Learn the side step (chasse) in table tennis: technique, milestones, typical mistakes, safety tips and FAQ for quick moves at the table.
The side step (sidestep, in technical language often "chasse") is a lateral adjustment step: you move sideways without crossing your legs and bring the feet side by side again. It is the basic movement in close-to-table play when the next ball is only one or two steps away.
The honest answer to "which step is best?": there is none. In a study with 15 players, side step and cross step produced higher ground reaction forces, more knee flexion and higher knee moments than the one-step on the cross-court forehand [1]. A second study with 18 players compared chasse and one-step: the chasse may raise the quality of footwork and prepare the next step but showed a higher injury risk for the knee, the one-step was possibly faster with a higher risk for the hip [3]. The authors of a study on the cross step and the chasse recommend beginners to start with the chasse and learn the cross step later [2].
A note on context: these are lab studies with top players, mostly men, and they measure load, not success in the match. They show differences but not a "best" step.
Why a separate guide anyway? Because in table tennis the distances are short and time is tight: a rally consists of many small position corrections, and whoever helps with the hand instead of the feet plays from an unstable position. The side step is the simplest, most controllable answer to that – and therefore the basis before you add the one-step and the cross step.
How long does it take? You learn the pattern in one session. Until it comes automatically in the rally, expect weeks (practical experience, not a study).
Place the feet slightly wider than shoulder width, bend the knees and shift the weight to the balls of your feet. Your racket is in front of the body. In one foot-based comparison, players using the chasse showed more knee extension in the forward phase of the stroke [3].
Milestone: You hold the ready position for 30 seconds relaxed without your heels touching the ground.
The foot in the running direction goes first, the other follows and closes up. There are two variants: the short and the long chasse. In a study with twelve male elite athletes, the hip and ankle in the long chasse and the knee in the short one showed higher susceptibility to injury [4].
Milestone: You manage 10 side steps in each direction without your feet crossing.
Set both feet before you hit and bring the weight in the stroke direction. A study on the cross step and chasse showed higher lateral and vertical ground reaction forces in the chasse and higher backward forces in the cross step [2].
Milestone: You hit 7 of 10 balls with both feet on the ground.
After the shot you return to the ready position with the same pattern. Whoever stays at the table longer needs the step more often; train the return as its own movement.
Milestone: After 8 of 10 shots you are back in the centre before the next ball arrives.
A randomised study with 40 young players compared six weeks of reactive agility training (with signals you cannot predict) with planned training: the reactive group improved choice reaction time and a test for the forehand after a backhand push; after adjustment there was no proven difference between the groups at the post-test [5].
Milestone: You respond to 8 of 10 random signals from your partner with the correct side step.
Alternate between chasse and one-step instead of practising only one: both have different load profiles [3]. The chasse is for moves where you want to keep your balance; for very short moves a single step is enough. Have yourself filmed while practising and count how often you choose the wrong step (practical experience).
A lateral adjustment step without crossing the legs, also called "chasse". It serves short moves at the table.
One study recommends beginners start with the chasse and learn the cross step later [2].
It loads the knee more than the one-step [1][3]. Warming up and clean technique are important.
The one-step for very short moves and the cross step for longer ones. All three have different load profiles [1][3], so it pays to mix them.
In a study with 40 young players, reactive agility training improved choice reaction time [5].
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