Chop

A sharp downward stroke that produces tremendous amount of backspin. The chop is an effective defensive shot that forces the table tennis ball to drop downwards as it hits the opponent's racket, preventing the attacker from hitting a kill shot.

A chop is performed well away from the table (3 feet or more), usually against a drive or loop from the opponent. When performed closer to the table, this type of shot is known as a push, and is more commonly used against no-spin or backspin balls. Another distinction between pushes and chops, is that pushes are hit with light backspin, whilst chops are hit with heavy backspin.