Bounce: How Champions are Made

This is a book I have been reading: BOUNCE by Matthew Syed. Have not finished yet but I enjoy it so much that I want to share it!

Matthew Syed is an English Journalist and he was also a table tennis player. He was a 3 time Commonwealth Champion and was a 2 time Olympian. His book forces us to re-think about whether talent and success really goes hand in hand. (Not just in sport, but in other areas such as arts, business etc).

About the book: Click to watch the video :)

I would think this is a very good and well written book. It provide a lot of evidence to support what the author stand for his points. If I have a chance to read this book earlier like few years ago, I will not simply given up many interests that I had but was thought I shouldn't wasting time to pursue for. I would have tried for many things and who know I may have succeeded one of those and achieve my dream earlier.

Matt Syed's theory can be commonly applied in many different sports, especially in table tennis where the game is mainly emphasized on the coordination of hand and eye.

Important Positioning Tips – By Judy Hugh

When hitting a Forehand drive from the Forehand side (depending on whether you’re a righty or lefty):

• Turn body and point feet about 45 ° from the table
• Spread legs a little wider than shoulder-width apart
• Keep right foot slightly positioned behind left foot

When hitting a Forehand drive from the Backhand side (stepping around):

• Turn body and legs more perpendicular to the table than you would with a FH from the FH side
• Keep legs a little wider than shoulder-width apart

Note: as you move farther and farther to the backhand side (when trying to hit a forehand), the more perpendicular your body needs to be to the table.

When hitting a Backhand drive:

• Remember to keep feet spread a bit wider than shoulder-width
• Kept feet almost even with each other, with left foot slightly closer to the table
• This makes it much easier to transfer from a backhand to a forehand with the left foot in front instead of the right
• Stay about an arm’s length away from the table

In general:

• Stay on your toes ¾ allows you to move quicker
• Stay off your heels
• Always keep knees bent a little; don’t lock your knees (or elbows)
• Never allow your upper body to be standing completely upright
• Bend upper body slightly forward

by Judy Hugh

Profile

Judy has been playing table tennis for just about ten years now, and her proudest accomplishments include staying at the top of the Cadets/Juniors while she was eligible, and making the 2007 U.S. National Team, making semis of Women’s Singles and winning Women’s Doubles at the 2007 U.S. Nationals.

COUNTRY: UNITED STATES
Playing style: All-round attacker
Coach: Lily Yip
Blade: STIGA TUBE Aluminium Blade
Forehand rubber: STIGA Mendo MP Rubber
Backhand rubber: STIGA Magna Rubber

Some Fantastic Outdoor Table Tennis Tables

Here at outdoor table tennis tables I have put together an easy to navigate website where you will find all of the most popular table tennis table brands in one place. There is no flash or glitz here just exactly what you are looking for simply and quickly.

You will find brands such as the famously popular Butterfly, the impressive Stiga line, Prince, Kettler, and we must not forget the world class Killerspin all in one place.

If you are looking for great deals on these awesome tables then you have come to the right place. All of these products are live auctions from the ebay marketplace so you know that in all likelihood you could walk away with top of the line table for half the price that you would pay retail.

Butterfly Outdoor Home Rollaway
This is an example of the butterfly line of tables. As you can see it is a beautiful piece of craftsmanship and worth every penny.

STIGA Coronado Outdoor
What a beauty this is. If you are fortunate this one will be available for purchase. There is a reason Stiga is a top quality table tennis table manufacturer.

Prince Advantage Outdoor
Prince is also a fine manufacturer of quality mad table tennis tables. Take a look at this dandy. Simply makes me want to get out my paddles and play.

Kettler Outdoor 4
Kettler, the German manufacturer. They came through with this fine table. You can’t go wrong with a Kettler table tennis table.

Killerspin MyT-O Outdoor
Last but definitely not least is the Killerspin table tennis table. Now there is a table that is worthy of the olympics. You probably won’t find this exact table on the eBay marketplace but you just never can tell. I simply wanted to show how awesome these tables truly are.

What a line up of fantastic table tennis tables. While all of these are not outdoor table tennis tables, I am sure that you will find them in the mix. I hope that you find exactly the table that you are looking for and recommend this site to others.

JOOLA NOVA DX Outdoor Table Tennis Table

The JOOLA NOVA DX outdoor table tennis table is excellent value for cash which was produced for the use of outdoor recreational for family.

The entire table is reinforced with a 2 inch heavy gauge bonded steel undercarriage to maintain it steady throughout play and protect against bending. It also furnished with strong 2 inch bonded steel legs that aid maintain it level and provide you a strong, constant fun surface area.

The JOOLA NOVA DX outdoor table tennis table features an 6mm light weight aluminum composite table top, a thick 40mm apron to stop bending and flexible leg levelers that can be self-folded.

Similar to various other JOOLA tables, the assembly of this table is fairly quick. The table can be set up in under 20 mins most of the times, and whilst it can take a little fiddling about, it is no where near as difficult as other tables. Setting up hardly ever takes longer than 30 minutes in total.

Whilst the table is actually very durable, but still it is not best. Whilst the material is highly rated, it is not totally scratch proof. Most of the scrapes are happening on the surface and it is not likely to impact the tables quality.

This table can be put on yard or outdoor patios and you'll have a superb game for years to come. Individuals who have this table in their home are actually pleased with it and also are having lot of fun by playing ping pong with their friends and family. The JOOLA Nova DX at first glance is a newbies table, yet easily beats most beginner tables with all of its fantastic functions like the Butterfly tables.

This table is resilient and also protected as well as with the best care will certainly last for many years ahead. It is perfect for storing throughout the winter months and move outside during the warmer months to enjoy with friends as well as show off your abilities.

Sometimes the parts that shipped from the factory can be not too accurate as they should be. This can happen to the table as some people complaint that the 2-halves of the tables are not leveled, so you can see a noticeable dip from one side to the other. This is something that JOOLA can improve for the table and everything is going to be perfect.

If this table is not the table that you are looking, you can refer to this post where it got list out a lot of different outdoor table tennis tables for you.

The Best Ping Pong Paddle

One of the most asked question in ping pong or table tennis is “what is the best ping pong paddle?” Similar to my article regarding what the best ping pong table is, greatly depends on your play style. Some players think that by getting one that the current world champion uses, they will somehow become a better player. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple.  You need to make sure that the one that you get fits your play style or it will make your game even worse.

Ping pong paddles also known as table tennis rackets, table tennis bats, ping pong rackets, ping pong bats, etc…is the same ping pong equipment regardless of what you call it.

First let’s look at the official International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rules when it comes to ping pong rackets.

The rules state that a ping pong paddle may be of any size, weight or shape, but the blade must be rigid and flat. Most rackets used however are close to around 6 inches (15cm) across and 10 inches (25cm) long including the ping pong handle.

A ping pong racket has two main parts – the blade which can be made of wood, carbon, or both and the larger part of the racket which is the area you hit the ball with.  This is also the area where you would glue the rubber sheet (unless you like to play old school and not use rubber sheets).

There are various handle types to choose from. You can pick a shake hand or western blade grip which has an anatomical, flared, or straight handle.



Or you can get the popular Asian paddles commonly known as the pen hold grip. The pen hold grip has two types, the Chinese and Japanese grip. Try them both and get a feel for which one you prefer. Either way, the one you like the most is the best one for you.

For beginners, I suggest going to your local sports store and buy a pre-made western and pen hold paddles. Play for a few days to find out which grip you prefer.  Once you’ve decided on the type of grip you like, you can then start looking into a customized one. A customized paddle is the only way to play if you’re serious about table tennis. If you only play occasionally with friends outside or in the garage, then a pre-made paddle should suffice.

The reason custom made types are better than pre-made types is due to the flexibility you have when building the ping pong paddle according to your play style. Assembling your paddle gives you a wide range of options. You can have a spinny rubber on one side and an anti-spin on the other. You can also use a fast blade and rubber combination for aggressive attack play. It’s almost like trying to assemble your own bike. You can pick the pieces that you like.

The main companies that create the best ping pong paddles, rubber, and equipment are Butterfly, Donic, Stiga, TSP, Killerspin, Yasaka, and Nittaku.  These companies have been around for a long time and are always researching and developing new table tennis technologies.

These companies have a rating on their products. They tell you if their product is offensive, defensive, or all-around.  You should find the product that best suits your play style. If you like to attack with your backhand, then get an offensive rubber for that side of your ping pong bat. If you like control, then you should get an all-around blade. Think of how you play ping pong and based on that, make the right product purchase that reflect the equipment rating.

By choosing the right rubber and blade combination that fits your play style, you will maximize your success in table tennis matches and find the best ping pong paddle for you.

China Great Table Tennis Player - Ma Lin

Ma Lin, one of the greatest table tennis players in recent history, has been quite consistent for the last 8 years, winning several tournaments. Currently, he is ranked number FOUR in table tennis by International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). He is also holding the rank of number one player in Asia and in his native land, China. In the last one year, he holds an incredible win average of 86.6%. However, Wang Liqin, his compatriot, is closely on the heels of Ma Lin with ranking points of 12,661 against Ma Lin’s 12,688 points. Wang Liqin went in to the final of the Men’s Singles event at the H.I.S. World Championships in Yokohama following a semi-final victory over Ma Lin in May 2009 in an epic struggle.

Ma Lin was born in the Shenyang Liaoning province in China on February 19, 1980. He started playing table tennis when he was jus six years old. At the age of 10, he managed to become a member of the provincial team. Four years later, in 1994, he was included in the Chinese national team. He was coached by Liu Guoliang, former World Champion. Guoliang saw the potential in the young boy and nurtured him.

Impeccable Records: Here is a peep-in at the outstanding record of Ma Lin. From February 2002 to April 2007, he has always been in the first 5 ranks in the world. He has been holding the first rank for 13 months in this period, while he was ranked second for 30 months.

Ma Lin won the World Cup for the first time in 2000. One of his major titles after that was the ITTF Pro Tour Singles Title in 2002. Later, he won a doubles title, partnering Chen Qi, in the Athens Olympic Games held in 2004. In 2006, he won the Singapore Open and Men’s World Cup. He was also the runner-up in 2006 Men’s World Championship.

When Ma Lin won the Liebherr Men’s World Cup in Paris on October 29, 2006, he became the only player in the world to have won it four times. He has won the Men’s World Cup in 2000, 2003, 2004, and 2006. No other player had won the World Cup for more than two times. He beat compatriot Wang Hao in a grueling seven-game battle in the 2006 finals. Ma Lin attributed his success to the training given by his coach, Liu Guoliang.

Ma Lin became the Olympic table tennis champion in the Men’s Singles event in the year 2008. MA overcame his compatriot Wang Hao in five games 11-9, 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, and 11-9. The twelve month reign of Ma Lin came to an end in December 2008, when he was beaten at the semi-final stage of the Men’s Singles event at the Volkswagen Pro Grand Finals, the man who had captured the title in Beijing in December 2007 was beaten by Ma Long.

Style of Grip: Ma Lin uses the penhold style of grip. Players using the penhold style normally have a weak backhand. To compensate for this, Ma Lin has practiced and developed the reverse backhand, which is an innovative stroke. This stroke enables him to utilize the underside of the blade. He also plays the standard backhand push very well. Thus, Ma Lin is able to employ three types of strokes. This helps him in overcoming even the toughest opponents.

Coach’s Word of Advice: According to Ma Lin’s coach, Liu Guoliang, Ma Lin is better off playing the game at a fast pace than a slow one. Normally, he advised Ma Lin to be very aggressive in his 3rd ball attacks so that he could control the pace of the game. When the first few points are won with such a tactic, automatically Ma Lin would gain in confidence and play the balance games with the same smooth tempo. Liu feels that in analytical powers and in the ability to vary his playing tactics, Ma Lin has very few equals in the world. He always told Ma Lin that he has to fight to hold his world number one ranking, instead of playing safe. This expert guidance and coaching had made Ma Lin the top-ranking player in the world.

Table Tennis Table Selection Guide

Top Thickness:  A table top should be 3/4" thick or more to be resistant to warpage. 1/2" and 5/8" thick tops are too thin to provide much resistance to warping. Tops less than 3/4" thick do not bounce consistently over the entire surface of the table. A too thin top will cause the ball to bounce too low in places and makes it difficult to play especially for children.

Table tennis table tops range from 1/2" to 1" thick. Generally the thicker the top the better if the material used is of the same quality.  A thicker top generally enhances the quality of a table tennis table. The quality of the material (particle board is used for almost all table tennis tables) used is also very important Some table tennis table tops are made of a high resin material that can have a higher resistance to warpage than regular particle board. The evenness of support under the top is also important in determining the bounce quality of a ping pong table.


Frame (chassis) Durability & Thickness:  Larger size legs are generally thought to improve durability; however a table with many connecting points within the chassis may have greater durability even though the legs and bracing may be thinner. A table tennis table like a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so a table tennis table with thick legs that are strong in appearance, without enough connections in the right places may not be as strong as a table tennis table with thinner higher quality connections that are placed in the optimum places.

Table Tennis Table Stability 

The table tennis tables commonly available through mass market retailers lack the proper design and support to allow the table to hold together very long before loosening and collapsing. Call us to go over your intended usage and we will help evaluate what table model would best work for you.

Table Tennis Table Warpage 

Warping of table tennis table tops is a common problem. There needs to be enough built-in resistance to warpage for your environment and usage. Call us to go over your intended usage and we will help you select the model that most suits your needs with the highest resistance to warping.

Country of manufacturing for Table Tennis Tables

Table tennis tables are made in many countries around the world. The relationship  between country of manufacturing and quality of table tennis tables is about the same as it is for other goods. Germany produces quality goods, and is also the home of the worlds largest professional table tennis league. Germany has a table tennis league that has over 800,000 participants. Germany as a result has manufacturing capability that allows it to produce many of the worlds finest table tennis tables.

Why buy from megaspin?

They have the best price on the best table tennis tables.  They have a wide variety of the best tables and they really know and will recommend a table for your usage that will last years for your usage at a great price.

They are located in the U.S. and they are not at all new at the table tennis table business. Many companies on the internet are new and not even located in the US. They have operated a table tennis mail order catalog business since then. 

Megaspin processes the warranties. If you have a problem with a product you have bought from them, you would contact them. They process warranties by contacting the manufacturers. It is still the manufacturers warranty, but they do the processing for you.

Many companies that sell table tennis tables are new at it. Sometimes they do not have any real presence in the U.S. Often shipment is made only through independent  warehouses.

Wood vs. Aluminum Encapsulated Table Tennis Tables

Wood: Most table tennis table tops are made entirely of wood. These should not be exposed to excessive humidity, moisture, or temperature extremes.

Aluminum:  The table tennis tables with aluminum encapsulation have a great resistance to moisture and warpage. These tables are suitable for outdoor patio usage.   The encapsulation process makes these tables warp proof.

Table tennis tables that are encapsulated in aluminum are wood table that are enclosed in aluminum, top, bottom, and sides. Aluminum encapsulated tops can delaminate if not properly designed and manufactured. A well designed and made table of this type can last for many years.  

 Features

Roll-Away & Storage Positions: Roll –Away table tennis tables usually have the halves of the table attached to a center frame with wheels allowing quick set-up and fold up for storage. It is important for long term chassis durability that the wheels on each side of the table have adequate connections between them to maintain stability. It is the wheels and whatever connects that will need to support the weight of the entire table tennis table when it is folded up for storage. Without adequate connections between the wheels, the legs and the whole chassis will loosen causing the legs to wobble and overall chassis to loosen. It is very important that the chassis have enough connections to provide an overall strength; some Roll-A-ways have 4 wheels on each side allowing each half to be rolled away separately.

Playback Demonstration

Playback feature: Some tables can be used by one player alone for practice by raising one half of the table to the storage position to be used as a practice backboard.  Some tables have a gap between the folded up side and the net when folded up for the playback. Such a gap will cause you to have to hit the ball hard enough to clear the gap which will cause the ball to go off the end a lot. With a gap the trajectory of your shots is limited also, and in many ways not like playing regular table tennis. Some tables will allow the folded up table half to fold flat against the net which will allow normal play. Children like the playback feature. A gap-less playback with a lighter weight (for easier fold up) can be a more useful table for a home with children.  

Stationary Net & Post: Many roll-away tables have net brackets permanently attached to the table frame for both playing and storage. This type makes setup a little faster, but is sometimes less adjustable and sturdy than separate net and post sets. However some permanent table tennis table net & posts are stronger and more adjustable than others.

Net Included: Most tables come with a net and post included.

Compact Storage: When not in use, these tables store in a smaller space, particularly important for some clubs, schools or recreational facilities storing multiple tables in limited storage space.

Leg Thickness: The thicker the legs, the more stable the table will be in terms of its tendency to remain ion place.

Casters: The larger the casters, the easier the table will be to move around. Dual wheel casters can make a table easier to roll.  

Get To The Perfect Playlist For Table Tennis Performance

In this article, let’s look at how to choose the perfect soundtrack for your training or matches.

No the Beatles don't have to be on the list...unless you want them to be.

Photo source: Contributed by Steve Grant to celebritiesplayingtabletennis.com

Choose rhythm that matches your activity
Ethiopian distance runner Haile Gebrselassie was famous for setting world records running in time to the rhythmical pop song “Scatman.” He selected this song because the tempo perfectly matched his target stride rate.

As I mentioned in the last article, luckily for us, table tennis is one of the most rhythmic sports in existence! Let’s take a look at how we can find the songs that help us find our perfect rhythm:
I estimate that I forehand counterhit close to the table at about 72 strokes per minute, forehand loop to block at about 52 strokes per minute and forehand counterloop back from the table at about 40 strokes per minute. Of course each of these will slow slightly if I’m doing footwork while performing the stroke.

But it’s rare to find music this slow, and I wouldn’t want to risk slowing my heartrate either, so I’d opt for music at about 144, 104 beats per minute (BPM) respectively for counterhitting and loop-to-block drills and aim for one stroke per two beats, and 160BPM for counterlooping and aim for one stroke per four beats. Of course, if your focus is to increase the tempo at which you do these drills (which sometimes it should), then you should select slightly faster BPM than your current rate for performing each drill.

Irregular rhythm drills such as third ball attack can be more difficult to determine a stroke rate for. I studied a video of Wang Liqin practicing 3^rd ball attack and each instance of the drill created 7 ‘sounds’ (ball hitting racket or ball hitting table) in about 1.9 seconds. This equates to an average of 224 ‘beats’ per minute. Music is rarely this fast, so I’d be inclined to try music at half that, 112 BPM, for my 3^rd ball drills and roughly the same for my service receive drills.

If I can’t have that much control over the BPM of my playlist, I’d probably aim for songs at 120BPM as a good average across all my drills and also for matches, where I’ll be performing a variety of skills at once.

Not sure what the BPM of a song is? Just google the title of it and “BPM” or otherwise google, for example, “120 BPM songs” and look through some lists to find some you like. It's not a hard and fast rule, though. Some songs have the right BPM but the song itself has a slower energy, and vice versa. So, if you listen to a song that lists a BPM of 120, but it doesn't get you pumped to play or train, cut it from your playlist.

I'll finish by listing a few songs around 120BPM on my playlist to get you started:
- 'It's My Life' by Bon Jovi
- 'Get Lucky' by Daft Punk
- 'Alive' by Empire Of The Sun
- 'We Take Care Of Our Own' by Bruce Springsteen
- 'I Gotta Feeling' by Black Eyed Peas
- '4 Minutes (ft. Justin Timberlake)' by Madonna
- 'Gangnam Style' by PSY
- Get rocking, and stay tuned for Part 2!

Butterfly Bryce Highspeed Rubber Review

For high speed comes with all-new packaign along with the new Butterfly logo. The company really transformed their look and feel of their latest products since the release of Tenergy 05 back in 2008.

The Bryce Highspeed Rubber comes with new technology called micro layer design for the new plastic ball. This micro layer technology enables the surface to be very thin and the finish to be very fine.

This allows the rubber to have longer pimples underneath for easy compression during impact. This gives a high-tension build up as a result for its greater speed.

According to the Butterfly statistics, Bryce Highspeed is the fastest rubber in their range. It performs faster than the popular Tenergy 05.

When pressing on the rubber, the Bryce Highspeed is slightly softer than Tenergy 05. To be precise, Bryce Highspeed is 45 degrees and Tenergy 05 is 36 degrees.

The weight of Bryce Highspeed after fine cut is 38 grams which is really light in comparison to Tenergy 05 that have 46 grams after cut.

As the name suggest, Bryce Highspeed rubber certainly does give you a lot of speed. You will be able to perfome very fine top spin without much effort. The amount of speed this rubber produces means that already catapults the surface of the rubber.

This means that the Bryce Highspeed has a very little dwell time and can push back real quickly from the low arc.

You may sometime found you couldn't generate as much place as you would like as you need to brush the ball a little more to get the higher gesture that required to get the ball over the net.

This was especially evident on low ball that need to get more control for it to bounce.

Some people found the Bryce Highspeed can be more suited for their backhand and the low gesture really help when playing wiht a close racket angle.

To maintain the speed which in turn will give you a lots of spin and control.

With certain natural technique you may use your backhand drive when pressing forward and it can gives you a lot of spin and speed with consistency.

You will be able to take advantage early on in the point with this aggressive shot. If you time in the ball well, you will surely get a lot of spin.

Although the Bryce Highspeed is primarily designs first and foremost as an extremely fast rubber, you will still able to get a lot of spin on the ball with your backhand flip and backhand topspin.

You may not able to get the same amount of spin on your forehand side as there is less wrist involvement with this stroke.

When comparing the Bryce Highspeed to other rubbers in the Butterfly range, this rubber can give you more spin in comparison to traditional Bryce speed. However, you can generate more spin with Tenergy 05 but when it comes to pure speed this rubber is the fastest that being produced by Butterfly.

For short game test, you may struggle to adapt at the beginning due to the rebound effect as it give little feedback. This rubber can be hard to control until you play it for a while and get more used to it.

If you are an aggresive player that need to have quite an upward motion when play away from the table, this rubber can offer you the best low arc that would send the ball just over the net. Of course, you will need to make a little adaptation to your stroke.

Topspin from mid distance and close to the table is fantastic.

Is perfect sweet spot across the back side and the rest of the area.

The Butterfly Bryce Highspeed has definitely been created a fast amount of speed on the ball. When a precise brush shot is used, a decent amount of spin can also be generated.

The spin is medium to hard and top sheet allow for higher pimple placement in the sponge.

This rubber can be an excellent choice for your backhand side and you can get a good balance between spin and speed on the final shots.

You can put your opponent under lot of pressure with this rubber due to speed. However, at times can be a little hard to control. This rubber is suited for intermediate to advanced players who like to generate a lot of speed on the ball. It is also good for players who like to punch and play far shots from close to the table.

This rubber can be also well suited fro a passive blocking game. Choose an amount of pace you can generate with little effort.

Top Player Who Uses Tenergy 05

Christophe Legout

Christophe Legout is a French table tennis player born on August 6th 1973 in Montbeliard, it is with Patrick Chila, Damien Eloi and Jean-Philippe Gatien of the best representatives of the Table Tennis French. He another person who uses tenergy 05 both sides on Boll Spirit.

Rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 05 red 2,1 mm; Tenergy 05 black 2,1 mm Blade: Boll Spirit (FL)

He is licensed to Istres Sports club (which also operates Michael Martinez) is still ranking well and also trains at the INSEP. He is champion of France in singles in 2005, and won many times the national title twice. Style of play: Left, attacking, dominating speed and rotation with an exceptional arm speed. World No. 62 in the world in September 2006, No. 51 in May 2008, his best world ranking was No. 14 in April 1999.

Past 1 / 4 finalist in singles European Championship 2009 1 / 8 finalist in doubles (with Abdel-Kader Salifou) European Championship 2009 with Abdel-Kader Salifou, Emmanuel Lebesson, Damien Eloi)

European Championship 2009 Champion de France double in 2009
Champion de France double in 2007
Champion of France in singles and doubles in 2005
Champion de France double in 2004 12 Finalist 2003
Bronze medalist France championships 2002
5th at the Sydney Olympics in doubles (with Damien Eloi) in 2000
Champion of France in men's doubles in 2000
Champion of France in men's doubles and mixed doubles in 1998
Silver medal team at the World Championships 1997
Vice-European champion team in 1996 Winner Doubles (with Damien Eloi) of England International 1995
European Champion team in 1994


Korbel, Petr

Rubber: Tenergy 05 black 2,1 mm and Tenergy 05 red 2,1 mm

Table Tennis Nets Are Key To The Game

As the sport of ping pong has grown, so has the quality of the equipment including table tennis nets. Setting it up properly is very important to those who are serious about the game. The rules of the game dictate that the net must be six inches high and six feet long, which is the standard width. The color must be black, dark green or dark blue with a white tape at the top that is no wider than 15 mm. Contrast colors can make a difference on how you see the ball and how you play the game so you need to choose the best that matches and contrast correctly between your table tennis tables and the table tennis nets.

The bottom of the net should sit as closely to the table top and as close to the end posts as possible. It should be taut between the two posts and not sag. The tension at the top should be tighter than the rest, as if a ball hits the top it should return to that player’s side, not slip over it to the opposition.

Knowing More About Table Tennis Nets and Sets

While some ping pong sets come with the posts permanently fixed to the table, most come with clamp-on style posts. Most posts will fit most tables, but table tennis nets are designed to fit specific posts. You should be aware of this when ordering or replacing an existing one and know what type of posts you have to fit. Thus, when buying table for table tennis, you need to make sure that your accessories including your ping pong net and other sets should be the correct one for the whole set of ping pong equipment.

Some manufacturers use different materials for making nets and different materials are better in varied situations. Cotton, polyethylene and nylon are the most common and generally hold up well for outdoor use as well as indoor. Many come with a tension adjustment cord for positioning.

To make equipment last it is important to take proper care of it and keep it covered whenever possible. Folding up and setting up a ping pong game is pretty easy. But when the nets become old and worn out, they don’t play well and certainly do not look pleasant. Replacements are not expensive and if ping pong is a game played often in your household or activity center you will want to keep your equipment fresh including new balls and table tennis nets.

All About Table Tennis Return Boards

What is Table Tennis Return Board?

If you are first time hear this name and having no idea at all of what is a table tennis return board, it's generally some sort of board where a player can hit a ball to the board and it  will return back the ball like you are playing with a real player. Technically, you can treat the board as your opponent.

In another word, it is actually a board that built to return or bouncing the ping pong ball back to the player if a player is playing alone without any partner. It is good in helping someone to practice and master the skill. As of now, there are many different return board that you can find in the market. Some people would love to get a homemade or DIY their own and it is totally workable. You can learn how to make a table tennis return board by referring to the video.

 Now, let's us just take a look of some of these products that are readily available for sale. I tried to search at Amazon and eBay but found there is none of such item for sale on their websites. Thus, I think most of these items are being DIY or homemade by ping pong enthusiasts and they are selling them as something that they think is worth it and can provide value to people who want to practice with the game alone.

TSP RETURN BOARD

This item is very flexible and is adjustable. For those beginners, it is an ideal product for them to use to practice with different playing style and it is really suit for schools. The TSP return board is features with 6 sheets of rubber which is sufficient to help out with coaching simulations. Anyone can now playing alone if they can't find a partner to play with them and this can have them train in good shape. When you purchase of this item, you will at the same time receive a training CD. However, the CD is purely available in German language but this shouldn't be a big issue for you as you can view the video and you can immediate get the idea and know how to use it.

Wally Rebounder Trainer

Wally rebounder is having a great quality of rebound board for you to train your ping pong skill. This product can be ideal piece to aid you to improve your game playing style. It is the sincere and loyal partner that will play consistently compare to a real player and it's constantly down to play steadily.

The Wally Rebound board tend to not as the same compare to other boards as it is built primarily as a supreme training kit. When you purchase this board, you will get the board, tripod stands, as well as a mounting & tilting system. The mounting & tilting system is the uniqueness of the board and it is pending for patented at the moment. So, we can foresee that the company will going to release a better one in future once their patent is being approved and they may become the top product on the market.  If you wish to rotate it, it is possible and you don't even need to put an impact detector in it.  It is built with advance yet simple technology that it moves back and forth. At the time it hitting an end, the motor will immediate turns around and hit back the ball to the player.

You are going to have a very good practice with the products as discussed above. Either go for TSP or Wally Rebounder is definitely up to you. You can make your own comparison or find out more from the site and make your final decision yourself. Last but not least, there is also another prototype of return board that is under development which is known as P3 Rebound Board that is developed by Table Tennis Partner. You can read more about the board and see what features they have.

Butterfly Table Tennis Table – Top In The Market

One of the best table tennis table manufacturers will be the Butterfly brand. If you are one of the millions of people all over the world who enjoy playing the game of ping pong, you know what having good equipment matters. A good paddle will help your aim out greatly. A good ball will fly straight to where you need it to be. But a good table is the most important part and those who demand he best will purchase only a butterfly table tennis table.

Get Good Quality of Playing Surface

Some people may wonder why your playing surface matters. After all, you could just string up a net across anything and play, right? Actually, that is not the case. You need to experience this in order to feel and classy and greatness of a butterfly table tennis table but you do not have to take my word for it but rather you try and tell me what you think.

Many apparently even surfaces are not as even as they look. Little things such as scratches, dents, and dimples can and will change the way things land, effecting your serves and bounces for the worst. The effects range widely depending on the imperfections varying from loss of power to complete loss of ball control once it has bounced.

Having your playing surface be level is also very important. Any small variations in the area will result in normally controlled bounds flying off in unpredictable directions leading to out of bounds balls. It is also possible to have the ball ricochet in an unexpected angle, allowing your opponent to score points against you! This type of table for table tennis is one of the reasons that most players say a lot about this brand.

Mediocre Table Surface Can Screw Your Practice

Uneven surfaces and non-level playing fields are not only bad during actual play, they are terrible for practice. The body has something called muscle memory which builds up as you are training. This allows you to make excellent moves without needing to think. As a consequence, having a lot of practice on a bad playing area will lead to even more inaccurate shots than not practicing at all!

Butterfly table tennis table is not an advertisement  made great, but rather proven its mettle through time. All of these problems can be avoided by simply selecting the best playing table, and a butterfly table tennis table is the best that money can buy.

Other than the company is famous for their table products, they also famous for other ping pong equipment such as their Butterfly Innerforce Blade Series which being used by a lot of top notch players around the world.

Top 5 Outdoor Table Tennis Tables

I just create a list of my personal top 5 list for the outdoor table tennis tables which I think they are qualified for.

I will choose one table each from different supplier and share with you the relevant videos to let you inspect and figure out yourself.

Well the list are as below:

Butterfly Octet 25 Rollaway Table

Click for more detail info about the table.

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Kettler Champ 5.0 Outdoor

Click for more detail info about the table.

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Joola Nova DX Table

Click for more detail info about the table.

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Stiga Instaplay Table Tennis Table

Click for more detail info about the table.


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Cornilleau 500 M Outdoor Table

Click for more detail info about the table.

These are the top 5 from different companies where I think is good for professional players.

Kettler Stockholm Outdoor Table Tennis Table

The Kettler Stockholm Outdoor Table Tennis Table is a high-ranking variant of the Riga Outdoor Table Tennis Table. With features like: Upgraded leg assembly, compared to being dissembled in the Riga Table Tennis Range, the ping pong net and posts stay in place even when the Kettler Stockholm Outdoor Table Tennis Table is folded for storage . The surface is made from a 22mm weather-resistant aluminum table top which weights less and is care free. The special dazzle-proof playing top coat and folding technology with dual safety catch make it an ideal multi-purpose joy and safe, recreational table that can be used under the sun. If the family happens to leave you or one of the children would like to coach for the next friendly, there is a playback mechanism built in to the table tennis table consenting you to train anytime needed.

From my personal experience, this is probably one of the most valuable Christmas presents I have ever received. Assembly was not a hassle so long as you had adequate forbearance to follow manual guides. You cannot anticipate to have a tough, weather-resistant, quality game table and manage to assemble it like lego’s.

Majority of setup can be performed by one person but there are things that necessitate, or are at least eased, by a second individual. Once the table is put together, folding and unfolding is easy even for one person. Actually, levers have been strategically placed specifically for helping one-man operation. I really cannot think of any particularly noticeable drawback  for this table. The fact that setup is necessary isn’t really a disadvantage, especially when not purchased in a store and it has to be expected.

The Kettler Stockholm Outdoor Table Tennis Table has brought a real fun to me, my family and relatives. My uncle Husin, who is a local ping pong old timer also praised this tennis table. He said that the ball-bounce was steady and the sound the ball made when it hit the table top shows that the material from which the table were made are of superior type. He also said that even his little twin sons could easily roll the table away to the house compound for our playing.

In fact, this Kettler Stockholm Outdoor Table Tennis Table is available in two colors, green and blue. However, I prefer the blue one since it looks more elegant, elite and sporty.

If you house already have a billiard table and you still wish to play ping pong, but is having limited space, and you are only want to get a ping pong table to play the game for fun, you may consider of buying the table tennis table conversion top to place on your existing pool table and you can start to enjoy playing.

Indoor Table Tennis Equipment

Let’s talk a little bit about the equipment you need for table tennis. You may think: “why on earth is this guy talking about a couple of paddles and a ping-pong ball? I can get all that stuff together for $ 5,00 at my deli around the corner!”. And you are right you can. 

Therefore, you might be surprised when I tell you that I used to spend about $ 200 a month on my table tennis equipment. Yes, that’s right. It was $ 200, and sometimes even more like recently I just bought a Stiga Pro Carbon racket for myself which has cost me about $70 just for the blade. I guess the same is true for all different kind of sports equipment. I don’t know anything about baseball. So to me all the bats look exactly the same. But even without knowing anything about it, I am sure that my theory is wrong. 

Very likely, there are huge differences between the various types of bats, the wood they are made of, size, weight, etc. So for table tennis, it’s exactly the same story. Let’s start with the paddle. A paddle consists of the bat (which is made of wood, or sometimes a combination of different woods and other materials). Now typically, each bat also comes with different handle shapes, such as straight, concave, etc. 

Each bat has two sides and in 95% of the time, both sides are covered with a rubber. There are some players who only cover one side, because they only use one their forehand and therefore don’t need to cover the backhand. One side has to be black and the other one has to be red. There are no exceptions to this rule. 

The table tennis equipment suppliers provide each of their rubbers in both, red and black. Typically, each table tennis rubber has a spongy kind of layer attached underneath. That layer comes in various thicknesses. The thinker, the fast is the rubber.  The rubbers differentiate from each other in tackiness and density. Both factors play an important role as you develop your game. Some players use a lot of spin on their shots; others prefer more the straight shot variations and therefore don’t need as much grip as others.

There are two general categories of rubbers, the inverted ones and the pimples. The inverted ones are by far more popular. The pimples, or also called long pimples, are mostly used by players who prefer a rather defensive tactic. I’m going to talk about the different playing styles and the relation to equipment in another article.

Table Tennis Rules - Service and Score

Do you really know the rules regarding indoor table tennis? Or do you just THINK you know them? Well, we shall see. I’m about to explain a few rules to you including some of which you might have never heard about before. In order to win a match, a player must have won 3 out of five games. In order to win a game, he must have won 11 points. That’s right, not 21 points. That rule has changed a while ago.

Okay, so again, a player needs 11 points to win a game and he/she needs to have 2 points more than the opponent. So for example, let’s say the score is 9:9. If you make two more points, the game is yours. But if the score is 10:10, you also need two more points in order to win the game. That means theoretically, a final score could be 17:15. So let me sum that up for you again:

A player needs 3 out of five games to win an indoor table tennis match.

In order to win a game, a player needs to score 11 points minimum AND 2 points more than his opponent.

Now let’s move on two the next rule. The service rule for table tennis. Most of the people got that wrong, too. Before you start a match, each player picks a side and coin will to be flipped. If you picked the right side, you have the right to start with the service.

However, that doesn’t mean that you have to actually use your right. Maybe you feel more comfortable to start a new match by returning your opponent’s service. In that case you can hand over the right of serve to your opponent. If your opponent was guessed right on the coin flip, it’s exactly the other way around.

Once it is decided who starts the match, he has two services. And then it keeps alternating all throughout the game, always two services at a time. The old rule was five services per player each times, but that was when a game still consisted of 21 points. Okay, so let’s say your opponent won the right of service to start the first game.

Once the first game is finished, you will have the right of services to start the second game. And for the third game, it will go back to your opponent and so forth.

Zhang Jike With a New Backhand Rubber

I don't know how many of you have already realised that, but the 2013 World Champion Zhang Jike has changed his backhand rubber. As Sun Tzu on TableTennisDaily shows, the rubber Zhang has been using since the WTTC is Tenergy 05-fx, could you notice ?

I had no idea that happened, it seemed like he played his usual table tennis to me. But as we can see, he did not. The Butterfly Tenergy 05 in general, being a hard rubber it best known for it's adaption to a close play. In which case, is perfect for the Chinese player. He always tended to play his backhand close to the table.

He rarely ends up playing a counter topspin with it, mostly flips, simple topspins or stuff like that. He also likes pushing the ball a little bit sometimes wich is perfect with the rubber. What had he been using before the change, you're asking ? I have no idea, tried to find it out on the web, but came up with nothing. If you know or found it, please write in the comments to let us know.

Anyway, his forehand rubber is the Chinese Hurricane 3. Never heard of it actually and never tested it, so I'm not going to say anything about that, not to spread false informations or stuff. And that's actually everything i have for you at the moment, stay well and expect more infos coming soon !

Bercy WTTC Arena in Paris Ready and Looking Gorgeous !

So, I went through my facebook updates in which i've seen amazing pictures of the Bercy Arena in Paris, used for the already started WTTC 2013 ! The tables look amazing, with lights at the bottom of the bat for the first time, and a very modern look overall. The arena isn't worse, with a lot of lights and a lot of cool, innovative things in there ! I just wanted to share with you four pictures showing the basic look. I know I haven't posted anything like this before, but expect a lot of updates, comments and just news from the tournament as soon as the best players are being shown !

ITTF Reveals the Brand New Table for the Upcoming WTTC 2013 in Paris !

For those who "like" the ITTF Facebook page, it's nothing new. But there are people who may not follow them there, and for those here's a picture of the brand new table created for the World Championships held in Paris. I haven't really seen any other pictures rather than this one, but the table here seems a little purple, doesn't it ? Would be amazing If it really was purple though, finally something new. Apart from that, we can see an amazing design on the side of it, showing an Eiffel Tower made out of table tennis rackets, being very colorful too. Can't wait to see this table in action during the big event in Paris, starting this Monday ! 

Timo Boll and Dimitrij Ovtcharov to give up World Team Classic 2013

image source

The World Team Classic 2013 is going to be a big tournament as always, taking place in the nation of table tennis, China. I know a lot of people would love to see a european team taking the title there or just being in the final, but as both german team's leaders has decided not to play there, the chances of that drastically decreased.

Germany has been a serious rival for all the asian teams lately, taking the final a couple of times and beating the best players from that continent. But without these two players, they cannot do much, having Bastian Steger, Patrick Baum and Patrick Franziska representing the country instead. Now, these players are good, they've won different tournaments all over the world, but it's clearly not enough to beat teams like China, Japan or Korea.

The first one, China, will be filled with Zhang Jike, Ma Long, Xu Xin, Ma Lin and Wang Liqin, as you can see all the best players. In short terms, as there's no other country in the world except for Germany, which would have a chance to defeat China or any asian team in this year's edition, I think this is gonna be more like Asian Team Championships rather than the well known World Team Classic.