Table tennis equipment is the basic need to play a match. It helps improve table tennis performance and eventually master the game playing. To build professional gaming skill, right table tennis accessories surely help you develop solid gaming skill. Thus, it will increase the potential of winning confidence and performance.
Before choosing any products for you, decide concisely which types of product meet the demand of you. You should focus on the quality of ping pong paddle, blade, rubber, and other accessories for smooth gaming at the indoor and outdoor condition.
So Today, I am going to explain precisely how to choose the best table tennis equipment which suits your playing style and surely improve your playing performance better than previous. I also explain how to avoid common mistakes when chooses the right equipment. Moreover, you will get a few other important tips and tricks to pick the right products.
As the low-quality table tennis accessories decrease our gaming performance, so we should have the care to avoid it at all cost.
Table Tennis Equipment:
You may be a professional player or simply play table tennis for recreation. But selecting the right table tennis equipment for your gaming would improve your gaming experience and pleasure. Although there is a different quality of products available. But the high-quality product will ensure both long durability and smooth performance.
Table Tennis Racket/Ping Pong Paddle:
A table tennis racket (also known as ‘ping pong paddle’ or ‘bat’) comes first when you think to play a table tennis match. The paddle is usually made from laminated wood and the surface covered with rubber. The rubber can have one or two sides depending on the grasp of the player.
In most cases, the ping pong paddle has different colors on each side. It provides players the competitive advantage during the gaming. For example, the black side might ensure less spin than the red side and vice versa. It allows the players to turn over the paddle if he wants to return the ball in a certain way.
The color of the Table Tennis rubbers whether red or black doesn’t matter. At the competitive match, players may use different kinds of rubbers according to their style of playing on forehand and backhand sides. But the official rules state that the racket should be one side red and the other side black.
In the best table tennis racket should have inverted dimples in the rubber for a spin. It creates a smooth surface which can bounce the ball. However, offensive players may look for a hard paddle to give plenty of power. The difference between the racket or paddle lies behind the choice of the player and playing style.
Table Tennis Table:
There are many different types of table tennis tables available to play a professional and recreational match.
Most indoor table tennis tables are made of plywood or particle board. It’s either painted or having a plastic layer on top. The rest of the table is made from aluminum or aluminum alloy. Ping pong tables are available in many different forms. Although table tennis is generally played in indoors condition. However, it can also be played outdoors.
The table dimension is 2.74 m (9.0 ft) long, 1.525 m (5.0 ft) wide, and 76 cm (2.5 ft) high from the ground. It’s made of any continuous material as long as the table yields a uniform bounce of 23 cm (9.1 in) when a standard ball is dropped from 30 cm (11.8 in) high.
The top of the board is usually made of plywood, particle-board, plastic, metal, or fiberglass. The average thickness of the table can vary between 12mm and 30mm (0.47 – 1.2 inches). However, the best tables have a wooden top with a thickness of 25-30mm (1 inch).
The biggest difference is in the material. The table tennis top is made from solid material. Indoor tables are generally made of solid wood. So if you like to have a table tennis table for your garden, choose an outdoor table tennis table. There is a great difference between how to the ping pong ball bounces on the outdoor table compared to an indoor table.
Table Tennis Balls:
There are different types of table tennis ball available in the market. The players usually choose the ball according to the demand of playing game or training.
Last twenty years, two significant changes have taken place in the table tennis ball.
In 2000, the ball size was increased from 38mm to 40mm. Thus the ball becomes more appealing to the eye of the spectators. Meanwhile, the large ball is comparatively slow and provides less spin.
The ITTF official rules state that the ball should be round in size with a diameter of 40mm. A ping pong ball weighs 2.7 grams. Table Tennis Master website states that it’s the standard weight for Olympic competition. Ping pong balls are white or orange color.
In 2014-2015, the material used to make table tennis has changed from celluloid to non-flammable plastic. In this regard, the ball is often referred for plastic ball or poly ball. Earlier ping pong balls were made from celluloid. But celluloid is not considered as a true plastic material.
The quality of table tennis ball is defined by the three-star rating system. A three-star rated ball is the highest in quality. On the other hand, one star rated ball is the lowest quality. Table tennis players prefer 3 star balls for a heavy game. However, 1 or 2 stars rated balls are usually used for practice sessions.
Table Tennis Shoes:
During a table tennis match, a player generally requires heavy footwork and rapid changes of the direction. In this sense, choose the right footwear is really important for the best gaming performance.
If you are a serious player, so you need to choose high-quality table tennis shoes. Best table tennis shoes are designed to enhance your lateral movement and provide great support. So it’s your first decision that whether you’re going to buy a top range pair of table tennis shoes or grab cheap shoes for your next tournament.
You can buy any pair of shoes for training. But for a professional competition, you should consider about the shoes which you select for the match. Rubber sole provides superior grip on any surface and is scuff resistant. Lightweight design shoe is the ideal choice for the professional player.
Finally, you should carefully choose a great quality ping pong shoe which is durable and comfortable for multiple table tennis playing styles.
Table Tennis Glues and Boosters:
Last few years, there have been a number of arguments regarding whether or not use speed booster or speed glue is cheating. I also consider this a very important matter of debate to come to a solution.
The majority of attacking table tennis players use speed glue or booster to increase the speed of the paddle. Speed glue is different from basic table tennis glue. Instead of attaching the rubber into your blade, it would also make your paddle faster for hours. Then gradually extra speed would be lost.
Booster increases the overall spin and speed of the table tennis rubber and creates a very smooth ball touch. According to table tennis sports information, top table tennis player uses the booster. The booster or speed glue is used the only surface area of the blade. After attaching booster, let it dry until the rubber becomes flat.
Common Mistakes to Choose Right Table Tennis Accessories:
It’s a common factor to make mistakes when chooses the right table tennis equipment for your gaming setup. Low-quality product is very harmful to gaming performance and growth. So you must be conscious of several matters before choosing the right gaming accessories for your table tennis.
To avoid common mistakes, here are a few helpful pieces of advice for the player:
- Don’t buy a racket which is made of cheap quality wood and thin rubber. It will negatively influence your learning process. Cheap wood will destroy the power of gaming. Meanwhile, thin rubber needs more force to create spin. It’s a very bad habit that you should avoid.
- Don’t choose too soft rubber for gaming. For faster improvement, you must take the hardest rubber instead of soft rubber. The harder rubber will improve your gaming performance fast. Chinese guys always use hard rubber for their gaming excellence.
- Don’t choose lightweight blade for gaming. Although, at first, the heavy blade is uncomfortable for a new player. But the heavy blade is the perfect choice for optimal performance. Heavy blade helps you use your physical strength and thus eventually improves your mechanism of powerful stoke.
- Don’t choose a rubber thinner than 1.8mm. Some coaches may suggest playing with thin rubber. But it’s not helpful for a new player. Right thickness of the rubber helps deliver the ball at high accuracy and creates great spin. For your improvement, you need to select the right thickness of the rubber.
- Don’t choose hard and fast blade. A new player always focuses on faster playing but creating the spin of the ball is a crucial part of professional gaming. So you must consider a high-quality blade with slow down performance.
How to Choose Best Table Tennis Equipment Tips and Tricks:
One of the major factors which helps a beginner player improve their table tennis performance is using a decent quality table tennis equipments. There is no best equipment available unless it suits your playing style.
So, here I’m going to share with you some important tips and tricks before choosing any table tennis equipment:
- A table tennis racket should have good control, and it can also generate decent spin and speed. It can be difficult to pick a good ping pong paddle from a lot of low-quality table tennis rackets. So don’t buy cheap table tennis racket.
- In ping pong paddle, choose good blade for your playing style. Meanwhile, rubber is another key factor. So it’s always recommended to purchase the paddle which uses ITTF approved rubber.
- 1 or 2 star balls aren’t durable. They are usually bought for rallying or practice session. The three-star rated balls represent the superior quality table tennis ball. So you should only use the 3-star ball in a professional match and competition.
- If you’re going to buy some new table tennis equipment from an online store, then inspect the user review and rating carefully before place an order.
- In some cases, you may hear an expert player or table tennis coach to pick the right equipment for playing the game.
Conclusion:
