Table Tennis Racquet
A table tennis racket is made up of two distinct parts.
1) A wooden blade which incorporates a handle…
and…
2) table tennis rubbers which are affixed to each side of the blade using water-based glue and then trimmed to fit the blade.
The most common type of rubbers are “sandwich rubbers” where the top rubber and sponge underneath are combined into one sheet.
Here’s a side view of a racket showing the wooden blade with sandwich rubbers affixed to each side of the blade.
Note: Some rackets have rubbers with no sponge underneath, including the traditional “hardbat”, but these are much rarer than sandwich rubbers.
Rule 2.04.01 states…
"The racket may be of any size, shape or weight but the blade shall be flat and rigid"
In addition the rules state that at least 85% of the blade by thickness must be of natural wood.
But of course, even though your racket can be any size you want, the larger it is, the more difficult it will be to use.
Therefore you’ll find that the majority of rackets are all a similar size … about 15cm (6 inches) across and 25cm (10 inches) long including the (10cm / 4 inch) handle.
Type and thickness of your rubbers
Rule 2.04.03 states that…
"A side of the blade used for striking the ball shall be covered with either, ordinary pimpled rubber, with pimples outwards having a total thickness including adhesive of not more than 2mm, or sandwich rubber, with pimples inwards or outwards, having a total thickness including adhesive of not more than 4mm"
This means that the umpire should check the thickness of your racket coverings to make sure that they’re not greater than the 2mm or 4mm allowed.
Although all rubbers that you buy should be the correct thickness, a player could deliberately alter the rubber on his racket.
Also, repeated re-gluing of rubbers can cause the sponge layer to swell, so the umpire should always check the thickness.
However, one of the most common reasons for an umpire to query the legality of your racket is because of the…
Size of your rubbers
Rule 2.04.05 states that…
"The covering material shall extend up to, but not beyond the limits of, the blade except that the part nearest the handle and gripped by the fingers may be left uncovered or covered with any material"
This means that your table tennis rubbers should not overhang the edges of your blade, although the umpire may allow some tolerance.
As a guide, ±2mm would be an acceptable margin to most umpires. If you have a larger overhang, the umpire will make you trim off any excess rubber.
The rules also state that the blade and rubbers must be…
Continuous and of even thickness
Rule 2.04.04 states that…
the blade and rubbers must be continuous and of even thickness
So you need to make sure that your blade is not unduly damaged and that your rubbers have an even surface.
Colour of your rubbers
Rule 2.04.06 states that…
"The surface of the covering material on a side of the blade, or of a side of the blade if it is left uncovered, shall be matt, black on one side, and of a bright colour clearly distinguishable from black and from the colour of the ball on the other"
Note: This rule was updated on 1 October 2021 to include other bright colours in addition to bright red. The authorised bright colours are pink, purple, green and blue.
This means that if you have rubber on both sides of your blade, one rubber must be black and the other rubber must be a bright colour clearly distinguishable from black and from the colour of the ball.
However, if you only use rubber on one side of your blade (for example, if you use a penhold grip), you can leave the other side of your blade uncovered – but it must still be coloured black or a bright colour (depending on what colour your rubber is on the other side).
Also, it’s important to note that if you don’t have a rubber on one side of your blade, then you cannot use that side of the racket to hit the ball.
Boosters and Tuners
In the past, players used various liquids, powders and chemicals to enhance the properties of their rubbers. Sometimes it was just as a means of cleaning their rubbers, but often it was in order to significantly improve the performance of their rubber.
However, in 2008 the rules were changed and now it’s no longer allowed.
Rule 2.04.07 now states that rubbers must be used without any physical, chemical or other treatment.
So if you want to clean your rubbers, you can only use plain water.
Showing your racket to your opponent
Rule 2.04.08 states that…
"Before the start of a match and whenever he or she changes his or her racket during a match a player shall show his or her opponent and the umpire the racket he or she is about to use and shall allow them to examine it."
This rule was introduced in 1983 due to the proliferation of “combination” rackets in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
At that time, players were allowed to have rubbers which were the same colour on both sides of their racket.
However, many players would choose two rubbers which had completely different playing characteristics. For example, they would have an offensive rubber on one side of their racket and a defensive rubber such as anti-spin or long pimples on the other side.
Therefore their opponent could not easily see which type of rubber was being used for each stroke, especially when the racket was constantly being “twiddled”.
Changing your racket during a match
If you’re playing in a higher level event, the following additional Regulations will usually apply in addition to the basic rules discussed above.
Regulation 3.04.02 states that you’re no longer allowed to change your racket during a match unless it’s been accidentally damaged so badly that you can’t use it.
If the umpire does allow you to change your racket, you must show your new racket to your opponent and to the umpire.
Also, to prevent you from secretly changing your racket between games, you must leave it on the table during the intervals between games and you must not remove it without the specific agreement of the umpire.
If the umpire does allow you to remove your racket during an interval for any reason, both the umpire and your opponent must be given the opportunity to inspect your racket before the next game starts.
The Regulations also specify that you can only use…
Authorised rubbers
Regulation 3.02.01 states that only table tennis rubbers authorised by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) can be used in authorised events.
You must also ensure that you attach them to your blade so that the ITTF logo and the maker’s logo or trademark are clearly visible near the edge of the blade (so that they can be checked by the umpire) … and they must only be attached to your blade with adhesives that do not contain harmful volatile solvents.
VOC-free Glue
A new regulation (3.02.04) was introduced in 2008 which stated that…
Racket coverings can only be attached to the racket blade with adhesives that do not contain harmful volatile solvents
Since the 1980s, table tennis players have experimented with different types of table tennis glue to affix their rubbers to their table tennis bats.
It was discovered that certain types of glue had the effect of increasing the speed of the table tennis rubber if the player re-glued the rubber at frequent intervals.
This gave the attacking / offensive player a distinct advantage and gradually led to the development of “speed glue”.
However, this type of glue contained volatile compounds which gave off a distinctive odour. This odour is now considered harmful to a players’ health.
Therefore glues containing volatile compounds cannot be used, and testing for the presence of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) is now carried out at ITTF events.
Stringent racket control procedures
The new regulations mean that racket testing now takes place at events where the regulations are being used and the player is responsible for using a clean racket, i.e. without VOCs and with the correct rubber thickness.
So it’s important that you don’t add anything to your racket.
However, all players are entitled to have their rackets tested voluntarily, without any penalties, before the match.
Rackets that don’t pass the racket control test before the match cannot be used but they can be replaced by a second racket – which which may be tested immediately if time permits, but if not, will be tested after the match.
Where rackets do not pass a racket control test after the match, the offending player will be liable to penalties.
In addition, this new regulation states that the ITTF will maintain a register of all racket control failures.
