Table tennis equipment is very important. I also explain the common errors that new players often commit when buying their first equipment. These mistakes are “expensive”! Avoid them at all costs!
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The most important table tennis equipment
Don’t make expensive mistakes. Buying the right equipment is crucial for your playing style. With a racket, a ball, a pair of shoes, you are ready! As a serious table tennis player, all you need are a blade, a forehand rubber, and a backhand rubber.
A blade
A blade is very important. It’s the soul of your playing style. It decides 80% of your shot’s quality.
A forehand rubber
A forehand rubber is the ultimate weapon that you use to attack with the forehand topspin. You need a low-throw, fast and hard forehand rubber.
A backhand rubber
Backhand rubber is the modern tool in table tennis. Nowadays, you can’t win in modern table tennis without the backhand attack. You need a fast, bouncy, and spinny backhand rubber.
If you don’t have time, or you don’t know how to combine the blade and the rubbers then you can buy a good paddle (which has already a good blade, combined with a good forehand and backhand rubber).
Here is the list of the most important equipment in table tennis:
The most important table tennis equipment| Paddle | Blade | FH rubber | BH rubber |
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| Shoes | Cases | Glues | Booster |
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Equipment for your playing style
It decides not only your playing style but also increases your potential for victory. You need to choose the right racket!
Yes! It’s nothing wrong if you focus on the best table tennis blade, rubber, or other accessories. So today, I will explain to you how to choose the best equipment which fits your playing style, which can help you win more in table tennis.
Coach Liu Guoliang said,
Choose the right equipment that fits well your playing style.
Basic Types Of Table Tennis Equipment
Here are some basic types of table tennis equipment. They are a racket, a ball, and a table.
a racket: composed of a blade and 2 rubbers (one for forehand, and another for backhand). You can’t use the same color for these two rubbers. One rubber must be black, and another one must be red.
a ball: 40+ mm table tennis ball, color white or orange. Nowadays, you must use a Poly Ball 40+. We don’t play the celluloid ball 38 mm anymore.
a table: official table tennis tables are 2.74 m in length, 1.525 m wide, and 0.76 m high. And the net included is 15.25 cm high.
Minimum Requirements
The minimum required equipment for a player is:
blade: its role is giving the feeling of the ball. It’s like an extension of your arm. The blade decides 80% of your playing style. You should choose the best blade that fits your style.
rubber: add the speed and the spin to the ball. Choosing the right combination (blade + rubber) is crucial. The rubber completes 20% of the characteristic of the racket.
clothing and shoes: Clothing (T-Shirt, Shorts) and shoes are your images. It not only shows your etiquette, your professionalism but also your attitude to the sport.
Please remember: There is no best setup in table tennis. The best equipment is the one that suits your playing style.
What is the equipment used in table tennis? You don’t need many types of equipment in table tennis: just a racket, a ball, a table. That’s why table tennis is the most popular recreational sport.
Here are the most important types of equipment needed in table tennis.
You need to have also a short, and a pair of shoes to play table tennis.
Common mistakes when choosing ping pong equipment
I will help you choose the right equipment for table tennis! Don’t listen to reviews out there! Because the wrong equipment can ruin your development stage.
Many new players made “expensive mistakes” when choosing their first equipment in table tennis.
Don’t make these mistakes!
It costs you not only money $$$, but also it destroys the golden time in your development stage. Below I explain the best way to choose the right equipment.
Ping Pong Rackets
Table tennis rackets are the combination of the blade and two rubbers. A racket is made by a blade and two rubbers.
You should make your own racket, don’t buy the premade racket. You need to choose the right combination.
Don’t choose a too-hard blade and combine it with hard and fast rubber. Or don’t choose a flexible blade, and combine it with thin and soft rubber. I’ve explained, “how to choose your best table tennis rackets“.
You need to cut your rubbers perfectly and glue them to the bare blade. The blade is wood, so it will absorb the humidity rapidly. After gluing the rubber correctly, you need to protect your racket for the long term.
In table tennis equipment, there is a blade and rubber.
Combination of blade and rubber
The blade decides 80% of the quality of the shots. You should choose a good blade, based on your playing style.
The rubber is about 20% and should be combined with a blade. You should learn how to make a good combination of table tennis. For example, don’t combine flexible, slow blades with thin, soft, and weak rubber.
Watch this video “Understand Table Tennis Equipment | Choose Best Paddle and Rubber”
Here are some of my advice to protect your equipment:
- Don’t put your racket in humid condition. Remember, wood hates water! Please protect your racket!
- Study and search for professional ping pong equipment. There is a reason behind why they prefer these combinations (blade + rubber).
- If you are a new player, buy your first equipment (under 40$). Don’t buy too expensive equipment for the first time!
Many types of rubbers in table tennis
In table tennis, there are many types of rubber: Pips-in rubber, pips-out rubber, anti-top rubber, Chinese rubber, ESN rubber, Japanese rubber, long pimples rubber, short pips, frictionless pips, sandpaper rubber, etc.
- Chinese rubber vs European rubber
- Short pimples
- Long pimples: Long pimples (or long pips) are the pips-out table tennis rubbers. This type of rubber has a specific effect: Reverse spin of the ball.
- Anti-top rubber
- Sandpaper used in PingPong
Rubbers used for forehand side, and backhand side
Due to the different mechanisms of backhand and forehand stroke. You should use different types of rubber for the forehand, and backhand. So backhand rubber, and forehand rubber is not the same.
Choose harder and lower throw angles for your forehand rubber.
Choose bouncy and higher throw angles for your backhand rubber.
Choose harder rubber on the Forehand side
Forehand rubbers are generally harder than the backhand side. You should choose +2 hardness degree than your backhand rubber. DHS Hurricane 3 is the common Chinese rubbers used by many professional players.
- Improve the power of the forehand technique. Then upgrade the hardness of your forehand rubber
- If you use Chinese forehand rubber, you should consider boosting it.
Choose the right backhand rubber
Many players asked me “How to choose a good backhand rubber?”. Here is the list of the top 10 backhand table tennis rubber that professional players use!
Well, you need to choose a fast, and bouncier rubber than your forehand rubber. Because your backhand stroke is shorter, and in general, weaker than your forehand stroke.
How to choose a good backhand rubber
In general, most ESN (European rubber), and Japanese (like Butterfly Tenergy and variant) are good backhand rubber.
You can stick with them. For a beginner, stick with 2.0 mm. And use 2.2 mm, and Max for advanced players.
Don’t play with too thin, or too thick (2.3 mm, and MAX) if you are new. Too thin backhand rubber is bad for beginners.
- Choose good backhand rubber
- Chinese rubber vs Euro rubber
- Ma Long’s equipment
- Choose red or black rubber as a backhand rubber
You can use “SEARCH” on this site, and try to search for your favorite rubber.
The main characteristics of a table tennis rubber
Table Tennis rubber is glued to a blade to make a complete racket. You need a red and black rubber for your paddle (based on the official rubber rules). Red rubber is usually harder than black rubber. Black rubber is tackier. Read and black rubbers are not the same! Read the explication here. Rubbers need to have 2 colors.
Chinese table tennis player prefers using hard and tacky Chinese rubber on their forehand side.
Chinese table tennis rubbers
Chinese table tennis rubbers have a hard sponge and tacky topsheet. The hard sponge gives the linear feeling and precision in the shots. Tacky topsheet helps players add spin and control to the service. That’s the reason why Chinese players prefer playing with tacky topsheet.
Chinese rubbers require good foundation techniques (footwork, timing, and body motions). Compared to Japanese rubber, and European rubber, Chinese rubber is harder to use for beginners.
Watch this video: How to Choose Best Setup in Table Tennis
The most famous Chinese rubbers brands are Double Happiness (DHS), Friendship 729, and Globe.
Table Tennis Shoes
Table tennis shoes are different than badminton, or tennis shoes. Choosing the wrong shoe can affect your table tennis footwork. Between several brands, Joola and Butterfly shoes are my favorite ones.
- Learn the right way to tie your table tennis shoe
- Learn the 4 main footwork patterns by heart
Ping pong table
The table is in general provided by the club. There are 2 types of table tennis tables: indoor, and outdoor tables. Here is some good table that you can choose from:
Indoor table:
Outdoor table:
Cover:
Which one should I buy?
I recommend you buy the Stiga Optimum 30! It’s for the serious competitive table tennis player! High quality and standardized bounce!
Best table tennis glues and boosters
I recommend you choose the strong glue! Strong glue ensures perfect contact and the maximum amount of spin. Here is some best glue in my opinion:
If you don’t know what to choose, take the Butterfly Free Chack. It glues very well and is very clean to remove the residual glue on your rubbers.
What is a table tennis booster?
Booster (also called a tuner, expander) is a chemical substance. Table tennis players use the booster to tune their rubbers to add more spin and speed.
There are many table tennis boosters available on the market: Haifu, Danchi, Falco, Revolution, etc.
If you want to know more about the booster, tuners, and the chemical substances inside of these, read here:
- Booster and Tuner in table tennis
- Should I use the booster: No!
- Is booster harmful to player’s health: Yes.
- Does booster give advantages in table tennis: Yes
- Do pro players use boosters: Yes! Mostly in China.
Read more about Chinese table tennis rubbers (national Hurricane 3, Blue sponge, fake and real rubbers, etc).
Why does the pro tune their Chinese rubbers? Because the booster enhances bout +10% speed and 15% spin.
Another training tool for table tennis
If you want to train at home, alone, you should consider buying these pieces of equipment:
- Return board: You need a table and a returning board. Practice alone your forehand and backhand techniques.
- Ball holder: To practice the acceleration and the topspin feeling.
- The string: To improve the strength of your core muscle (back, legs, hips).
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thanks
wag1 coach got any tips on how to start table tennis
yes, there are 7 tips to start table tennis. Just search “table tennis tips beginners pingsunday” on Google.
Hi coach, can u recommend a good blade that I can use from beginning level until to higher level…tq
Is it okay to choose a japanese rubber for my forehand saide? My blade is dhs power G7. I wanted to buy Chinese rubber like dhs hurricane 3 neo but I notice that there are alot of fake rubbers in the store. One of my friend bought a dhs hurricane 3 neo rubber and we noticed that it is fake becase the top sheet came off easily from the sponge. So coach, is it okay to buy a japanese rubber? they say that Japanese rubbers are durable.
For your forehand side, choose MAX rubber, 2.2 mm.
You will hit hard with your forehand, if you choose 2.0 mm, the ball will “bottom out”, (very low throw angle). Use 2.0 mm, you will make less spin. So choose 2.2 mm, and hard rubber on your forehand side.
hi coach, I am about to buy a new
rubber for my forehand side. Which rubber thickness should I prefer? 2.0 mm or 2.2 mm?
uve bean trolled