Tap, whack! The ball shoots over the net, which divides the table into two equal halves. The player has an intense gaze on his face, as he draws his arm back and channels strength and precision into each strike of the lightweight ball. This is a familiar experience for junior Jerry Zeng, who plays table tennis competitively.
Zeng is not new to success in the world of table tennis. “I was formerly nationally ranked top 30 in my age group, and I have a world ranking of 1,568, and then currently, I’m not ranked anymore because I withdrew from the rankings because I haven’t been playing as much.” Prior to his competitive career, Zeng actively played basketball, but was unable to play when the Covid-19 pandemic caused his team to get disbanded. From then on, Zeng “went to the ping pong club with [his] friends, and [he] found that it was really fun.” As he got more and more competitive, he started training and playing more as well; at some point, he was playing four to five hours a day.
Zeng takes inspiration from various places. In regards to celebrity inspiration, he looks up to professional Chinese table tennis player Fan Zhendong, the youngest ITTF World Tour Champion and the youngest World Table Tennis Champion. “I try to replicate his style. He has a very strong backhand, and he’s the most solid player ever, and he’s very physical, [and] he’s very strong.”
He takes inspiration from those around him as well. “At my old club in Massachusetts, there was this girl who was the Pan American champion, and I really looked up to her, and she was older, and I thought, I really want to be as good as her.” In addition, his dad was the first to introduce Zeng to the sport, for his dad got him into table tennis when he was very young.
In terms of his greatest accomplishment in table tennis, Zeng considers it to be “winning the 15 and Under New Jersey State Championship.” He says, “I think a large reason that I won was because a lot of the better players didn’t go and a lot of them were sick. So I won, but I’m still really proud of it, [and] I still played some pretty formidable people. I feel like I was being seen. Holding the trophy felt really good.”
However, Zeng was faced with regret for pursuing table tennis when he started playing competitively. “When I got kind of good, I felt like I was wasting my time with table tennis, because it’s not a school sport. You have to pay for private lessons and club fees, so it’s expensive. I felt like I was wasting my parents’ money.” Now, Zeng has come to terms with his regrets and feels better about choosing table tennis, since he has made some of the money back through coaching and tournament winnings.
For people who want to get into table tennis, Zeng suggests going to the nearest table tennis club from here, which is Joyous Table Tennis Club in Waldwick, NJ. “There are two great, very passionate coaches that offer very cheap coaching. For most places, it’s like $90 to $100 per hour for private lessons. But here, theirs is only like $60 to $65 depending on your membership, per hour, which is very good.” Zeng also praises the “great community there as well. It’s very beginner friendly. A lot of clubs that I go to, the old men will kick you out if you’re not good.”
Zeng’s table tennis career is comprehensive, from being a nationally ranked competitor to now coaching mentees. Despite starting off as just a recreational activity, he has turned the sport into something more fulfilling. Whether it be success on the table tennis table or helping trainees progress in their skills as a player, playing this sport has brought out both the competitive player and mentor in Zeng.
