Another World - USA Table Tennis

BOBROW

Another World

By Adam Bobrow, Citizen of Earth, but looking to travel I have a pretty active imagination, but I cannot imagine a sound two octaves higher than your basic dog whistle. I can’t even hear a dog whistle, so why would I appreciate a sound TWO WHOLE octaves higher?!?!?! That was sort of my attitude at the LA Open this year. There are PLENTY of 2400 players that can beat me without having to pull out their A game… or B or C game for that matter. Why would I pay lots of money for the chance to play Dimitrij “Dima” Ovtcharov? I won’t be able to hear the difference between him only giving 10% and a 2400 player giving 25% even though he is two octaves higher… metaphorically speaking. Watching Dima play, I saw him toy with many players that could toy with me. In a medium-sized space I saw him lob down players that would destroy me. It wasn’t until I saw Billy Ding play Dim that I saw anyone make Dima pull out the next level of playing. I was SUPER impressed and very…. Ummm… NOT jealous, cause that’s definitely not the right word… but… uhhh… in awe… YES in AWE of how well Billy was playing.Part of me was still watching Dima play and thinking, “whatever… I know what it’s like to get beaten easily and I don’t need more of that from the 2012 Olympic Bronze medalist.” Later in the tournament, I saw Dima practicing serves with no one on the other side of the table. I thought that must be annoying… to have to walk over and pick 54

USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Nov/Dec 2012

up the ball after every serve. I mean… I’ve DONE that. It’s literally the worst thing EVER! So I figured I would make an extraordinarily kind offer. “Dima! Would you like someone to receive your serves?” I asked as I motioned with my paddle what appeared to be me hitting an invisible ball. I could tell he really WANTED to say “YES! Adam, I was going to ask you earlier but you looked too busy… I REALLY, REALLY want to hit with you. That’s the WHOLE reason I flew to LA! By the way, I have a life-sized, stand up poster of you in my bedroom that I say goodnight to every night before I sleep. After we warm up… can you autograph my blade?” but was a bit too shy so he just said “okay”… which I thought was cool of him… not to make a big deal about it or get over-excited in public. Ok, honestly… I was giddy. He said, “okay!” I was about to be receiving the serves of a CURRENTLY world ranked top 10 player! So maybe you’ve seen Dima’s tomahawk serve… that looks like a lot of sidespin with a little underspin. I have… I’ve seen pros dump it into the net several times in big matches… so it’s safe to say that I had a fair warning and a BIG advantage over anyone who had never seen that serve. Here it comes, first serve… it’s THE TOMAHAWK! YES! I KNOW this one! Weird… it looks like there’s a lot of sidespin on it… BAM! Bottom of the net! Okay, okay…. I get it. Again… same serve… bottom of the net. I knew what was coming and STILL, five times in a ROW… right into the net. After that, I started returning a few serves and even got into a counter looping rally with him. I am not especially good at counter-looping in general but when Dima attacked… it was like fighting the ghost of Bruce Lee! I had to swing when I heard the sound and hope that the ball just happened to be where my paddle was. I even won a point and did my best impression of Dima by pumping my fist like an uppercut and yelling “YO-LE!!” He laughed. The whole experience not only made me a new friend, but opened my eyes to a whole new level of play. Sure, I have seen it on TV and online, and I’ve even seen some live… but having the opportunity to FEEL the spin and the power of those shots… was like being in another world all together.Life is a collection of experiences, and I am THRILLED that I had this one. And to think… I could’ve missed this experience because of my perspective on dog whistles. Carpe diem!

A wise man, table tennis coach and acting coach named Allen Levin often says “to have fans, you have to be your own biggest fan” or something to that effect. I think that trying to please EVERYBODY is often a road to mediocrity and even identity loss or confusion. It’s a long road with no ending and maybe not the best goal to have. But being yourself and being happy and comfortable with that… to me…THAT is cool.

*Check me out at AdamBobrow.com