Introduction

Gossima. Whiff-Whaff. Flim-Flam. Ping-Pong.

Whatever name it assumes, table tennis has come a long way since its introduction as a genteel, after-dinner alternative to lawn tennis in 1890s England. Today, players compete for big money, wield high-tech rackets and volley the ball at speeds up to 160 kilometres per hour. Table tennis has become the world's largest participation sport, with 40 million competitive players worldwide and countless millions playing recreationally.

The game, which debuted in the Olympic Games in 1988 at Seoul, began with cigar-box lids for rackets and a carved champagne cork for a ball. Today, players use specially developed rubber-coated wooden and carbon-fibre rackets and a lightweight, hollow celluloid ball. Various rubber compounds and glues are applied on the rackets to impart greater spin or speed.

Indeed, some glues are banned from Olympic competition - they make the ball travel up to 30km/h faster.

Understanding Table Tennis

Table tennis is played on thick wooden or composite wood, plastic and even metal varieties table. The surface of the table should have a matt finish and it is usually dark green or blue. The table is 274 cm in length, 152.5 cm in width, and 76 cm in height.

Table

The table used in Table Tennis is 274 cm long, 152 cm wide and 76 cm tall, while its surface is not less than 20 mm thick. The table and, therefore, the playing surface are mainly made of dark green or blue-coloured wood. Nevertheless, there are tables made of synthetic material of equally satisfactory performance.

The table is divided by the net into two courts. The net is 15.25 cm height and extends 15.25 cm beyond each side of the table.

Net Assembly

The net has a height of 15.25 cm and runs across the centre of the table separating it into two courts. It is suspended by two metal or plastic posts of 15.25 cm in height and the outer limits of the posts are 15.25 cm outside each side of the table. The net is usually made of nylon and is dark green.

Ball

The ball has a diameter of 40 mm and weighs 2.7gr. It is made of celluloid or other similar plastic material and is white or yellow matte, depending on the colour of the table used in the match.

Racket

The first rackets were wooden with a long handle while their main part (body) was mainly made of cork. From 1929 onwards, players used wooden rackets covered by tough pimpled (hard embossed) rubber. This was the first combination of wood – rubber, which was used until the end of the 1940s.

In 1952, a Japanese athlete, Hiroje Satoh, appeared in the World Championship with a racket having an insert of a cellular (spongy) material between the rubber and the wooden layers, thus creating a new type of rubber that was later called “sandwich rubber”. This new rubber revolutionised ?able tennis, due to its ability to give greater spin and speed to the ball. In the following years, almost all top players began using this new type of rubber and getting adjusted to the new way of playing the game. New technical strikes were developed, emphasising the speed and spin of the ball.

Wood: The main part (the body) and the handle of the racket are usually made of natural wood. The main part consists of thin layers (sheets) of specially processed wood or a combination of wood with carbon fibre. The number of sheets used varies from 1 to 7. The number, thickness, distribution and density give the wood varying features as per speed and control of the ball.The handle is the part from which the player grips the racket. The player must select a handle that will allow him to make all strikes easily and in the same manner. This is the reason why the selection of wood plays an important role.

Rubber: There are two types of rubber:
1. Ordinary pimpled rubber with no cellular (spongy) rubber and
2. Sandwich rubber, which is separated into two groups: with internal pimples or external pimples.

A Table Tennis player must be very well aware of rubber features because he/ she must be in a position to choose the one that suits their style the best and because he/she must know how to confront opponents using rubbers with features other than those of their own.

Techniques

Two major techniques have been developed in Table Tennis and they are related to the way the player grips the racket:

Asian grip (or 'penholder')
From the very definition, it is easy to grasp what the Asian type grip is, meaning that it is held the same way we grip a pen when writing.

There are two variations, which are related to the positioning of the fingers on the handle: the Chinese and the Japanese grip. The Asian grip technique is the main grip used by players from the Far East, although many athletes all over the word use it as well.

European grip
Players grip the racket by the handle as in Tennis or rackets.

Depending on the way they play their game, players are separated into two major categories: offensive and defensive, each one having its own subcategories. 

Match

There are different match systems, such as matches with five, seven or nine sets. The winner of the match is the player who wins most sets, depending on the system used, e.g. four out of seven games.

Set

The player, or the pair, scoring 11 points first, wins a set. In the event either players or pairs reach 10 points, the winner is the player or pair that gains a lead of two points.  

Scoring

A game is won by the first player or pair (in doubles play) to score 11 points, unless the score reaches 10-10 in which case the player or the pair needs two clear points more than the other in order to win the game. A match consists of the best of three games or in big tournaments, like World & European Championships, the best of five games or best of seven.

An athlete scores a point:   

You lose a point when:

A Good Service

Service starts with the ball resting on the open palm of the server's stationary free hand; the server throws the ball vertically upwards. As the ball is falling, the server strikes it so that it touches first his or her court and then, after passing over or around the net assembly, touches the receiver's court. In doubles, the ball must touch the right half court of the server and the receiver.

From the start of the service, until the ball is struck by the server's racket, the ball must be visible to the opponent and not hidden by any part of the player's body, or their clothing or their doubles partner; in addition, the ball must be above the level of the playing surface and behind the server's end line. It is the responsibility of the player to serve in such a way, so that the umpire or the assistant umpire can verify compliance with the requirements of a good service. Otherwise, there are penalties imposed, like the receiver being awarded the point.

A Good Return

A good return is a single hit of the ball by the racket hand below the wrist, after it has bounced on the player's side of the table, so that the ball returns directly on the opponent's side. Of course the ball is permitted to hit the net during the return. However if the ball hits the net during the serve, the serve is executed again.

Order of serving

The server changes every 2 points. This continues until the player wins the game. After the end of the game the opponents change sides and the player who served first in the previous game, serves first in the next. In doubles the rules of serving and changing ends are the same as in singles except that the serve is executed from the right hand side. Each 2 points the server changes corner with his partner so that the other will be ready to receive the opponent's serve. In doubles play the ball is returned in a strict sequence. The server serves and then his partner receives the ball from the opponent and so on.

Because of its deceptive simplicity most of the people who have played table tennis tend to take it lightly. However excellence requires a mastery of a variety of factors. For example there are a variety of technical strokes and spins which make the game more exciting but more difficult to play. The best way to learn how this fascinating game is played is to start with a qualified coach in a table tennis club. You can find more about clubs and national table tennis federations in ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation).

The Expedite System

The expedite system is introduced if a set has not finished after a play of 10 minutes or at any earlier time at the request of both players or pairs. An exception is made in the instance where both players or pairs have scored at least nine points, at which case the expedite system can not be introduced.

If the 10-minute time period lapses while the ball is in play, the umpire interrupts the play by calling 'time'. The match resumes with service by the player who served in the rally that was interrupted. Otherwise, if at the lapse of 10 minutes the ball is not in play, play shall resume with service by the player who received in the preceding rally.

Under the expedite system, each player makes a service. If the receiving player or pair makes 13 good returns, the receiver shall score a point. Once introduced, the expedite system remains in operation until the end of the match.

Match Officials

Referee
A referee is appointed for each tournament as a whole.

Umpire and assistant umpire
An umpire and an assistant umpire are appointed for each match.

International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF)