National TT champion to compete in Washington

Mark Phillips joined the ranks of national table tennis champions in August, but he isn’t resting on his laurels. He will travel shortly to Washington to compete at the Joola North American Team Championships. He expects to profit from the high level of play there.

His team at the November 22-24 event will include former national champions Kane Watson and Christopher Marsh and former national junior champions Emani McPherson and Odingo Mitchell. Based on the tournament’s format, the expectation is that each man will play many matches.

“You know it’s a lot of matches so we need the biggest team we can get,” Phillips explained on Thursday.

These days, international team matches see three players on each team, going to the table no more than twice. The format in Washington pushes the maximum number of times each player will go to the table to three in each match.

Phillips sees the increased volume of matches as an opportunity.

“On the international stage, the amount of matches we’re playing, persons are training that amount within two days. They’re used to it, they’re conditioned. So just by playing so much, you get a feel of what world class players go through, throughout their circuit, throughout their league and that is the only way you can improve, by playing as much table tennis as possible,” he said.

Sounding like an advocate for diligent preparation, Phillips offered “table tennis is such a game that the more you play, the more you get better. It’s just continuous practice, continuous learning”.

Continuing the same thought, the aggressive righthander said, “Playing here every day, yes, we can learn from other players but carrying it overseas, different styles. We’ll see different speed of play. There’s much more to grasp. Just being able to watch high level table tennis also in person, you can also learn something from that.”

He goes to Washington in good shape.

“I’m pretty confident. Physically, I’m pretty fit. Mentally, I’m there so it just depends on the way how I execute my game plan. I’ve got to approach each game different. Approach each player different. I have to just play a smart game and try to play a composed game because as I said, it’s a lot of matches,” he said.

“This tournament is really geared for you to play as many matches as possible so you can get a lot of experience,” he underscored.

Phillips is eager to test his skills in Washington.

“I’m definitely excited. I can’t wait,” he concluded.