final match against an experienced opponent with a higher rating. Despite Andy's determined effort, he was narrowly defeated.
While we lost the final by a small margin, securing the silver medal was still a remarkable achievement and a moment to celebrate.
From Emma:
During the round robin on Saturday evening, my second game was against a tall player from Paddle Palace Club. I remember being nervous and relaxed at the same time. I had no pressure against my opponent, but obviously losing wasn’t a goal. So instead of thinking of the match as a ‘game’ I thought of it as a learning opportunity.
I started the first game off down. I was surprised by his consistency and ability to give the ball back with quality. He was a lobber, with great attacks. I knew that if I kept powering and rushing the match would be over. So after the first game, during my water break, my head coach came up to me and instructed me to make first adjustments. Instead of smashing all of his high-balls, I used less power and moved him around more. Right, left, forward, back. I also prepared more for his attacks, which allowed me to more accurately and confidently block.
The score after the second game was now tied, 1-1. I remember going back on the court in a daze. I wasn’t thinking straight and soon the score became 1-2. I knew that I had to change something, and fast. So I decided to continue doing what I was doing before but being more cautious and mindful where I hit the ball. It wasn’t long before the score became 2-2. At that point, for some reason I didn’t feel too much pressure, but I could tell that my opponent was getting anxious. So I decided to continue using the same strategy as before, just I made a couple minor adjustments on my rhythm. I started to gain the lead point by point. From a one point lead to a five point lead, I felt more and more confident until, BAM! I won.
BTT members volunteered to support each team from 11/28/24-12/01/24: James Yang (8 hrs); Enya Li (8 hr); Ishan Rangdal (8 hr); Marvin Yu (8 hr); Emma Yang (8 hr); Alex Zhang (8 hr); Anna Naumova (4 hr); Rassi Zhou (4 hr); Aaron Li (4 hr); Andy Liu (4 hr); Max Liu (4 hr); David Su (4 hr); Jason Mei (4 hr); Angela Li (4 hr); Peter Liu (4 hr); Sam Liu (4 hr).
BTT members volunteered to summarize the news and refer new members: Peter Liu (2 hr); Andy Liu (2 hr); Max Liu (2 hr); Emma Yang (2 hr); Ishan Rangdal (2 hr); Rassi Zhou (2 hr); David Su (2 hr); Angela Li (1 hr).
BTT at Westchester NoVember open
BTT at Westchester NoVember open
On November 25th, BTT members, Rassi Zhou, Max Liu, Marvin Yu & Emma Yang participated in November Open at Westchester TTC. A total of 252 players competed in this monthly tournament, including over 20 players with USATT ratings above 2300. This weekend event featured 18 categories, including Open Singles (30 players), U2500 (48 players), U2350 (28 players), U2200 (72 players), U2050 (50 players), U2000 (30 players), U1900 (40 players), U1750 (32 players), U1600 (36 players), U1450 (40 players), U1300 (25 players), U1150 (26 players), U1000 (33 players), U850 (33 players), 12 & Under (19 players), Over 40 & 1800 (10 players), Handicap (11 players), and Doubles U3200 (8 teams).
Emma claimed the championship among 50 players with USATT ratings ranging from 1640 to 2020, competing in the U2050 event. The tournament began with a round-robin stage consisting of 13 groups, each with 4 players, followed by five rounds of single-elimination play.
From Emma:
I stepped on the court for my semi-finals match. I was tired, and nervous. With all of that aside I was ready for the match. I started match down 0-2. The opponent was hyped and his Cho-le thundered throughout the empty venue. Many people may have given up, but instead I did the opposite. I decided to keep going, because at that point I had no pressure. I played freely, without missing any easy balls.
As I played I gained more and more momentum, I attacked more and more, and soon the score was tied 2-2. I knew that that game would be the last of the match, which only motivated me more to win. I started the last game off pretty bad honestly. I remember almost giving up hope when I was down to 6-9. But I realized that giving up, would be throwing away all the effort I had put in the games before, and in my training. So, I calmed myself down, and was prepared for everything ahead. I slowly climbed my way back to 9-9. My grip tightened as beads of sweat dripped down my neck. I watched the opponent toss the ball high into the air and BAM! I miss the receive. I remained calm, even though the score was 9-10. I watched again as the opponent served. Topspin. I quickly move back and backhand towards his backhand and win the point. 10-10. I was more nervous than ever but I knew that I could not show it. I serve the ball, a flat underspin. He chops it back with his long pips, and BOOM! I win the point. 11-10. I nervously watch him serve. I push back a ball to his backhand and he loops. 11-11.
At this point I pushed all my thoughts to the side and focused on the point. Slowly but surely the score became 12-11. I was in the lead. One more point and I would enter the finals. He serves again, my feet have trouble moving and my push ends up going high. I anticipated him to smash the ball over, but instead he hit the ball straight to the net. I won. After 5 hard fought games, I won.
Text & Photo by BTT
BTT at Warm-up matches for Joola team NATT
BTT at Warm-up matches for Joola team NATT
Text & Photo by Sam Liu
On November 24th, BTT members, Sam Liu & Alex Zhang participated in a warm-up match for those players whose USATT rating are under 1000, hosted by Matchpoint TTC.
Sam: A lot of interesting things happened today and I will explain everything.
So first, I was practicing serving and smashing. Then all of us got called to go to table 1. Coach Li was talking and giving us some information. He mostly talked about the Joola team championships and what we had to do when we got there.
Then, the matches started. I almost lost to the first 2 players that I was going against, but I managed to find the strategy to beat them, and I beat them 3 - 2. Then I won the last player with 3 - 0. After that, my group was going to play against group 10 and this group has some decently skilled players. Jason and Tianfang were in the group and both of them have been playing table tennis longer than me. Therefore, I was expecting to lose. Surprisingly, I beat everyone in that group (including Jason and Tianfang) 3 - 0.
I was really proud of myself since I beat the people I was supposed to lose to. At this point, we had the final group to go against. The players in this group were beginners and amateurs, and I managed to win everyone 3 - 0. Now, I’ve played everyone and finished the matches. I was really proud that I managed to beat everyone I went against, and our group also won the champion. Now I think I’m ready for the Joola team championships coming up soon.
In preparation for the Joola 26th Annual North American Team Championships, members of BTT, Rassi Zhou, Enya Li, Angela Li, Aaron Li, Ishan Rangdal, David Su, Peter Liu, Emma Yang & James Yang, participated in a warm-up game between New York Indoor Sports Club (NYISC) and Matchpoint TTC on November 17th, 2024.
David: I stepped into Matchpoint TTC at 9:30 am and heard the squeaking of the shoes and the familiar smell of rubber. Then I saw them, the first kids from NYISC walked in and my nervousness went up to another level. Even though this was a warm-up match, my heart was pounding: I felt like I wasn’t going to play well. Going into my first match, I was beyond nervous. To my surprise though, I won my first match 3-0.
With this newfound confidence, I stepped into my two other matches knowing that I would do good. As I stepped off the court, I had just won all of them 3-0. I was pleasantly surprised, and with this amazing gameplay I had a new confidence in myself to perform my best. It was my final match, and I was facing the top player from NYISC, Leo Shao. He was a tough opponent, but I knew I would be able to beat him. The game was beyond my expectation, and when I finished all my matches, I had won all of them 3-0.
Text by David Su
Photos by BTT
Text by James Yang
Photos by Origin TTA & BTT
On November 3rd, 2024, members of BTT, Rassi Zhou, Enya Li, Aaron Li, Ishan Rangdal, David Su, Peter Liu & James Yang, participated in a mock team tournament hosted by Matchpoint TTC. Players from Origin Table Tennis Academy were also invited and joined in the practice matches.
Matches were played three-on-three, where each player on a team played all of the players on the opposing team once. Team matches were decided by whichever team won 5 rounds first out of 9, and individual matches were played best 3 out of 5, as per standard table tennis regulation.
BTT honor Member met table tennis young talents from around the world
BTT honor Member met table tennis young talents from around the world
by Emma Yang
From November 1st to November 7th, I experienced the 2024 World Hopes Week and Challenge at Estadio Federación Paraguaya de Tenis de Mesa (FPTM). A total of 18 girls and 15 boys, representing the top U12 players from each continent, along with their coaches, trained for 5 days then played matches for 2 days. I was one of the four members in junior team U.S.A.
Each day, training session was about 3 hours. It started with a warmup, which is running and stretching. Then we practiced the fundamentals, such as forehand and backhand with each other for 15 minutes. After that, we worked on a variety of drills that trained our footwork, technique, mindset and other key components. After the drills we play top table (up and down) Which is where you play one game to 11 points. The winner moved up and the loser moved down. The goal for each player was to get a highest performance table, because the table where the player ended up with in the morning was the table where the player played in the afternoon. After the matches we picked up balls and stretched. At the end of each training session, we ate lunch and dinner in the venue.
In the afternoon of the sixth day, the round robin matches were played in a 4 games format. Where 2 players played 4 games against each other. The score could be 1-3, 4-0, or even 2-2. When the score from any game was 10-10, the two players played one golden point to decide the winner of the game. After the round robin, top 8 players entered the elimination rounds of matches then became the best of three, which meant players had to win 2 matches to win. Top 4 girls and top 4 boys were selected and awarded at the last day of this week.
I felt that the training period was such a valuable opportunity, helping me and others improve our techniques and learn new skills. Because we expected what was coming every training day, we were able to prepare and think about it. It also trained our muscle memory. Lunch and dinner together and the experience were a great way to socialize with kids around your age who also love the same sport you do. Overall, I'm very grateful for this opportunity to go to World Hopes. I made so many new friends, I learned so much, and I got to play against top young players under 12 years old from around the globe.
During this event, I informed some of my new friends about BTT and BTT's goals to promote table tennis starting from local community. Some of them seemed to be interested. As one of BTT honor members, I would like to invite table tennis enthusiasts on each continent to join us. Becoming part of BTT family, they are able to introduce themselves then share their local table tennis activities and events with our community in New Jersey, U.S.A. through our website.
BTT member volunteered: Emma Yang, November 1st-7th, 1 hr per day, total 7 hours
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