A good table tennis athlete needs to have a blend of physical fitness, mental strength, and technical skill.
Fitness is crucial for quick reflexes, agility, and endurance during long rallies, and strenuous matches. Strength and conditioning help build explosive power, which is key for fast, powerful shots and maintaining performance throughout a match. Strength also provides stability in players for example good core strengths helps the player be more stable while moving and reacting to the ball.
Mental strength plays a major role for all high performance athletes. It is required to stay focused and composed, especially under pressure, ensuring the athlete can handle tense moments and recover from mistakes. Additional mental strength gives the athletes the ability focus on every point during the game, without swelling on past points which might be disappointing for the player looking back at it.
Service and receive techniques are a huge part of the sport. It allow players to control the pace of the game, and a quality service adds pressure to the opponent receiving, while also giving the server a chance to get in a strong 3rd ball attack. Conversely, a good receive would also be of extreme importance, to try and tackle the hundreds of different services and deceptive spins a good server would put on the ball.
Stamina and consistency are essential for maintaining high-level performance over extended periods. Table tennis players need to be consistent and have good stamina to play long matches and big rallies, hitting each ball with sufficient quality and determination. Balancing all these aspects helps an athlete excel and adapt to the unpredictable nature of table tennis.